Richard Harbridge’s Post

As I prep for our board meeting later this month, I have to remember to zoom out. Nothing worse than laboring through 25+ slides of your Q1 update, and then have a board member ask a question that exposes you have not been thinking much beyond the next quarter. Bosses and boards expect us to zoom out and think ahead - so here are a few questions you can ask yourself before presenting anything: 1. What happens if this goes well? Don’t just focus on the risks, look at the potential impact from every angle.
 2. Why am I tracking this metric? Make sure your leading indicators are indicating something that really matters and indicates progress.
 3. What would I say or do if I were new to this team? We get tunnel vision the longer we’re in a role, which makes it harder to tell when we’re focused on the wrong thing. 4. What would the CEO say if they were here? Get in the habit of asking the hard hitting questions even when an executive won’t be in the room. These prompts help you to zoom out and be more strategic in your work. And in a pinch, ask AI to be your thought-partner and help you zoom out. We shared a few more prompts in yesterday’s Personal Math. Link in comments.

Really great quote - especially for those of us who love a forecast! Bill Gates is shining a light on short term overestimation (never guilty of that!) and asking us to focus on the longer term. This is great advice for #businessleaders who are working to deliver sustainable long term outcomes, usually with both colleagues and customers. We know that crystal ball gazing after Brexit, Covid and a cost of living crisis might stop us doing things - this quote should shake us up as we are halfway through our ten years (and Gen AI is now rattling our cage). For #salesleaders grappling with rapid change and uncertainty; working with customers closely is the way to success. We need to inspire our colleagues every day to look at the long term whilst trying to deliver this years targets. Be brave, long term strategies are the route to success. #billgates #inspirationalleader #positivemindset

After consulting for dozens of business owners I found a common demoninator that keeps them stuck…. It’s indecision. Some take 2-3 days to make a decision, and after deciding… …take a 3 days to take action … and delay the outcome When I scaled a business from 15k/m to 5.5 million in 11.5 months we made decisions and moves DAILY… Yes even on the weekends and holidays. Weekends and holidays are for poor people anyway…Just kidding! 🤣 If someone is making a decision and makes a move everyday… They’re moving 7x faster than someone who takes a week to make something happen! This is a competitive advantage. Will there be mistakes? Heck yeah! You will be scrappy moving fast but you will have… 👉 More data 👉 More feedback Which means you can… Think faster… Make QUALITY decisions faster… And as a result, get BIGGER outcomes….FASTER than your competitors. Decision-making is a SKILL… Practice. Often. If you’re wrong - you learn. So you win anyway ✊🏽

Are you tracking KPIs for yourself and your team? Here’s why it’s essential: KPIs aren’t just metrics; they’re tools for accountability and growth. By setting clear targets, you empower yourself and your team with a roadmap to success, helping everyone see what’s working and where improvements are needed. This clarity doesn’t just enhance performance; it brings peace of mind, giving employees a clear sense of what to achieve and how they’re measured. Plus, KPIs create opportunities to build motivating bonus structures. It’s a small step with a powerful, compounding impact on business success. #BusinessGrowth #KPIs #Accountability #TeamSuccess #EmployeeMotivation #MeasureSuccess

Think you can't turn SOFT skills into HARD results? Well, guess what we did?? I am blown away by the results from our latest "Thriving In Uncertainty - Building An Improv Mindset" course! 🎉 A professional services company asked us to level up their leadership team’s listening, collaboration, and adaptability—and let’s just say, the results speak for themselves (literally, we have the data! 😉). We’re turning “soft” skills into POWER skills with real-time assessments, data, and peer feedback to back it up. And guess what? These skills CAN be improved, big time! Here’s the scoop: ✅Listening: 63% self-reported improvement (58% from peers and managers… #yesand they noticed!) ✅Collaboration: 55% improvement reported by participants, and 59% from their bosses (hello, innovation!) ✅Adaptability: 57% boost from participants (and their peers/managers agreed with a solid 58%). With an NPS of 9.2 and quotes like: "The ExperienceYes team has put together a well thought out curriculum, backed by research, to enable leaders to become more effective" "I've worked with (him) on a difficult client. Over the past 8 weeks with this client, he was faced with some challenges and course changes to the work. I witnessed him taking the redirection in stride, working with the client and internally to further understand and plan a path forward." We are PUMPED! 💪 When you're ready to work with us and power UP your team, book an appointment! (link in the comments)⚡️ #success #business #cs #sales #professionalservices #fintech #saas #tech Gail Montgomery ExperienceYes

Happy March 1st....For all the CFO's out there, we did not forget about you. We are seeing an increase in collaboration between Support, Success leaders, and CFOs, speaking the same language has never been more important. On March 12th, we're hosting a discussion that aims to bridge that communication gap and provide valuable insights for revamped Support reporting. Join TheLoops with Craig Stoss, Susana de Sousa and Kincy Clark for "Smart Metrics Are In, Standard Metrics Are Out." This is online and will be recorded, start time is 10:00 am PST (Click the Fireside Chat below to Register) #CFO's, #Support, #Success

What are your questions around "complexity"? At yesterday's #AgileRoundTable, we talked about "dealing with #complexity" - My impulse to understand this in an experience journey in (currently) four levels, seemed to resonate. As I see this challenge (in mostly linear systems demanding simplification) seems stagnating, I will try to visualize it and add concrete examples over the weekend. What would be your questions around "dealing with complexity?"

"Markets, technology, customer loyalty, and consumer preference— they’re all changing quickly. A business's ability to innovate and adapt are important factors and challenges that businesses are going to be looking at in the coming year.” Read more of our Q&A with Propeller CEO Sunil Kasturi. We talk about Propeller's next phase of growth, how we are evolving to meet client needs, and the challenges businesses are facing in 2024. https://lnkd.in/d9iSKwRw #Leadership #CompanyCulture #ceo #2024trends #ceoinsights

GenAI, declining CX, how to measure success - if these are topics that you are grappling with during strategic planning or board discussions, then the below exec briefing will challenge your perspective. We are running an event with senior execs from a range of industries to share our view and for you to see how your peers are tackling some of their most pressing issues. Drop me message if you'd like to find out more.

improvement