How Board Members Can Help You Through a Recession
With recession looming, having a strong board is now more important than ever.
First, COVID-19. Then, health mandates. Add in choked-up supply chains, the Russia-Ukraine war, rising prices, interest rates, and inflation. Economists are starting to unite around the prediction — a recession is inevitable.
No one has a crystal ball, and the future seems more uncertain than ever, but if we break these problems down (e.g., pandemics, war, and rising food and fuel prices leading to a recession), we realize that many of us have lived through similar challenges before. Either we made it out on the other side alive and thriving, or we made mistakes and learned what not to do. These insights are valuable for getting through this next round of uncertainty.
Alone, a business owner can see issues from a limited amount of angles. Especially as first-time leaders, it can be hard to think outside the box with little experience to reference. But, with a board, its members’ expertise can help in more informed decision-making. Leaders can lean into the diverse range of expertise their board members have — their “been there, done that’s” — to tackle challenges and opportunities better and get their company through even the toughest of times, including the oncoming recession.
Related: Building a Better Board: 5 Things Every New Board Member Should Know
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The Time for Outside Board Members is Now
Outside board members are the x-factor that will propel your company out of times of crisis.
Outside board members have always been a necessity, but today they are more important than ever. When a company can turn to a board with a broad diversity of insights and with members from outside the company, they receive guidance that can be the advantage they need to survive tough times. Nowadays, it seems like times are only getting tougher.
As problems increasingly have global repercussions, every decision we make could make or break a business. Outside board insights have always been a necessary consideration for staying agile and strengthening decision-making power, but now, those insights are becoming indispensable. To be more in an uncertain future, bring on outside board members for a broader selection of expertise to fill a company’s gaps and the best chance of coming through anything on top.
Related: Why E-Commerce Businesses Need to Rethink Their Channel Strategy
Look outside your company for the best fit
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How Your Board Should Guide Your Hiring Practices
“The Great Resignation” does not seem to be letting up any time soon, so take advice from your board in order to revamp your hiring practices to retain and recruit strong employees.
Just as the remote work trend brought on by the pandemic never seemed to go away, “The Great Resignation” is starting to seem like a permanent shift in today’s business landscape. People left in masses and moved on to better pay, more perks and greater flexibility — and are unlikely to give this trend up any time soon.
For a company to keep up with the changing face of business, its leaders need to be frequently evaluating their company hiring practices to recruit, attract and retain the right employees for the job. This can take a lot of time strategizing that CEOs may not always have to spare while running a business. For support in uncovering otherwise overlooked areas to maximize advantages in hiring, leaders should turn to their boards to guide them.
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These 4 Elements Are Key to Branding Your Business
In today’s world of rapid startup growth, branding your company is essential to stand out from your competitors and find success.
Competition in business today is tough, yet more and more businesses are entering the arena than ever before. While many companies never make it through their first five years, some hit it big overnight. There’s a treasure trove of wealth to be made for those of us who know how to unlock it, but times have changed, and these are unprecedented business waters.
With more avenues to reach consumers than ever before and more businesses starting up every day, all brands know they have competitors out there, but they can still take steps to stand out.
To rise above the rest, a clearly articulated and targeted brand identity is key. Here’s how to do it right:
1. Brand everything
Remember that just as important as branding your particular product or service is branding everything that goes along with it. Think about how your brand can define every aspect of your company’s identity. On your website, make sure your call to action is appropriately branded. Make sure your blog posts or social media branding all flows in line with the same branding inspiration. Especially when you put money into your company, make sure that every investment is going to be worth it for your brand identity in the long run.
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To Become a Top Executive, Take Control of Your Personal Brand Today
Personal branding is the number one strategy you should employ in order to build trust in both you and your business.
In today’s search-engine era, numerous search platforms make it easier than ever to find out all you could ever need to know about products, businesses or even personal information about senior-level executives. At the same time, with so much information out there, it can be easy to go unnoticed — which is why companies dedicate entire teams to branding their image, mission, vision and values. This branding helps grow their business.
But when it comes to growing a career, personal branding is key.
If you aspire to greater things, it is more important to create a personal brand than anything else. Take your skill sets and make them shine in the places where everybody can see you. The stronger the branding, the better the chances of excelling and accelerating your career.
If your sights are set on becoming an executive or getting onto company boards, then personal branding is the best first choice you can make to get started. Here’s why.
Public profiles speak volumes
An overwhelming majority of employers say candidates’ social-media accounts affect their hiring decisions, meaning a poor public image can cost you a job. Before even scheduling an interview, the employers who work with my company to bring on board members do their own research on each executive outside of our platform. We analyzed years of this selection data from our clients and found that the common factor increasing an executive’s chance of landing an interview is personal branding.
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Growing Pains: How to Turn Hard Times Into Periods of Immense Personal Growth
Difficult times are often par for the course in business, but your response and approach to these hard times will determine whether they result in hardships or growth.
Almost every entrepreneur will identify with the term “growing pains,” especially in reference to a business’s early months and years. There are periods of time when almost every day presents a struggle to work through or a knot to untangle — I’ve certainly been there myself! If you’re not experiencing any growing pains, you’re probably not growing.
But the good news is that last week’s setback does not define you. In a year’s time, you probably won’t remember whatever problem kept you awake last night. It can be difficult to step back when you’re knee-deep in the latest challenge, but my advice is always to “take the long view.” Today’s trials will eventually fade into memory, as long as you put in the work to conquer them and avoid getting pulled off your path to success. Instead of seeing problems as obstacles cluttering the road ahead, try to view them as steps to climb. Put one foot in front of the other and you will ascend higher toward your goals.
Look outside yourself for inspiration
Many entrepreneurs default to looking inwards for inspiration, ideas and answers to problems. Under the right circumstances, that practice can serve you well. However, don’t forget that opening up to your partners, advisors, line managers and other members of your extended team can make all the difference. Sometimes, turning outwards leads to solutions you never would have considered.
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Stop Moving the Goalposts: Do You Recognize Your Own Success?
Here’s what you can learn from author Og Mandino’s self-help books.
I am a firm believer in personal development. Regardless of the cards that life deals you, it’s really how you play them that determines your level of success. In my journey, I have found many personal development books to be really helpful, but none more so than those written by author and speaker Og Mandino.
As someone who pulled himself back from the brink of suicide and alcoholism, Mandino is not your average self-help guru, and the lessons I have taken from his work are sometimes surprising.
Learning through stories
One of the things that draws me to Mandino’s work is that he doesn’t write like other self-help authors. For the most part, he writes stories, and within those tales lie the lessons. His work comes from a standpoint of sharing what he has learned and not necessarily teaching theory.
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