Recently, I’ve had several conversations where agency owners are brainstorming creative ways to reward members of their leadership team. Usually, this amounts to someone donning a new title — a manager becomes a director, or a director becomes a VP. Another option involves setting up a profit pool so people…

What is Open Book Management? — Lately, I’ve been talking to agency owners who are grappling with an important question: “Should I open my books to employees?” The financial transparency of open-book management (OBM) helps your employees not only do their jobs more effectively, but helps them understand how the company is doing. It is completely…

How to identify and remedy bottlenecks in your agency — What is a Business Bottleneck The term “bottleneck” refers to how the neck of a bottle limits the flow of liquid. It doesn’t matter how thirsty you are — the slim bottleneck determines how quickly you can quench your thirst. Similarly, bottlenecks are also present in businesses. These limitations reduce the flow of work, causing…

A team offsite is a great opportunity to reflect and regroup. Leaders can review the first half of the year, celebrate team successes, and course-correct before moving forward. But outside of developing an agenda and clear objectives, agency leaders are given surprisingly little guidance in designing strategic offsite meetings. That…

Many agencies have — at one point or another — created a strategic plan that outlines their intended actions in the near future. Oftentimes, this document was created at an offsite meeting with the leadership team or the entire agency. The fun part is getting all the ideas down on…

Keeping and growing your best clients is the simplest way to improve your bottom line. Although marketing agencies understand the importance of providing quality service, many do not have a program in place to measure client satisfaction. …

Culture describes the vision, values, beliefs, rituals, and reward systems that inform employee behavior. Increasingly, more firms are making the news for the toxic cultures they perpetuate — think imposing rigid clock-in times, hosting all-male retreats, and providing no parental leave. A toxic culture leads to toxic behavior, leaving these…

Your employee utilization rate (sometimes referred to as billable utilization) tells you how much of your employees’ time is spent on revenue-earning activities. This measure provides insight into whether your employees are focused on billable client work, or sitting around sipping coffee. …

Exit interviews are a great way to hear from employees about what your agency can do better and identify any concerns that need to be addressed. During the exit interview, the employee will have the opportunity to make suggestions on how to improve their role, agency operations, and staff development. …