SXSW Highlights; Reindeer Firms; Reputation Protection; Firsts in Detroit

"…insights for scaleups"

HEADLINES:

SXSW — VR and IOT — Austin's big tech (and music) gathering is happening this week and the two big technologies dominating the show are virtual reality and the internet of things (IOT) – both of which are impacting every industry. This 2-minute Fortune video provides the highlights.

What Happens in Vegas Stays on Youtube! — this is the title of a must-read book by all leaders, parents, and teenagers – no less than your precious reputation is at stake! Erik Qualman, sitting professor at Harvard and MIT's edX labs and Pulitzer Prize nominated author, will keynote our upcoming ScaleUp Summit May 24 – 25, Atlanta. GPro and book club members will receive a copy of Erik's book next week. Erik is joining General McChrystal, Jim Whitehurst (RedHat CEO), David Bulter (Coca-Cola), and a half-dozen other top biz thought leaders at the Summit.

36 Social Media Tips — go right to Chapter 1 of Qualman's book which opens with a list of 36 Social Media Tips – scan down and pick a few. Then work through the rest of this outstanding list as he provides quick tips/links for each. I particularly like #21 – and in a fitting way, this week at the Global Entrepreneurship Congress in Medellin, Colombia (in front of 7500) I officially announced our ScaleUp Institute which plans to help 150 cities around the globe establish ScaleUp Eco-systems – with a goal of working with 150 high potential companies in each. This is a 10x for Gazelles as we'll work directly with over 20,000 of the best scaleups around the globe.

Three Promises to Cities — this Crain's Detroit interview highlights our new ScaleUpU city initiative. Most cities have robust startup eco-systems. However, many startup (11,000/hour in the world), but too few scaleup. We're promising cities we'll help deliver over 10 years, as we work with a handpicked group of high potential firms:

1. One home-grown billion-dollar firm – we've helped create dozens already (many endorsed the latest book)
2. Help 5 – 10 firms scale and then exit for a combined $1 billion to $3 billion – getting the owners 50% – 100% more for their firm than anticipated through our partnership with STS Capital
3. Help 75% – 85% of the other 140 companies/city (we're not always successful) in continuing to scale.

This will bring cities real wealth and economic activity. Again, you can read more in this Crain's Detroit interview.

Detroit – a City of Firsts — FYI, I'll be in Detroit May 20 celebrating the 20th anniversary launch of the local EO chapter and the 15th anniversary of Mastering the Rockefeller Habits (which was birthed in Detroit), all thanks to John Anderson, our first ever Gazelles coaching partner. Detroit was also the location of the first YPO chapter at which I ever spoke. Now we need to do more to help the city!! The Crain's interview is the first of several leading up to the celebration.

What are Reindeer Firms? (Fun Fact) — so you keep up on the growth company lingo, reindeer firms are those that achieve market value of more than $2 billion in five years vs. unicorns that create $1 billion! Also learn about dying donkeys and lean cockroaches in this business animal lexicon story – 1 minute to read.

Summit Video (96 seconds) — BTW, if you've never attended one of our Summits, here's a quick look at the last one in Dallas where over 900 CEOs and their executive teams gathered for two days of learning from the top biz top leaders of our time. Each Summit hosts a new set of top biz authors – so the equivalent of reading a dozen of the most important books to out-learn the competition. Thank you to SnapShot Video, an experienced Scaling Up (Rockefeller Habits 2.0) practicing firm, for shooting this short 96 second video.

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 Cupp describes the four most important attributes of successful clients.

And if you're interested in becoming a world-class certified Gazelles International coach, please contact Jean Carpenter at [email protected] / (360) 798.9471.

Align Software puts everyone on the Same Page – Literally! See, in real time every person in your organization and how they are progressing on their priorities – alongside how they 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.