Episode 64

Marisa Palmieri Shugrue
Jan 24, 2022
2 min read

Jan. 20, 2022

Topic: 4 Decisions Every Business Must Get Right with 'Scaling Up' Author Verne Harnish

Guest: Verne Harnish, author of 'Scaling Up (Rockefeller Habits 2.0)' and founder of the Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO)

Click here to listen.

In this episode we discuss:

How and why Verne was inspired by industrial titan John D. Rockefeller
Why business fundamentals are so important and why "Scaling Up" focuses on People, Strategy, Execution and Cash
No surprise, the No. 1 issue Verne sees for business owners right now is attracting and retaining talent
How he recommends employers to "find a strange fishing hole" to recruit people
The story of how one waste management company and its CEO Gene Brown scaled by profiling their ideal team member to find more people like him
Whether short-order cooks could be a good fit for pest and lawn care firms
The power of an "optional" question on a job application and hiring to core values
The four things you should look for when hiring: will, culture/values fit, history of getting stuff done, skill
Why it's better to think of your company like a pro sports team vs. a family
Why the 1-page strategic plan is so powerful and how to execute it
The importance of the daily huddle to communicate tactics
How to keep daily huddles effective
How to analyze and improve cash flow and make sure you're not "growing broke"
Why Verne says to look at gross margin dollars per employee
Verne's three questions to ask to stay "cutting edge"
Why Gary Hershberger from Stonyfield Yogurt took employees to lunch routinely

Resources mentioned:

Verne's books: “Mastering the Rockefeller Habits” and “Scaling Up (Rockefeller Habits 2.0)”
Business network Verne founded: Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO)
Verne's education and coaching company: Scaling Up
Irish waste management firm: City Bin
Verne's partner John Ratliff's call center business: Appletree Answers
Jerry South's Annapolis, Md., valet parking firm: Town Park
Verne's 1-page strategic plan and other growth tools
Lawn care product Verne is an investor in: Holganix, founded by Barrett Ersek, former owner of Happy Lawns, which was acquired by Trugreen
Jack Stack's Critical Number concept
Tool: Cash Flow Story co-founded by Alan Miltz
Book: "Never Eat Alone"
Carey Smith's company: Big Ass Fans
Verne's new book: "Scaling Up Compensation"

Notable: "In these plain old businesses, you really can have 3-5x gains over the industry average if you'll get serious about some of these fundamental disciplines." —Verne Harnish