Failure: What is it good for?

I've long thought that society needs to change its attitude toward failure. It is only by trying new things that a person learns, a business grows, or a society advances. But trying new things means making mistakes. (The only alternative is to wait until you have every single fact and have worked out every possible scenario – which is a recipe for paranoia and paralysis.)

Earlier this month, Startup Canada ran a “startup chat” on Twitter about failure. Moderator Kelly McGregor’s guest was Laura O’Blenis, Founder of Stiletto Consulting in Fredericton, N.B. They agreed that many entrepreneurs don't like talking about failure, but pointed out that other entrepreneurs in the local ecosystem need to hear their stories; it’s the best way to share solutions and the valuable lessons learned.

You can read McGregor’s summary of the chat here. I like the part where O’Blenis says, “If you are not failing or making mistakes, taking wrong turns sometimes, you are not trying hard enough.” The interactive #startupchats audience agreed, adding that what differentiates winners from losers is not whether or not they fail, but how they deal with failure.

Sounds like common sense, but it’s the kind that’s not common enough.

McGregor writes: “Embracing failure can of course be a tiresome and expensive process. The focus for entrepreneurs is on ensuring you fail fast, and fail cheap. The concept of Minimum Viable Product comes into play here, as developing an MVP will ensure you have minimum investment in a product that is likely to change many times.”

Click here to read the entire summary.

 

Last Call for PROFIT 500 Ranking!

PROFIT Magazine is putting out a last call for companies that want to be considered for its annual ranking of Canada's Fastest-Growing Companies. But you have to enter by April 1!

For the 25th anniversary of this ground-breaking project, PROFIT is pulling out all the stops. This year it is celebrating Canada’s top 500 growth companies.

http://www.profitguide.com/microsite/profit500 

The listing was known as “the Fastest 50” when it started. It then became the PROFIT 100, then the PROFIT 200. Now it is leaping ahead to 500, an undertaking that promises huge benefits to participating companies.

With 500 companies, PROFIT should have sufficient volume of entries to segment the national list into specialty rankings by region and by industry. Your company may be the 267th-fastest-growing company in Canada, but you may also be the 12th fastest-growing manufacturer or the top growth company in Manitoba. (These are just examples; the categories haven't yet been confirmed).

The benefits? Every PROFIT 500 company will be listed in PROFIT magazine, as well as on www.PROFITguide.com. This is PROFIT’s annual must-read issue, so your listing could go a long way. And those interested in personal exit strategies should know that many big companies consider the P200/500 to be Canada’s best shopping list.

PROFIT will also be profiling the top Vancouver, Calgary and Toronto companies in special supplements to be distributed the week of June 3. Quebec companies will get additional coverage in PROFIT’s sister magazine, L’actualité, and firms in Atlantic Canada will get coverage in Atlantic Business magazine.

All winners will be invited to the PROFIT 500 “CEO Summit” in Toronto on June 5. It’s an annual networking andprofessional development event that should blow the roof off this year with so many successful innovators in one place. PROFIT is also hosting regional events (in Toronto, Vancouver and Calgary) in the fall for listed CEOs in those regions.

PROFIT has even changed the reporting criteria, to encourage more companies to enter. Companies are still ranked on five-year revenue growth. But for the first time, the listings will no longer refer to a company’s profitability. And private companies will no longer have to publicly disclose their revenue if they don't want to; they will be able to publish their revenue numbers as a range.

PROFIT insiders tell me that any company that has had five-year revenue growth of more than 50% has a chance to crack the listing.

Don't put if off any longer. Check out http://www.profitguide.com/microsite/profit500 now!

Rick’s comments: As the former editor and publisher of PROFIT (and the guy who named the PROFIT 100 and later expanded it to 200), I salute the plucky, hardworking PROFIT staff who are continually punching above their weight level. This is an ambitious leap forward that could have a huge impact on innovation and entrepreneurial success in Canada. You rock, guys. Good luck!

Stronger Startups and Angels' Wings

I recently had the opportunity to meet with a group of young people taking an entrepreneurship course in the Jane-Finch area of northwest Toronto. I found them quite knowledgeable about business, engaged and curious. We had a good discussion about business successes and failures, and the traits that mark the best entrepreneurs. Part of that discussion turned up in my column in the National Post March 4, under the title “Do you have what it takes to run your own business?”

It’s a fairly basic look at entrepreneurship, but I heard from a lot of senior business people who said they liked it. The story features a list of the seven personality traits most required of startup entrepreneurs, as well as the seven biggest challenges they’re most likely to face. Here’s an excerpt;

Challenge No. 2: Communicating your unique selling proposition. Once you understand your competitive advantage, you have to articulate it. My advice is to create a three-part mission statement that clearly describes what you do, who you do it for and how customers benefit from dealing with you. Example: “I’m a technology consultant who helps manufacturers out-compete Asian producers.” When you know your audience and how you can help them, the right people will flock to your door.

The full story is here: http://business.financialpost.com/2013/03/01/do-you-have-what-it-takes-to-run-your-own-business/

My column the previous week took an inside look at Halifax-based First Angel Network, a funding  program that had been criticized by prominent tech entrepreneur David Crow for soaking clients with inappropriate presentation fees. My story looked at both sides and found… a few things that need changing.

Excerpt: Crow contends angel groups should maximize value for entrepreneurs, not middlemen and no company should pay hefty fees just to pitch. He doesn’t like to see what he calls “brokers,” especially those who have taken government funding to help source deals, taking a slice of equity at such an early stage: “The alignment of interests is not there.”

You can read the full story here: http://business.financialpost.com/2013/02/24/feathers-flying-as-maritime-entrepreneur-network-accused-of-conduct-unbecoming-an-angel/

Bonus story: A startup entrepreneur called me recently to ask how his company could reach more people with its online content. I dared them to think bigger.
http://business.financialpost.com/2013/03/06/can-a-small-web-company-think-bigger/

 

Groupon CEO: "I'm OK with having failed at this part of the journey"

This is how you depart gracefully from a company.

Groupon founder Andrew Mason had just been fired from the innovative online marketing company, which  faces a rocky road (despite outlasting most of its copycat clones).  Here is the gracious letter he sent to reassure and inspire the troops he leaves behind. 

(This is for Groupon employees, but I'm posting it publicly since it will leak anyway)

People of Groupon,

After four and a half intense and wonderful years as CEO of Groupon, I've decided that I'd like to spend more time with my family. Just kidding - I was fired today. If you're wondering why... you haven't been paying attention. From controversial metrics in our S1 to our material weakness to two quarters of missing our own expectations and a stock price that's hovering around one quarter of our listing price, the events of the last year and a half speak for themselves. As CEO, I am accountable.

You are doing amazing things at Groupon, and you deserve the outside world to give you a second chance. I'm getting in the way of that. A fresh CEO earns you that chance. The board is aligned behind the strategy we've shared over the last few months, and I've never seen you working together more effectively as a global company - it's time to give Groupon a relief valve from the public noise.

For those who are concerned about me, please don't be - I love Groupon, and I'm terribly proud of what we've created. I'm OK with having failed at this part of the journey. If Groupon was Battletoads, it would be like I made it all the way to the Terra Tubes without dying on my first ever play through. I am so lucky to have had the opportunity to take the company this far with all of you. I'll now take some time to decompress (FYI I'm looking for a good fat camp to lose my Groupon 40, if anyone has a suggestion), and then maybe I'll figure out how to channel this experience into something productive.

If there's one piece of wisdom that this simple pilgrim would like to impart upon you: have the courage to start with the customer. My biggest regrets are the moments that I let a lack of data override my intuition on what's best for our customers. This leadership change gives you some breathing room to break bad habits and deliver sustainable customer happiness - don't waste the opportunity!

I will miss you terribly.

Love,

Andrew

Here's what Forbes had to say about Mason's departure: "Mason left Groupon with the most powerful email marketing engine in the world, a growing income statement and a balance sheet with $1.2 billion in cash.  The music major from Northwestern has been sprinting since 2007; now is probably a good time to rest."

" I will miss you terribly." How many CEOs have ever said that?

Win $10,000! Get feedback on your business!

What could you do with an extra $10,000?

My column in the National Post this week looked at the New Brunswick entrepreneur who won 10Gs in a contest conducted by payroll giant ADP Canada. Amy Lapointe, founder of Amy’s Quality Care/Home Care, submitted a short essay on her business and how she would use the money as “payroll capital” to hire more homecare workers. Her windfall is good news for many people in New Brunswick’s economically depressed North Shore.

Excerpt: ‘Lapointe’s story is a touching slice of modern Canadiana — a success story carved out of an unforgiving landscape… From a staff of three last March, the company now has 25 employees and is looking for more. Lapointe is especially proud of the impact she’s having on her region. “This is 25 people in this area that might have had to go out West to find work. Now they can stay in their own community, and help their clients stay in their own homes.”’

Click here for the full story.

You can enter ADP's $10,000 contest until March 31st. For details: http://www.adpgrant.ca/

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Ever thought of hiring a business coach? In last week’s column, Oakville entrepreneur Kathrine Brown (AKA “Coach Kath”) sought feedback on her struggling weight-loss business from a local business advisory group. She got less insightful advice than she’d hoped for – but gained a new self-awareness that’s already paying dividends.

Except: “I interviewed Brown six weeks later for her thoughts on the consultation. She says she knew an “information marketing” business might be hard for more conventional executives to understand, but she appreciated the advisors’ questions, comments and concern. And she took responsibility for the information disconnect. “The quality of the experience you get from advisors depends on the information you give them. I came out of that meeting realizing I have to change the way I show up.”

Click here to read about Brown's epiphany.

How might you benefit from a coaching session with other experienced business people? How could you possibly lose?

A Time to Pause and Reflect

New Year's is a traditional time to look back and look ahead. But successful people link "pause and reflect" all year long, with specific activities and achievable goals. In my column last  week for the Financial Post, executive coach (and new author) Karen Wright explains how and why to pause and reflect.

Excerpt: “Taking the time to reflect on our experiences and redirect our forward movement is key to achieving our goals, both in business and in life,” Wright notes. “Life moves so quickly that without some conscious practices to ensure you are self-aware, on track toward what’s important, insulated from the daily noise of life, and learning from your experiences, you could end up in the wrong place at the end of it all.”

What are the useful applications of "pause and reflect"? I kind of like the private Sunday evening planning session, to finish up readings you missed during last week and prepping for upcoming meetings. Karen Wright suggests the following:

* Create a weekly plan

* Seek out silence 

* Meditate

* Keep notes of your thoughts, ideas and feelings

* Join a peer forum

* Practice gratitude

For more,  read the full  article here: 

http://business.financialpost.com/2012/12/24/take-time-out-all-year-to-reflect-on-direction/

What City is This?

Don't forget our regular "Name that City" game. What is the Canadian city in the new header photo?
And can you guess the month this picture was taken?
For extra points, name the river.

Seasonal confections and tactical connections

During low-content month, please feel free to catch up on some of my previous columns for the National Post. It's been a busy couple of weeks!

* Today’s Column:
Year-round wrap-up: The best lessons from Rick’s 2012 columns – in handy quiz form. http://business.financialpost.com/2012/12/17/rick-spences-10-best-lessons-in-business-from-2012/
Excerpt:
 Question 3 of 10. Intuit Inc., maker of Quicken, became an innovation leader with its “Follow Me Home” philosophy, in which Intuit engineers and other staff go to customers’ homes and offices to watch them work and identify problems worth solving. In March I asked CEO Brad Smith if he still participates in this program. What was Smith’s answer?

A No, I’m the CEO and I’m too important.
B No, I don’t have time, though I wish I did.
C Yes, I give it 60 hours a year.
D Yes, I give it 6 hours a year.

(Click here for more questions and answers)

* Yes, manufacturing still has a place in North America. The most promising producers are those who make complex, customizable products “built to order.” Click here to see how to succeed in this challenging niche. http://business.financialpost.com/2012/12/10/made-in-north-america-once-again-with-lean-manufacturing-strategies/
Excerpt: In a variable environment, the authors say, the pursuit of perfect will require trial and error, practise and full involvement. Your job is to ensure that continuous improvement becomes a corporate mission that is “felt, enjoyed and fostered by everyone involved.”

* Dreaming of a green Christmas: Make sure the holidays don't distract you from wringing all the sales you can out of the last crucial weeks of the business year. http://business.financialpost.com/2012/12/14/im-dreaming-of-a-green-christmas/

* The Skid Row CEO: How Vancouver entrepreneur Joe Roberts went from homeless addict to successful executive – and the lessons he learned on that arduous journey. http://business.financialpost.com/2012/12/03/from-skid-row-to-high-street-ceo-uses-past-experiences-to-become-business-success-help-others/
Excerpt: Roberts says he is often asked how a homeless addict could possibly become a business success. “I tell them: I wasn’t successful in spite of living on the streets; I became successful because I lived on the streets.”

The 7 People Every Business Needs in its Network

In business, there's so much you need to know to get everything right. Yet, maybe you don't need to know it all. Maybe you just need to know the people who know what you don't.

That's the premise that led to this month's column in PROFIT Magazine: the seven people you need on speed-dial to make sure you get authoritative, objective answers when you need them.

Who are the Munificent Seven? The industry old-timer, a marketing guru, an exit specialist, and more. Click through to meet the whole gang. http://www.profitguide.com/?p=44771

I got a kick out of the illustration PROFIT commissioned for the piece (a nice piece of work by Marc Sullivan). Somehow, my name slipped onto the speed-dial menu, too.

Please don't call after 10 pm.

Five modest proposals for President Obama

A few suggestions from north of the border for President Obama as he embarks on his second term victory lap.

Now that he is relieved of the need to be re-elected, which has consumed most of his time, energy and attention the past year, I hope he can get down quickly to the neglected business of accelerating the ailing economy. Here are a few things he should start doing immediately.

·       Announce some objectives: Obama was silent throughout the campaign about how he would fix the economy. Time for a plan: how can his 150 million fans support his efforts if they don't know what he’s trying to do?

Is his plan to focus on job creation, economic stimulus, or deficit reduction? He should explain what challenges he wants to take on, and set some specific objectives, or targets, for the improvement he would like to see. Then he should announce how he is going to tackle the problem. He doesn't have to do this all himself: appointing prominent and committed citizens to get-’er-done task forces would focus attention on the problems and ignite a public dialogue on the most effective solutions.

 

·       Be specific. I liked Romney’s shout-out to the “job creators" in last night’s concession speech. Start investing, start creating jobs. It was a clarion call to the people who can make a difference to start making one. The fact that he did it now, following the end of partisan campaigning, gave the issue (and Romney’s commitment to it) greater credibility.

·       Tell people how they can help. From the start, Obama’s campaign has always been about a shared revolution. So he should harness the power of his followers and get them started fixing the issues he has identified as priorities. What can “we the people” do immediately to help jump-start the economy, create jobs, reduce demand on government services, or even preserve the environment? Give people some direction and watch them go.

·       Do it now. Strike while the iron is red-hot. Obama’s win has revitalized his followers, and his victory speech ignited hope and emotion. Leverage that passion now; it's such a powerful resource. In a few weeks (possibly days) it will have dissipated into the usual daily apathy.

·       Stay in touch. We have become accustomed to seeing you on TV every day. Take a few days off to recharge, but don't be a stranger. Americans reacted warmly to the confident, re-energized winner they saw last night on TV. They liked it when you spoke of climate change and “straight or gay” – clearly, the pre-election fetters are off and you can be yourself again. So often you have been accused of being aloof and distant. Last night you re-engaged with the electorate: stay hungry, stay passionate, stay casual and confident, stay in touch.

When leaders and followers are engaged like that, anything is possible.

The word for today is “Accelerator.”

My column in the National Post this week (Oct. 29) looked at JOLT, the “accelerator” for startup tech companies run by Toronto’s MaRS innovation centre. Last week, six promising new companies pitched for investor attention at the program’s high-spirited Demo Day. My article summed up the companies and the accelerator dynamic – and then deflated the whole thing by quoting an unnamed investor who wasn’t very impressed.

You can check out the story here: http://business.financialpost.com/2012/10/28/jolt-graduation-who-will-sink-who-will-swim/

The previous week’s column offered several brilliant and original ideas for super-charging your business, from the experienced mind of U.S. executive and consultant Bob Prosen. Check out his "Business Accelerator" framework now to amp up your 2013 business planning.

Excerpt: Prosen prescribes a better way to document progress toward your goals. On every report you receive, ask that those metrics on or over target be coloured green, and those below expectations be red. (No yellow, he says. Yellow just yields excuses.) When discussing underperformance with team members, keep your questions simple: “When will this turn green?” and “What do you need from the rest of us for that to happen?”

Read the full story here: http://business.financialpost.com/2012/10/22/fast-moving-ideas-to-implement-now/

Want to really accelerate your business? Read how a Kingston Ont. boatbuilder teamed up with the No. 1 company in its industry. My column from the November issue of PROFIT. http://www.profitguide.com/opportunity/rules-of-engagement-42334

Tweeting FEI Small Business conference

              

So hard these days to find time for blogging!

But here's yet another creative workaround: a collection of my tweets from the 2012 SME Conference held by FEI Canada, which I hosted today (Sept. 25.) in Mississauga, Ont. Retrace the following tweetstream and you'll meet new friends and at least one old one. And maybe learn something, who knows...?

Note: Most of the links will take you to a front-row photo of the speaker in question. A few others connect to more detailed information. Such are the ways of Twitter.

 

@rickspence

Eric Hart of BMO opens FEI smallbiz conference. Says SMEs produce 47% of GDP, 60% of all jobs. http://yfrog.com/odu39caxj
 

@rickspence

At FEI Confce, Navdeep Bains, former Liberal small biz critic,urges entreprneurs to engage with govt http://yfrog.com/obhexruj

 

@rickspence

PROFIT 200 winner Ty Shattuck at FEI Conference: "Both innovation and leadership are forms of art" http://yfrog.com/ny2kutfj

 

@rickspence

Ty Shattuck offers new model of innovator: the pirate-sailor. Pirates chase bounty, but team players http://yfrog.com/h0y46ssxj

 

@rickspence

Why Canada is in deep economic doo-doo. http://yfrog.com/esmr5ufkj

@rickspence

Can Canada close productivity gap with US?Jan van der Hoop tells FEI confc "the odds are against us" http://yfrog.com/nxditmsj

 

@rickspence

Jan van Der Hoop:1 hire in 5 is a success; 46% of new hires leave within 1 year;less than 1/3rd of workers are fully engaged with their work

@rickspence

Paula Harrington on great leadership: strategic clarity, successful execution, culture of innovation http://yfrog.com/odn97ylj

 

@rickspence

Deloitte's Paula Harrington at Ontario FEI confc, on the paradox of innovation: "Everyone wants innovation. But failure is not an option."

 

@rickspence

Ian Portsmouth: Traits of high-growth entrepreneurs "Resilience, determination, willing to innovate" http://yfrog.com/ese6sykj

 

@rickspence

Portsmouth: "A lot of entrepreneurs think they're good at listening to customers, but they're not." http://yfrog.com/nv8aazjj

 

@rickspence

PROFIT's Ian Portsmouth at FEI Conference: Less than 1% of entrepreneurs belong to peer boards (e.g. YPO). Percent of PROFIT 200 CEOs: 50%

@rickspence

At FEI conference,Michael Cangemi leads charge for "continuous monitoring" to cut costs, manage risk http://yfrog.com/j2s6kkdj

 

@rickspence

Michael Cangemi translates finance jargon: "'What's the ROI on that?' is CFO talk for, 'I'm busy'." http://yfrog.com/nz63ujbj

@rickspence

Brand strategist JP Lacroix: "Great brands live in the reptile brain -the emotive side." http://yfrog.com/obs2ouywj

@rickspence

JP Lacroix at FEI conf'ce: "We make our decisions through the reptile brain. Do I trust you or not?" http://yfrog.com/od2cejdj

@rickspence

Social Media Group's Ruth Bastedo at FEI conference: "Before you engage in social media, you have to get your brand sorted out."

@rickspence

From Ruth Bastedo, here's your social media Strategy Roadmap. From FEI SME Conference http://yfrog.com/esm5jvej   

Rick Spence‏

FEI Conference ends with hearty group "ARRRR" saluting Ty Shattuck's concept of innovators as Sailor/Pirates: Team-playing treasure-seekers.

25 Sep 12 ·

 

 

And yes that last bit is true. I got a bunch of accountants and CFOs to go "ARRR!" Twice.

Should have taken a picture of that...!