SearchSecurityChannel.com posted a great online article on HTG this week. There are a few minor things that are off a bit, but overall Neil Roiter did a great job capturing the facts on HTG. Check it out when you have time. Kudos to Brad Schow and Jeff Howard for helping get the message out.
Still have a few open slots looking for quality partners to get involved with HTG. If you are interested, or know someone who should be involved, apply at
Showing posts with label Jeff Howard. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jeff Howard. Show all posts
Friday, September 11, 2009
Friday, May 8, 2009
Another SWOT in the Bank
I have been in Dallas with three other HTG members doing a SWOT for Networking Results this week. Jeff Howard and his team have hosted Zack Schuler, Jeff Wood, Jonathan Warrey and myself for the last couple days. The NetRes team has been a fantastic host. We arrived Wednesday evening and started our time here with dinner at Trail Dust - a local restaurant where they cut your tie off if you wear one. Not an issue for me though - I surprisingly wasn't wearing a tie. (If you believe that let me know - I have some stuff to sell you). We started bright and early on Thursday morning and spent the entire morning with the executive team going over the 3-5 year vision and business plan, and then walking through the SWOT process with the management team. We had lunch with the entire staff except the management team and verified the information we had collected in the morning. The afternoon was filled with individual interviews and some team time reviewing our findings. Last evening we went to Salt Grass for dinner - Jeff treated us to a great steak and fun evening with the management team.
Day two involved some more time with the executive team, personal interviews and lunch at Pappasito's for some fajitas. The afternoon was busy with the creation of our recommendations for the NetRes team. The focus on this SWOT was to prepare the company for growth. They have been doing great the past few years, but want to accelerate growth and move much more quickly to becoming a larger company in the Dallas Metro. We shared our recommendations and findings with the executive team and determined buyin for the main recommendations we had for them. We put timelines and measurable objectives in place. Late this afternoon, we presented our findings to the entire NetRes team and helped create the expectations for change. That is the purpose of a SWOT visit - to bring rapid and structured change to the company we visit. Zach, Jeff, Jonathan and myself shared the findings, vision and proposed changes to the team. The group is excited and expectant. That is the normal result of a SWOT - people expect action so the SWOT team stays engaged for a while to watch the process and make sure things happen as planned. There are some major things on the plate to help move NetRes forward. Jeff, Doyle, Steve and the folks there are going to have a bright future as they execute the things that we put in place this week. It is SWOT visit #10 for me, and each time the experience is different but always impactful and fulfilling. I learn so much as we turn over rocks and examine how a business and its team ticks.
HTG is committed to helping our members in a number of ways. The SWOT process is just one of the many that we use to make a difference for our members.
Day two involved some more time with the executive team, personal interviews and lunch at Pappasito's for some fajitas. The afternoon was busy with the creation of our recommendations for the NetRes team. The focus on this SWOT was to prepare the company for growth. They have been doing great the past few years, but want to accelerate growth and move much more quickly to becoming a larger company in the Dallas Metro. We shared our recommendations and findings with the executive team and determined buyin for the main recommendations we had for them. We put timelines and measurable objectives in place. Late this afternoon, we presented our findings to the entire NetRes team and helped create the expectations for change. That is the purpose of a SWOT visit - to bring rapid and structured change to the company we visit. Zach, Jeff, Jonathan and myself shared the findings, vision and proposed changes to the team. The group is excited and expectant. That is the normal result of a SWOT - people expect action so the SWOT team stays engaged for a while to watch the process and make sure things happen as planned. There are some major things on the plate to help move NetRes forward. Jeff, Doyle, Steve and the folks there are going to have a bright future as they execute the things that we put in place this week. It is SWOT visit #10 for me, and each time the experience is different but always impactful and fulfilling. I learn so much as we turn over rocks and examine how a business and its team ticks.
HTG is committed to helping our members in a number of ways. The SWOT process is just one of the many that we use to make a difference for our members.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
The Power of SWOT
A team of HTG members have been on the ground here in Peoria this week performing a SWOT on HTG13 member Pearl Technology. Pearl is led by Greg Johnson and team and we have had a fantastic time interacting with the management team, execs and entire staff as we went through the process. I was joined by Jeff Howard, Jeff Wood, Steve Knutson and Peter Sorensen as we spent two very long yet productive days diving into all things from all angles and providing the team at Pearl with recommendations and suggestions for the future.
Each time we take a team to an HTG member company, the process is unique. While we all are in the technology business, each and every company serves a unique market with unique people. That keeps the SWOT process very fresh and exciting. We have a typical agenda we follow, but as is always the case, after the first couple hours it pretty much goes out the window and we make adjustments on the fly to provide the most value we can for our member company. That was no different this week.
The team spent time with employees but a significant portion of our time was spent with the management team focused on some of the core elements to their structure and market. Being in Peoria in this current economy - Caterpillar and all things associated play a huge part in how they go to market. You know it is a pretty important thing when the President of the US comes to town during our visit to speak to the folks at Cat. We thought that President Obama had heard about our SWOT and was coming to see us - but that didn't materialize. We did leave a long list of ideas and suggestions, and now the hard work begins for the team to tackle in order to drive Pearl to the next level.
A special thanks to the team that assembled here to do the hard work of performing the SWOT. Steve, Jeff, Peter and Jeff did a masterful job of turning over rocks and finding things that will make a difference for Pearl. They gave a few days of their life to serve, and they also all said they learned much themselves they can take back to their own company as part of the process as well. That is what happens when we give freely and serve - we are always blessed more than we feel we gave. Thanks guys, for sharing life and making a difference this week!
Each time we take a team to an HTG member company, the process is unique. While we all are in the technology business, each and every company serves a unique market with unique people. That keeps the SWOT process very fresh and exciting. We have a typical agenda we follow, but as is always the case, after the first couple hours it pretty much goes out the window and we make adjustments on the fly to provide the most value we can for our member company. That was no different this week.
The team spent time with employees but a significant portion of our time was spent with the management team focused on some of the core elements to their structure and market. Being in Peoria in this current economy - Caterpillar and all things associated play a huge part in how they go to market. You know it is a pretty important thing when the President of the US comes to town during our visit to speak to the folks at Cat. We thought that President Obama had heard about our SWOT and was coming to see us - but that didn't materialize. We did leave a long list of ideas and suggestions, and now the hard work begins for the team to tackle in order to drive Pearl to the next level.
A special thanks to the team that assembled here to do the hard work of performing the SWOT. Steve, Jeff, Peter and Jeff did a masterful job of turning over rocks and finding things that will make a difference for Pearl. They gave a few days of their life to serve, and they also all said they learned much themselves they can take back to their own company as part of the process as well. That is what happens when we give freely and serve - we are always blessed more than we feel we gave. Thanks guys, for sharing life and making a difference this week!
Saturday, September 20, 2008
The Go Giver Update
Yesterday I was blessed to be on blogtalk radio with Stuart Crawford and Bob Burg to discuss the book "The Go Giver". You can catch the show at this link: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/smb/2008/09/19/The-Go-Giver
We spent a little over an hour talking about the 5 laws of stratospheric success and real world examples of how these principles can be lived out in life and business. It was a great discussion and one I encourage you to listen to.
Along those lines, this week at the Connectwise conference, I moderated two breakout panels where we discussed these principles as well. Serving and sharing their experiences were Brad Schow, Jeff Howard, Erik Thorsell, Stuart Crawford and Jeff Wood. These guys opened up their businesses and personal stories to help people understand that there is another way to live rather than blindly following the common wisdom the world shares with us. If you haven't read the book, please take time to do so, about a two hour read which is great for a plane ride. The bottom line is that these principles can really change the way you look at business and ultimately life. Being a contrarian often has some hidden value and can lead to even more success!
We spent a little over an hour talking about the 5 laws of stratospheric success and real world examples of how these principles can be lived out in life and business. It was a great discussion and one I encourage you to listen to.
Along those lines, this week at the Connectwise conference, I moderated two breakout panels where we discussed these principles as well. Serving and sharing their experiences were Brad Schow, Jeff Howard, Erik Thorsell, Stuart Crawford and Jeff Wood. These guys opened up their businesses and personal stories to help people understand that there is another way to live rather than blindly following the common wisdom the world shares with us. If you haven't read the book, please take time to do so, about a two hour read which is great for a plane ride. The bottom line is that these principles can really change the way you look at business and ultimately life. Being a contrarian often has some hidden value and can lead to even more success!
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