13 Lessons Verne Harnish Taught Me

Written by Cheryl Beth Kuchler, CEO Think Tank

It’s been almost a decade since I first heard Verne Harnish speak at a two-day “Mastering the Rockefeller Habits” workshop in Washington D.C. about “Scaling Up” a small business. It was, to put it bluntly, engrossing, overwhelming and life-changing.

Listening to Verne Harnish is like drinking from a fire hose. More illustratively, as one of my fellow Lehigh alums would say, listening to him is like drinking from the beer bong of business learning.

There’s so much to absorb, it’s nearly impossible to keep up. And if you’re not quick enough, you could drown. Six or seven hours into his workshop, as my head was going under water for the umpteenth time, I decided I needed a life vest.

So I started to capture the “highlights” from my learning to help me remember as well as focus. Two days later, I had thirteen points that summarized my key insights, my takeaways, which in turn would guide my behaviors in the years to come – in my own consulting business – which I was working to grow as well as with my clients who were working to grow their businesses.

As pertinent today as they were ten years ago, I offer them to you to consider for your own 2018 planning.  My favorite? #3 – If you have a problem or an opportunity ask yourself, “Who’s already doing this and how are they doing it?” Verne taught me that most business problems have been solved by someone else. We spend way too much time re-inventing the wheel. You just have to figure out who that resource is, and reach out. (See Lesson #2 for your next step.)

And click here to read my complete list of Verne’s 13 Lessons. Which one will you be focusing on for the coming year?

4 Secrets to Creating an Engaged Workforce

Written by Cheryl Beth Kuchler, Ballantree Consulting

With over 285 employees, and almost 400 residents living in resort-style accommodations, running The Hill at Whitemarsh says Judy McGruther, who’s been the CEO since they started up over a dozen years ago, is like being the mayor of a small city.

But it’s more than that. “The Hill” is a Five Star Continuing Care Community in Lafayette Hill, PA, north of Philadelphia. And the Five Stars don’t come without a great deal of commitment, time and attention to detail from Judy and her Leadership Team. No more so than back in 2013 when the team realized that their hiring process wasn’t producing the results that they wanted – or needed – to grow.

Numerous challenges faced them. Finding the right employees in a highly competitive job market – for what’s often a very high stress jobs with tremendous responsibility caring for elderly, sometimes frail, residents.  An interview process that was taking too long resulting in lost candidates. Being in an industry that’s known for its high turnover. With an expansion in the works, Judy’s team had to do something different if they were to meet their growth goals.

How did they double their engagement scores and support their culture of high performance service as well? Read on here to learn more about the four key ingredients to their success!

And come to our upcoming briefing to learn more about how we can help you. For more information or just to register to attend for free and learn more click here.