Why Every Company Needs Interim Management

Whether you are a brand new start up or a Fortune 500 company, your organization can benefit from interim management. An interim management executive goes into an organization to solve a problem or develop and execute a strategy, but only on an as needed basis. Here are some reasons that every company should consider using interim management.

Save Money
One of the benefits of having an interim management executive is that you can conserve cash. The alternative of hiring a full time interim management executive can cost significantly more to an organization. There’s often head hunter fees, the cost of a benefit’s package, employment taxes, in addition to full time wages and bonuses. Interim management can cost a fraction of the cost, but still accomplish the desired objectives.

Tap A Pool Of Specialized Marketing Executives
Finding an executive with specific expertise to solve a specific need in your organization can be very difficult and expensive. Instead, work with an interim management company that has a pool of dozens of experienced interim management executives, each with a specific area of expertise. Need someone to come in to execute a marketing roll out in China or someone to streamline the sales funnel? Develop a relationship with an interim management company so that you can tap these skill sets when your company needs them.

Get An Outside Point of View
Hiring an interim management executive during strategic planning can provide a much needed outside point of view to combat group think and bring a new perspective. While you can get an outside point of view by hiring a consulting company, you may prefer a marketing executive with 20 years experience,  who has first hand experience dealing with the problems you may have.

Reduce Opportunity Costs
When there is a gap in a key position, there is an opportunity cost of not having an effective executive in the role. Often organizations spend months to fill a key position with a C-level executive. During this time there can be a significant loss of revenue or market share. Interim management solves this problem for organizations by filling the position temporarily, until the permanent hire can take over.

See more on the benefits of Interim Management:
When to Hire Interim Management
7 Ways Interim Management Can Help an Organization

Steve Balmer on the Future of Digital Advertising

Steve Balmer presented at Cannes Advertising Festival this past year and discussed what he envisions for the future of digital advertising. He makes some interesting predictions, like that all content will eventually be digital. You can see the full presentation at www.canneslions.com.

Marketing Transportation in China

Here is a question asked of our expert panel of interim marketing executives. If you have a question about marketing or sales, you can submit it here.

Question: I have a US-based company that is launching a product into china into the city transportation space. How would this marketing effort differ from a similar marketing effort in the US?

The fundamentals of defining & finding customers and marketing won’t differ significantly from a US approach. The most important differences in doing business in China will stem from culture, patterns of consumption, & channels.

For example, in promoting Intel Inside into China in the ’90’s media and channel outlets we’re accustomed to in the US at the time didn’t exist or were pretty fragmented or cluegy. In that period one of the most reliable & significant channel’s of mass communications was millions of bicycles and riders that commute each day. So millions of the familiar Intel Inside logo were handed out as stickers,reflectors and decals to put on the bikes. Lots of media impressions during ‘ride time’ morning, noon, and night!!!

-Peter Klinge, Interim Management Executive

Marketing is much less defined and fragmented than in US. If marketing into governmental channels culture will become a dominant factor. Commercial channels are much more multi-layered and fractured than in US. Most essential ingredients for success are trusted partners with management talent who understand and operate comfortably and effectively in the Chinese market. Although the quantity and quality of the human capital in china is very strong the country still lacks good middle and upper – level managerial expertise thus necessitating expensive expats to support operations. Think long term and cultivate relationships for the long haul. Skimming strategies may work in the very short term, but the Chinese learn quickly. Consequently, penetration strategies will reap optimum benefits. In the US companies are accustomed to competitors who are focused on profit. In china, there is a mix of private companies, state-owned companies and hybrid businesses. Government businesses exist to provide jobs, rather than to create profits.

-Joe Heaney, Interim Management Executive

Is it a product that will be sold to the city or sold through advertising on transportation?

One of the most significant differences compared to US is the amount of government involvement that will be required. Here we think about he government only when it gets in our way. There, you have to have a deliberate plan to deal with the government and officials that are involved. At the worst case the Company will have to anticipate requests for direct payoff and should be very knowledgeable of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. This applies to how they deal with people and how their contractors or employees deal with people that ask for payment for influence.

Another consideration is who they work with in China. A common mistake is picking a contact based on relationship, e.g. a brother of someone they know in the US. This person may not know the market or vertical. It’s important that you recruit for industry and market knowledge and do the background checks.

-Dave Parker, Interim Management Executive

Like peeling an onion, Developing personal long-term relationships has to be one of the primary objectives to develop a lasting market presence in the Far East. Although placed at a arms-length at the beginning, once the trust and personal connection is established will the benefits of the launch will be achieved.

-Rich Hennessey, Interim Management Executive

Tom Asacker Rants On Social Changes Taking Place (Video)

Tom Asacker is a marketing thought leader and author. Here’s a video of his presentation on marketing trends driven by the social changes that are taking place.

7 Costs of Misalignment of Sales and Marketing

The misalignment of sales and marketing can prevent an organization from reaching it’s sales potential. Interim marketing executive Chuck Besondy, explains the top 7 costs of misalignment of sales and marketing.

There’s a lot of talk about aligning sales and marketing. I’ve given speeches on the topic and have written numerous posts. Company executives know it’s an issue, but what are the costs associated with misalignment?

If our car is out of alignment we know that the tires are going to wear out faster; we are more in danger of the car wandering out of our lane into on-coming traffic; the ride isn’t as smooth; and the car is harder to steer. We know the cost of replacing tires and in our mind we can calculate the risk of an accident. That’s pretty easy.

But, what is the cost if a company’s revenue engine is out of alignment? Believe me, it’s costing you more than a set of new tires.

I want to open this discussion up and let the ideas flow. I have a thesis. I think most companies have been driving in a misaligned state for so long they are settling for sub-par results and resigned to trying to solve the problem. Misalignment is the default situation in most B2B companies.

Here is an excellent reason why an outside executive serving in an interim manager capacity at your firm, or as a consultant is best able to get you out of the rut. They bring objectivity and the knowledge that there is indeed gold at the end of the rainbow.

What is the cost of misalignment? If, as business managers, we can’t put a number to the cost we’ll hesitate to invest in a solution, and that is the way it should be.

Here are a few areas in which misalignment is costing your company.

1. Low conversion rates – your proposal to close ratio is static or falling. Research has shown that misaligned companies have a lower conversion rate. What would be the impact if you reduced your cost of customer acquisition by 10% , 20% or more?

2. Missed revenue forecasts – unpleasant budget surprises at quarter end when actual sales are significantly below budget.

3. Lost customers – research has shown that misaligned companies are not as good at keeping and growing profitable customers. What is the lifetime value of a customer? If you lost 10% or 20% fewer customers each year what would than mean to the top line and bottom line?

4. Slow reaction to market dynamics – when marketing and sales have difficulty agreeing on direction and tactics there are delays in action; opportunities are missed. What is the value to you in beating the competition to a market opportunity?

5. Internal strife – It’s not fun or productive to work in a company in which marketing and sales are at odds (or at war). Soon egos and politics rule the decision making rather than a focus on progressing buyers through the sales funnel. The cost here, besides low productivity, is employee turnover. What are your recruitment and training costs in sales and marketing?

6. Do-overs – programs are often created and never implemented because there is disagreement about what should be done and how. What is the cost of programs that never see the light of day, or what is the cost of do-overs?

7. Loss of momentum – the most effective revenue generation plans are those that have coordinated strategies and tactics where sales and marketing are pulling forward together. A dog-sled team is a good metaphor. When the dogs are running out of step or in different directions the sled is not going to progress at optimum speed.

Those areas will give you a start. I’m sure I’ve overlooked a few. Once you’ve identified the cost areas you’re ready to get out your calculator and compute what the chaos is costing you.

Give it a shot. Bring out the calculator, look at your current financial statements and budget. Don’t be shocked if the total cost is 5% or more of your total sales and marketing budget.

Think small if you like. What would a 5% improvement in any area look like? Think big. What would a 20% improvement in any area look like? What would a 5% improvement in all areas look like?

I look forward to reading your comments and sharing more on this topic soon.

Chuck Besondy is a principal at One Accord Partners and is co-author of Leadership on Demand: How Smart CEO’s Tap Interim Management to Drive Revenue. You can read more about Interim Sales and Marketing Management by Chuck Besondy at his blog The Sales Funnel Fanatic.

Photo by woodsy

Interim Sales and Marketing VP: Richard Brune

I help transform companies and sales process and methodology and help with sales metrics and profit and loss. I have over 25 years of experience building and managing consumer brands and products selling to all retail channels: department stores, mass merchants, clubs, specialty stores internet and broadcast media. As a OneAccord partner I can fill a position for an emerging or SMB company as interim VP of sales or I can come along side the leadership on a project to develop the sales and revenue generating growth of an organization. The value that OneAccord brings is that we have the experience having walked in the shoes of the client. We’ve held the executive leadership positions and are willing to come into your organization to not only strategize but execute the deliverables. We are scaled nationwide so we have the resources and expertise that is needed and can work collaboratively providing our clients with a wide range of revenue focused expertise. In addition OneAccord partners tell the truth about where a company is and where it needs to go.

Richard Brune is a interim sales and marketing VP for OneAccord with a strong track record managing some of America’s most recognizable consumer brands. Mr. Brune has an unbroken record of substantial sales and market share increases with such brands as Stanley Tools, Hartmann Luggage, REI Inc., Swiss Army Brands and licensed products with Eddie Bauer and Disney. Richard has a proven ability to develop new markets and expand existing ones. He is an effective leader with the ability to build highly productive and motivated sales teams. A bottom line executive with the ability to reduce operating expenses while continuing to enjoy growth and profitability.

Richard Brune can be contacted at richard.brune@oneaccordpartners.com

Best Buy CMO on the Future of Marketing

I think a company that really understands the new digital marketing landscape is Best Buy. The CMO has a blog and twitter (@bestbuycmo) where he talks and learns from customers. Greg Verdino discusses engaging consumers with digital media and how Best Buy is building credibility for social media marketing.

The importance of listening, and engaging with customers directly in an open and honest way. The growing importance of the mobile web and the ways it can empower consumers throughout the buying process. The fact that everything is going digital and what this means for the products and services companies offer. The realizations that a great customer experience is the best marketing money can’t buy, and that brands are inherently social.

Heard it all before? Of course. But somehow it sounds more credible when spoken by the CMO of a large corporation, even more so when that CMO works for a company that actually practices what he preaches.

Check out this video of Best Buy CMO Barry Judge, talking about the future of marketing. Judge offers a nice overview of how Best Buy’s marketing approach has evolved from old school tell-n-sell, where it is now, and where it’s headed tomorrow.

This article was originally posted at Greg Verdino’s Blog, and is licensed under the Creative Commons 3.0 license.

Marketing with the Placebo Effect

Placebos are a fascinating and incredible phenomenon that demonstrates the power of our minds to shape how we perceive reality. A patient who is given a sugar pill instead of an actual pain reliever can feel the same decrease in pain as if they were to receive a medication with chemicals that block the pain receptors at the cellular level. One explanation of the placebo effect is that we tend to experience what we expect. If you expect to hate a new restaurant, you probably will. If a friend hints that the movie you are about to enter received great reviews, you will probably enjoy it. Our expectations can be so strong, they can create feelings that contradict the actual reality.

An example of this contradiction occurred during a study performed by MIT professor Dan Ariely, author of Predictably Irrational. He asked people to rate how they liked two beers, one was a Sam Adams and the other was a Sam Adams with balsamic vinegar. Most people preferred the Sam Adams with the balsamic vinegar. However when he told people beforehand that one contained balsamic vinegar, most people hated it.

Marketers can take this knowledge and use it to improve the real experiences of consumers by creating an environment of positive expectations. This can be visually appealing packaging- high quality wine glasses or an aesthetically designed box. Or by helping raving customers share their satisfaction through social channels like web forums or Twitter. It can be hinting to a prospect that your company was awarded for great customer satisfaction.

Now that you know the power of expectations to shape perceptions of customer’s experience, what will you do to improve customer experience?

Articles about Placebos

The Placebo Affect Seth’s Blog

Marketing and the Placebo Effect Nueromarketing

How the Placebo Effect Works HowStuffWorks

Become an Exceptional Marketing Organization in 9 Simple Steps

by Scott Philips, Interim Management Executive, OneAccord

We frequently hear the statement ‘what was successful last year isn’t working anymore, so what can we do to find the magic again?’ There really is no easy answer, but there is a process that will enable you to find success with your marketing initiatives.

1. Analyze the market
The better you know your industry, your customers, your competitors and yourself, the better you will make good decisions that give you leverage in your marketplace.

Some of the basics include knowing your S.W.O.T. – Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. Strengths and Weaknesses are internal to your organization and Opportunities and Threats are external to your organization. Find places and ways to leverage strengths and to minimize weaknesses.

Another key is understanding where you earn your the greatest profits, as a percentage and in total dollars.

2.Target the best prospects
You have hundreds if not thousands of different target options for finding new prospects. The most important step in finding the right prospects is to ask the question ‘Which prospects are easy to acquire, difficult to steal, provide significant margins, in sufficient quantities and that will be loyal to you over the long run?’ These are your best prospects. And, they really do exist.

Identify them by industry segment, size, commodity, geographic region and any other means to clarify where you will spend your sales time and effort. For example, one of our transportation clients targets the shipping of eggs throughout the mid-west. They have found a market where they can be highly targeted, very profitable and in a space where they can be ‘the best’. And, their results are exceptional.

3. Focus your strategies for best leverage
The three key strategies commonly identified are a) market focus, b) pricing and c) differentiation. Unless you are the very biggest of companies where economies allow you to dramatically lower your operating costs, we recommend focusing on specific markets (market focus) or differentiation as your primary strategy.

Make your company strategy to be your defining mark and match your special capabilities to those prospective companies most needing those capabilities. Maybe you are ‘experts’ at designing special engineered solutions for your customers, concentrate on making that be the focus of your business.

4.Match the marketing elements to your strategy
Most everyone has heard of the four P’s of Marketing – Product/Service, Price, Place and Promotion. We don’t have space to go into detail here, but suffice it to say that these four marketing elements need to be consistent with your overall marketing strategy. If you are following a differentiation strategy then your marketing elements must match that strategy.

5.Develop a Unique Selling Proposition
This fifth step is simply developing a more refined definition of your primary strategy. The Unique Selling Proposition is the identification of one or two key things that make your company stand out in your customers’ minds. What makes you ‘unique’ to your targeted prospects? Examples of these include things like exceptional communications, simplified ordering process, ability to deliver products more quickly, or any number of other ‘special’ or ‘unique’ capabilities.

One key thing to note, your Unique Selling Proposition must be something your prospects really want from you. If not, they will look right past you to someone else.

Once identified, make sure that everything you do supports your unique selling proposition and let everyone you serve know what it is.

6.Create actions to deliver results
The next step is to list key initiatives and actions you need to take to make your marketing initiatives work for you. For example, maybe you need to review your pricing to see if your ‘extra services’ justify a price increase. The key to successful marketing is clearly identifying those actions that enhance your impact with customers.

7. Execute your plans relentlessly
The saying ‘a mediocre plan executed relentlessly will always outperform a perfect plan imperfectly implemented’ is absolutely true. More times than not, we find one of the key differences between a good company and a great company lies in their ability to execute on their plans.

8. Evaluate results
If you have executed your plans well, it is time to measure your progress. Evaluation of results is imperative if you are to improve. And, don’t just look at the numbers, also look at qualitative results. Talk to customers, vendors, prospects and even employees to see how well your plans are working with them. They will tell you.

9.Make adjustments to your plans
Finally, don’t just sit on your successes. Continue to refine and adjust your plans and actions in a continuous effort of improvement. The marketplace is in constant flux which means that today’s solutions won’t necessarily work tomorrow. Keeping a constant vigilance on your customer reactions and your competitor adjustments will help you win in the face of competition.

Nine simple steps will make all the difference in being an exceptional marketing organization with a consistent flow of new customers.

Interim management executive, Scott Philips, is a C-level executive based in Portland with over 30 years of diversified experience in enterprise wide leadership. He is recognized as an action-oriented leader with strengths in strategic management, business assessments, global brand building, business development and enterprise selling. Scott’s experience in analyzing market data, developing solutions and effectively executing plans have resulted in significant revenue growth in a number of companies in a wide variety of industries. He can be reached at 503.913.2705 or scott.philips(at)oneaccordpartners.com

Photo by Yourdon

Interim Management Executive: Casey Leaman

I help companies define and execute their sales strategy and structure and implement a sustainable sales execution framework. I have extensive experience in high tech and international expansion. As a OneAccord partner I can fill a position as the Interim VP of sales or business development for a company with $5-100 million in sales or I can come along side the leadership on a project basis to develop a sales strategy international expansion plan.

The power of OneAccord is the depth and breadth of our sales and marketing expertise as a team combined with our collaborative culture. What this ensures for the client is that the OneAccord resource working with them will be the best fit to drive their revenue growth.

Casey Leaman
Interim Management Executive, OneAccord
casey.leaman@oneaccordpartners.com
512.772.1806

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