On October 19, 2020 I had the privilege of presenting “How to Leverage an Admin to Accelerate your Flywheel” in Las Vegas. I’ve spent the last few years refining my flywheel. Jim Collins monograph “Turning the Flywheel” was a game changer for me! As a chair, my priorities are my members. To serve them at the highest level, I focus on three things; plan, coach and facilitate. Everything else is delegated, most of it to my admin.
In this presentation I hope to inspire you to build your flywheel, understand the value of your time and decide if an admin is right for your practice.
To start this process, ask yourself; “What am I doing that someone else could or should be doing?” (I imagine you’ll identify a lot of tasks!). From here, ask, “What would I gain by delegating?”
When I asked these questions, I realized that without support, I was unable to meet the needs of my members and more importantly, my family. Over the next few years we built the processes, tools and systems shared in my presentation. Below are the stages of my flywheel along with some commentary.
Guard my Time
I built my flywheel with the end in mind. As I worked backwards, it became clear that nothing else was possible if I didn’t guard my time. I set meetings and 121s over a year in advance. All 121s are set as recurring events and I use 321s in March (Spring break) and December (Holiday) to allow me to accommodate 40 121s a month and six groups. Recently I added a “Hybrid” option for members whose schedules are dynamic.
Follow the Process
My mantra has become, “Let the work come to me”. What I mean by this is that I don’t have to decide what to do next, the work comes to me. This has made me far more productive. All of our processes are documented. This allows my admin to have visibility on her priorities without involving me. We meet frequently and communicate daily using our communication tools (see below).
Scheduling Boundaries
Setting boundaries begins with when I want to be off. After protecting that time, I can build my capacity calendar and fill the holes with the most important and impactful activities. The boundaries gives my admin a tool for decision making and helps her understands my priorities. Again, she can make decisions without my input, saving me time.
Invest in Myself and Grow Everyday
Albert Einstein said, “Wisdom is not a product of schooling but of the lifelong attempt to acquire it.” As a Vistage Chair, we need to be outpacing our members as it relates to learning. My experience has been that if we are not intentional about it then it won’t happen. I time block windows to read and learn. I read the Wall Street Journal every morning, consume Audible books and read consistently. I often share my books with members and post them on my website.
In addition to learning, we need rest and recovery. I go to them gym over 200 days per year and plan time to rest. Additionally, I schedule naps, rests and walks for myself to keep me fresh. This may sound silly, but is as important as any other aspect of our work and life.
Asymmetric Communication Tools and Protocols
The tools to keep us on track needed to meet three criteria;
1) Asynchronous (so we can work independently) 2) Work anywhere 3) Enhance collaboration
On a daily basis we use Voxer as a walkie-talkie for non-time sensitive items. It’s easy for me to listen to the message between 121s and provide and answer or direction. For more time sensitive, or communication outside our work boundaries, items we will text. Email is handled with Spark. I check email only three times per day and we follow our protocols. My admin will check during the day and respond on my behalf, take action or send to the future. Spark has a chat feature as well as the ability to assign an email as a task.
Beyond the day to day tools we use Evernote, Drive and Dropbox. These are generally workspace and strogate tools. As an example, after every group meeting I will take pictures of issues processed, resources and check ins so she can easily access them for the recap.
BONUS TOOL: To quickly get things out of your head and into your inbox, I recommend Braintoss. Braintoss is the simplest app ever and allows you, on the fly, to record, capture or note and idea and then sends it directly to your email (and/or your admin’s).
Brand Attributes and Live Curious
You may not realize it but you have a brand! The question is are you perceived in the way that you would like to be? To do this, takes effort. I recommend beginning with some of the processes I outlined in my presentation, “Branding for Chairs”.
One of my most important brand attributes is to “Live Curious”. Curiosity is the driver to learn and grow everyday. By sharing what I learned with my community this attribute is enhanced. An example of this might be a book I’ve read, podcast I listened to or ideas I’ve come across.
Attract Great Members and Referral Sources
Our groups are 100% referral based. By building a network, involving members in my selection process and delivering value to members month in and month out, our referrals are strong. I can’t emphasize enough how important this is in building a practice. To learn more about my process visit the Member Selection Playbook page.
Deliver Excellence to Level 5 Leaders in Full Groups
Preparation precedes success. Being ready for a meeting is a critical part of our role as a chair. I begin preparing as soon as the previous months meeting ends. In 121s I am listening for issues to process. We follow up with members to be sure they are using all the resources available to them including “Lunch Buddies”, enhanced 121s, Vistage material, speaker information and each other.
I’ve been there with 7 members in a group. Today my CE, SB and Key groups are all full (20, 16, 16) and I can tell you it is a much better experience for the member when they are. The key is to be sure the members are “ideal members” and that they participate fully. We also must focus on diversity to build great groups. I’m proud that 42% of my members are women. These attributes will build a high performing group.
Lead High Performing Members to Achieve More than they Imagined Possible
Our members are able to achieve far more than they believe. Our role is to get the best out of them and help them stretch, learn and grow. Ginny Rometty said, “Growth and comfort do not coexist”. I believe this and do my best to keep members outside their comfort zones. This approach has produced some great results. One fact I am most excited about is that since 2014, we have had 30 member companies exit, transition or raise capital. (The most recent was for $1.9B) Push your members, they will thank you.
Another key to success has been the way we award and involve members. We do member awards annually in June. We also hold an Ambassador Roundtable the same month. Our Ambassadors fall into three categories; 1) Emeritus Members 2) Group Ambassadors 3) Group Champions. To learn more about this program click HERE.
Admin’s Three Things: Guard my time, Follow process, Serve members
Be sure your admin knows their three things! It will help them make better decisions, provide a higher level of service and be more productive.
Admin Cost and Compensation
It is less relevant what as admin costs as it is, how much will an admin save you? While ran an ROI analysis on the cost of the admin it really is about what an hour of your time is worth. For me that number is $31,255 of impact in each hour worked. Consider this for yourself and I believe you will find the cost is not only affordable, but profitable for you.
Finding the Right Admin
I’m a big believer in Culture Index. I would start by building an ideal profile. For the first three years, my admin worked 10 hours per week. Today she works 20, supporting both my Vistage and coaching work and the time I invest in our Sandler Training Franchises (Sales City Group). I ran an ad (Here) and screened candidates through the Culture Index. Then in person interview with me, my Chief of Staff and wife. Don’t rush this! You need the right person.
Key Points
•It takes time, plan and don’t rush and don’t compromise
•Create your own Flywheel and Three Things, build around these
•Articulate your brand attributes and be sure your admin knows them
•Develop a selection process, onboarding strategy and ramp up plan
•Create your own process, boundaries and ideal work week
•Build a list of priorities to transition (Recaps>scheduling>email…)
•Communicate constantly, give feedback and measure results
•Leverage communication tools to improve efficiencyResource Links
Resource Links
• www.tomcuthbert.com/branding
• www.tomcuthbert.com/flywheel
• www.tomcuthbert.com/productivity