Congratulations!  You have a new product coming down the pipe. Or maybe you have a special project that is sure to boost business. Now comes the hard part. Do you have all the resources and information within your company to make this product or project a success? Better yet, do you even know what information or resources you need?

In the past, business leaders seemed to have all the answers, and if they didn’t, they just improvised. Anything less challenged the role of the all-knowing business owner.

The truth is no one can know everything necessary to run and grow a successful business. And in today’s technological and interconnected world, improvising no longer works. Things move too quickly, change constantly and what may have been the right approach last time, probably isn’t the answer today.

First and foremost, use the Internet! This worldwide base of knowledge is invaluable.  Chances are pieces of what you are thinking about have been thought about before.  Perhaps in another state or even another country, but why not learn from someone else’s mistakes and successes? You will probably find a wealth of free knowledge to help you move ahead with your project and altering your perspectives along the way.

When I need experience on top of information, I have a broad range of insights available to me from more than 35 years of cultivating relationships. Having a network of like-minded business owners and industry “friends” to turn to for advice and direction on almost any matter has been invaluable to me. I can talk to associates and bounce ideas off of them. They may have recently experienced something similar and found what works or what doesn’t work.

On top, don’t forget the professional services that any business requires, and that you already retain — attorneys and accountants. Responsive and well-connected firm members have plenty of knowledge and resources they can share on a variety of business matters. If they don’t know themselves, they will likely just pick up the phone and get what I need by just asking around their circles.

One resource that has served me very well over the years is my membership in a business association.  This forum consists of a group of like-minded business owners that come together for regular meetings. Having a reliable source for supply and referrals has been exceptionally valuable in today’s challenging economy.  I don’t believe one can find a better resource for services than from someone you will be seeing every week or two.

Business associations are also the perfect forum for brainstorming and asking questions.  The members generally understand what it is like to be in your shoes.  Use their experience and knowledge to forge ahead.

There are several themes for books that have run through my head for years. They are general topics and personal ideas about which I will likely never get more serious. My books would be about the things that motivate me, that I have learned from growing my business and the other things in life I really enjoy. You’ve heard about ebooks? Well, mine are simply imagined books. Here are several samples.

The Curse of the Entrepreneurial Leader

Beyond the dollars and cents measurement of success is the gratification that comes through personal intuition. My company is well into its third decade, and the learning I have enjoyed reinforces my belief that this success and direction is based upon what I was born with, what I learned along the way and what I like to do.

As you can see it’s all about me; that’s how I and most other leaders of closely-held businesses direct their companies, and I couldn’t have it any other way. But with age comes perspective, and I began to see things I might have missed earlier.

This book would combine my insights on the surety of instincts with the corporate disciplines in common practice today. My writing would include some of what I have learned from others about breaking down big goals into actionable initiatives that everyone understands. Sometimes it is hard to slow down long enough for the team to catch-up. I would devote an entire section to emphasizing ways to get others as excited about our opportunities as I am.

Sometimes the right tactics combined with what I’ll call “engineered” luck, creates a rhythm that reverberates throughout the organization. These chapters would be geared toward helping other business owners in realizing ways to lead a diverse team of talented associates.

One Passion is Fly Fishing

Me and the fish! There will never be enough time for me to become the best fly fisherman in the river. For me, it’s just being there. The joy comes from the physical oneness I feel in any weather between the sky, the air around me, the water I am standing in and the occasional fish that I meet.

The book, a simple narrative recording any day, would only be of interest to me. And the only time I would ever read it would be when I am too old or too feeble to get out any longer. But the writing would be exquisite; the feelings would transcend the words on the page and make the reader feel just like I do on those special days! I feel it, I live it but such words are the challenge even the best authors find so elusive.

Asking For What You Want

This is one topic I have mastered and could lecture on for beginners and advanced placement scholars with equal benefit. Whether it’s buying or selling the objective might be different but the process is always the same. The easiest way to begin a relationship is to ask questions. There are thousands of questions and hundreds of places to ask them. But the lesson of the book comes down to one simple guideline that all mankind could benefit from applying. Start by taking a genuine interest in every next person and the questions you now just wonder about asking will simply stream in.

Thank you for your interest in my blog, I am eager for your feedback as well as the opportunity to build new business relationships. Please contact me at polishededges@Galaxycustom.com.

The professional building and design community is demanding… as it should be! They have high-end customers that know they like and want the best in every category. One of the key factors inherent in our success within this community is our ability to keep customer commitments. Our customers have always been our number one priority.  By coordinating an exceptional group of suppliers and focusing on innovative design and on-time performance, we can provide our clients with the best product and service available. A seamless and comprehensive process of creativity, consultation, expert fabrication and delivery requires a tremendous amount of coordination and execution.

While developing expertise around a vast combination of glass products and services, we have come to know thousands of vendors. As we perfect our craft, we recognize that we are not alone on the journey. Building strong, long-lasting relationships with many distinguished vendors is a key component of our success. These critical materials and service providers have each demonstrated that we can count on them and that they understand the demands and needs of our client base. We are also very proud of the fact that some of these relationships go back to our founding more than 30 years ago.

Maintaining this core group of qualified suppliers brings a significant amount of stability to our business, so we take these relationships seriously. How do we decide which vendors to work with? And what do we look for in a vendor relationship? A quality product is a must. There is no compromise on this—we never settle for less. But, client satisfaction is more than just a great piece of glass! As an integral component of a larger installation, our products must consistently meet the design and installation criteria the first time and every time.

A beautiful product that isn’t exactly what the client ordered means an unhappy customer. And a perfect product that is two days too late is almost never acceptable.  That’s why, in addition to considering the craftsmanship of our vendors, we also examine their capabilities and dig into what they realistically can and can not accomplish.

Broken promises never lead to satisfied customers. Our suppliers have earned our trust through years of experience—we know they will do what they say they will do, barring unforeseen circumstances. It’s that confidence which allows us to make commitments to our customers and consistently meet and exceed their expectations.

The last few years have also tested our vendor relationships. Economic hardships have affected everyone—including vendors, clients and ourselves.  And just as we try to make considerations for our valued clients who have experienced setbacks from these hard times, we appreciate vendors who have worked with us when we needed their assistance. This kind of loyalty is a two-way street. When the need arises, we will ask for special consideration as clearly as possible. We don’t ask for rush orders that don’t need to be rushed; we honor payment terms, and try to work within our vendors’ preferred parameters.

Keeping customer commitments is a cooperative effort at our company. It happens because we are supported by suppliers that we can count on to provide the quality items we expect and in the time frame we demand. We know that our suppliers are an extension of our team and we will continue to work to maintain and enhance these relationships for years to come.

In my last blog I wrote about competitive change and its effects on our Industry. This profound topic of change permeates all aspects of business. This blog will focus on evolving leadership methods. Effective leadership can steer a company toward a successful future. It can also keep its workers interested and invested in the health, profitability and the direction of the company.

So where does great leadership start? Many creative and sustainable leadership qualities are found in entrepreneurial companies. In an effort to follow their lead, other enterprises have taken these proven qualities andsliced, diced and repackaged them. The goal was to drive creativity and force change—just like successful entrepreneurs have done throughout history. This process and the resulting adaptations have helped individuals and departments remain energized by challenging convention internally and competition externally.

I believe one of my most important duties as a CEO is to manage change on a wide range of fronts: competition, technology and staffing. Internally, I know I must continually challenge weaknesses and not be satisfied with the status quo. Today, it is more necessary than ever to challenge convention. The pace of technology, margin-challenged competition, plus management and workforce issues means constantly examining the horizon for signs of brewing change that demand creative solutions. In effect, we must react to external changes by implementing internal ones.

It is no surprise that leadership can be complicated. Driving a company like ours requires great inner strength, discipline and flexibility. We must look at options we may have rejected or not considered in the past. And, that means changing old behaviors, starting at the top. For when leadership begins to change its way of thinking, the rest of the organization finds it easier to follow.

Like many others in our industry, as I grew my business I enjoyed certain perks. Most important of all might be just doing things “my way.” For instance, in the past we dictated actions. Today, we model behaviors. The reputation of my company is molded by me. I can tell my staff about the way I want them to interact with our customers and hope for the best, or, I can demonstrate a posture of assistance and caring that is so much easier to emulate.

Don’t get me wrong, we are still innovators and market leaders, but the way we as a company, and me as its leader now make decisions is both constrained and energized by the rapid role of change. For this “chief change manager,” self-awareness is the requisite skill. Being unprepared or having a negative perspective around change will obscure the details and only make decision making more difficult. Get the help you need to change your paradigm or hire the talent you need to complement your own. Change is here to stay! Be ready for it. Any comments out there?

I often wonder if the changes that I am experiencing in my own business and industry are taking place as rapidly in other fields. It seems as if in the first 30 years of our corporate existence, even as we explored new segments, that the operating ground rules, the premise of our methods, evolved with a rhythm-like surety.

Now, my head spins with the changes and new challenges we face in business. Every business owner in almost every industry now knows that if you are not growing and improving every day, you will quickly fall behind simply because your competitors are actively improving their companies.

It is even tougher competing today than in the past because only the good competitors are left standing. Many of the marginal ones have fallen by the wayside over the last several years. Although we will surely be competing on price for the foreseeable future, there are other benefits that make up a compelling purchasing experience.  The things your customers will tell others about will be more important in differentiating yourself.

Business has seemed to move much faster these last few years. We keep track of our customers and prospects with more tenacity, contribute to all the heightened buzz with blasts and tweets, and process great amounts of information while doing everything else we do every day.

Searching for the keen insights about the speed of business and the ferocity of competition suggests following Nature’s example. The law of change states that “it” (change) happens. As much as we might prefer the old competitive environment that we once depended upon to the one we have now, the fact is our old world is not coming back. The present is the Adventure.

As much as business has changed, business is still about winning. We just have much better tools today than ever before. Tomorrow’s customer will be even better connected to what they want. They will have a very good idea about the cost, and have a high expectation for what they are buying.

Will you be the one they think of when they need a product or a service like yours? We have sold a lot of glass during the almost 35 years of building a best-in-class, kinetic reputation as an ultra-capable, worldwide supplier of custom architectural decorative glass. Smart customers know exactly what they are willing to pay for.  Having a broad range of benefits beyond price is how, in my opinion, you will win tomorrow’s customer.