Overseas Partners; Splitting HR; Millennial Myths; Ventura Air Services

"…insights for scaleup"

HEADLINES:

It's in the Can — after a week in the studio, the completely updated Scaling Up (Rockefeller Habits 2.0) online hybrid course is ready, more info below but first…

Overseas Partners — my latest Fortune column delineates 5 ways to find the right overseas partner. This topic is of personal interest since Gazelles and several of our investments are continually seeking partners to help expand globally. The five:

1. Weed out rookies
2. Use investigators/databases
3. Host a bake-off
4. Be prepared to lose control
5. US Dept of Commerce Gold Key Program

Considering the last point, yesterday I met with the Netherland's Business Support officer who helps Dutch firms do business in Spain. There are many excellent resources to help you transact business overseas. Please take 2 minutes to scan the column for the details. Thanks to Gordon Orr, McKinsey China; Greg Cullison, Big Sky Associates; Alex Schroder, Prisma Group; and Fred Crosetto, Ammex for contributing to the column.

Time to Split HR into Two — Ram Charan's latest very short (30 seconds) article in Harvard Business Reviewsupports what we've delineated on our FACE (Function Accountability Chart) tool in Scaling Up – that HR should be split into two functions. One is focused on the administrative aspects and reports to the CFO. The other, according to Charan "would focus on improving the people capabilities of the business and would report to the CEO." This is why we're so adamant about having someone accountable for Talent Development. If you want to 10x the company, you must 10x the capabilities of the talent. And it seems everything is in oversupply, including oil and gas, except talent. I encourage CEOs and heads of HR (People) to consider this change. Thank you to Chuck Kocher, Gazelles International Certified coach, for pointing me to this article.

Myths about Millennials — …and there is a lot of talk about millennials among HR leaders. Those born between 1980 and 2000 now make up 37% of the American workforce vs. 34% for the Baby Boomers. This August Economist article article looks at several large studies that debunk many of the "pop" conclusions about millennials (natural collaborators, into social causes, etc.). Notes the Economist:

As for corporate social responsibility (CSR) "only 35% of millennials put a high emphasis on CSR, compared with 41% of baby-boomers." (this is still significant for both generations!). Take 2 minutes to scan down through the article to see some of the other research results debunking millennial myths. Seems we're more alike than different if these studies are to be believed.

Strengthening the Core; Stronger Profits (Gazelles case study) — top line increased 28% and margins increased 33% from 2014 to 2015 for Nick Tarascio's family-owned business Ventura Air Services. This Farmingdale, NY-based firm — which offers charter flights, flight training and aircraft maintenance – had grown to 30 employees. Then the financial crisis hit just as Tarascio was taking over as CEO at age 27. With the help of Gazelles International Certified coach Mark Green, Tarascio orchestrated the turnaround by strengthening the core. Like athletes, there are some key "muscles" that need strengthened to support the entire venture. My latest Huffington Post blog details the turnaround. Please take 3 minutes to scan through for ideas to help strengthen your core.

A Blue Print for Scaling Up — The new online Scaling Up Class delivers the practical lessons that most Business Schools don't. It's a blue print for building a growth company. Q3 is the best time of the year to tune-up your strategy and planning skills to have a great 2016! For more information on how to register for the class contact Juan Gonzalez at [email protected] or to get a copy of the class syllabus click here.

COACHING:

Have you ever wondered if your company would be a good candidate to work with an executive growth coach? Click here to watch Gazelles International President Keith Coach describes the four most important attributes of successful clients.

TECHNOLOGY:

Align Software puts everyone on the Same Page – Literally! See, in real time every person in your organization and how they are progress on their priorities – alongside how these Align to the Company Priorities! Scale Up your Rockefeller Habits implementation with www.aligntoday.com– on your computer and on your phone.

Better Book Club — What's your team reading? Increase your books read per team member. Easy, Proven, and in the Cloud at http://www.BetterBookClub.com.