Relevant Reading for Business Owners
This month SMB solution providers Looking for advice on successfully running and growing their businesses can take advantage of another resource: Mastering a Culture of Accountability, a new book written by Chris Winter and Larry Kesslin, principals of the channel advisory services company 4-Profit LLC.
With competition from evolving delivery models such as hosted solutions and applications, providers “need to hold their ground,” says Winter. “If they wish to grow, they need to be increasingly more proficient in communication, relationship building, and the efficient use of company resources.” The new book, he says, lays out the common threads of what truly makes the SMB solution provider successful over the long term.
And, while each provider may read the book at different stages of business growth, “owners too often get caught up in the dayto- day drama instead of spending time working on growth areas such as developing and recruiting people and building client value,” says Winter. “We hope leaders will reach for this guide from time to time as they grow, as well as to affirm they are still on track.”
But what exactly is a culture of accountability? According to the authors, it is “a sustainable, organized environment where the sum of all employee contributions directed toward a predefined goal(s) significantly exceeds the sum of employees’ individual contributions.” To help solution providers reach that goal, Winter and Kesslin discuss cultivating a variety of relationships, be they revenue generating, partnering, recruiting, or educational. They also review various processes and systems, including service- level agreements and all aspects of business planning, as well as measurement and monitoring strategies, complete with examples. A glossary of terms, recommended reading list, and contributor profiles round out the book’s offerings.
If this sounds like the type of information you need to help take you to the next level, order the book online at http://www.4-profit.com.
—Cecilia Galvin
