fbpx

Attention CEOs: Accomplish more by doing less

Most CEOs are doers. They’ve built their businesses from the ground up and revel in the satisfaction their successes bring. But they can’t do everything themselves, and that’s OK. So, what should these doers actually do? When do CEOs delegate, and when do they take the lead? As a fellow CEO, I’ve contemplated this very question. I’ve found that involving myself in day-to-day tasks and issues can quickly consume my time and infringe on long-term goals. But CEOs need some level of involvement in every aspect of their business to make sure the company is on track to reach its long-term goals. The question isn’t deciding which areas to pay attention to but how you should interact with each aspect of the company. Resist the Urge to Do The balance between involvement and “doing” can be difficult to achieve because CEOs didn’t reach executive status by sitting back and delegating tasks to others. They got their hands dirty and took care of the nitty-gritty details. But once you’ve established processes and hired a dedicated staff, dissociating yourself from every decision can be difficult — and jumping into daily disputes can put your company at serious risk. For example, Chuck is the CEO of an advertising agency who used to head up the digital department. When his team is slammed and trying to meet a deadline, his first inclination is to dive in and help. However, spending a week writing code and testing a website isn’t the best use of his time because the areas that require his attention won’t get covered. As a company grows, it’s important that employees do their specific jobs so every aspect is taken care of. If Chuck loses sight of [...]

Embrace the 50-20-30 Rule

What would happen to your agency if you were abducted by aliens? It seems like a silly question, but bear with me. If you were captive on another planet with no way to reach your team, would your company survive? If the answer is no, then I've got bad news for you. You built a company so you could give yourself a job. When you're caught up in the day-to-day operations of running an agency, it's hard to step back and imagine that the company could ever run without you. But if your absence would cause the agency's AGI to drop massively, you're doing something wrong. Agency owners who stay involved in client work long after they have a strong staff to manage those relationships end up working in their businesses indefinitely. Instead of lifting their heads up to focus on long-term strategies and expansion, they fill their days with client calls and customer service. Maybe you think working on client accounts demonstrates how committed you are to their needs. But what kind of example does this set for employees? You can't grow your company when you're micromanaging client accounts. You're just signaling that you don't trust your team. The more involved you are in client work, the less likely you are to build an agency that someone will want to buy. As the organization stagnates, staff members will leave for agencies where they see growth potential. As an agency owner, you must focus on cultivating big-picture opportunities. You do that by organizing your time around the business's top priorities. The 50-20-30 rule Agency owners should apply the 50-20-30 rule to how they spend their time. Start by allotting 50 percent of your time to [...]

Go to Top