By: Kathy Kent Toney, CEO & Founder of Kent Business Solutions

Transitions--doesn't life seem to be overflowing with them these days?

We all have gone through difficult changes in our lives, some by choice and others not of our choosing.

There’s leaving a place, be it a job or physically moving, where we would love to have stayed but couldn’t.

And then there are the situations where bridges were burning down all around us, and we couldn’t get off the bridges fast enough! 

Either way, it’s not fun, but how you handle these situations can make all the difference in the world.

For instance, you can:

• Learn to recognize and then prevent “burning bridge” scenarios before they start
• Choose to leave situations (good and bad) both intentionally and graciously

By doing so, you can leave those situations with high levels of integrity, self-respect, and goodwill. Here are three things you can try towards this end:

1. Recognize When It’s Time to Leave

This may seem like a no-brainer, but sometimes when you're in the thick of things, it hard to recognize the signs that it's time to leave.

To make my point, how many of us have stayed in a job too long with poor results? It’s happened to me too frequently! Here’s one example:

I had just moved to Kansas City, didn’t know anyone, and had to take any job I could find. I landed a role as an admin at a good company. And I must admit that I admire admins for what they do because I am NOT good at it. I had a great boss, so I could tolerate it at the time. Even so, it was time to leave, but I wasn’t too motivated to make the change. Even so, I was experiencing the following:

• Increasing conflict within myself and with management
• Dissatisfaction with the status quo
• A yearning for something more

Out of this experience, I’ve learned to recognize these signs of when it’s time to leave and then to do just that.

Here’s my advice: Once you recognize signs like this, carefully consider if it’s time to make a move, and then decide accordingly. If you choose to stay, analyze why you’re experiencing these feelings and work towards a resolution.

2. Try to Keep Your Bridges from Burning Down

In this same example, things got intense when new leadership came in. They started me down the path of firing me. Thankfully, I was able to find a great job before they could.

Once I told them I was leaving, I decided to prove that I was not the slacker they thought I was. I prepared desktop procedures for my job, even though they didn’t ask me to. Throughout the whole process, I was respectful. I think all of this shocked them!

Management accepted my two-week notice and gave me the second week off. Woo hoo! In the end, it paid off!

My advice: If you are in a similar situation, be the bigger person--don't burn your bridges. Retaliation and non-conformance will get you nowhere. And you never know, you may have to cross those bridges at a later date.

3. Ensure Continuity

Next, do something like what I did.

Help the next person coming in to fulfill your responsibilities to be successful. A potential benefit is watching difficult leadership reframe what they think of you! Kill them with kindness, I say!


These tips are just scratching the surface. You can do many other things to leave intentionally and graciously. Doing so can bring a sense of satisfaction, self-respect, and higher levels of integrity. And who doesn’t want that?

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Speaking of burning bridges, many companies feel burned by past IT projects that didn’t succeed and now don’t want to step their toes into the water again anytime soon.

That’s one reason why Michael Cantu and I wrote our book, No-Nonsense Digital Transformation! We wrote it with these rightfully cautious leaders in mind.

If you’d like to learn how to successfully plan for and execute IT projects, then click the button below!

With the Great Resignation in full swing, many business leaders are scrambling to find ways to help prevent their good employees from jumping ship.

One way to help counteract the exodus of talent from organizations is through recognizing and rewarding employees for their service.

Here are 10 creative ways to give kudos to your employees:

1. Share Employee Content on Your Blog

If you have employees that like to write (and that's not their main role), share their content on your company's blog.

2. Recognize Outside-of-Work Success

Share your employees' successes outside of work on social media channels, your internal website, or your company's website.

3. Showcase the Monetary or Volunteer Impact of Employee Efforts

If an employee's efforts on a project contributed positively to the bottom line, highlight that in some manner to your employee base. You can also draw attention to employees who support charitable contributions through either donations or volunteer time.

4. Provide Stipends for Long-Distance Commuters

Employees living far away or who often experience heavy traffic during their commutes could receive stipends to help pay for gas.

5. Use Gamification Apps to Fuel Productivity and Motivation

Gamification gives employees an entertaining way to meet company requirements, such as training. What might often be a tedious process could be transformed into something fun. Check out what Edgagement, Hoopla, and Gametize apps have to offer along these lines.

6. Share Kudos from Customers

Create an Employee Wall of Fame to highlight customer feedback directed at particular employees or teams.

7. Share Employee Kudos

At the start of your meetings, recognize employees for the small, daily wins. These are often overlooked, but these shout-outs can go a long way towards increasing employee morale.

8. Surprise Employees with Snacks or Meals

Bring in or order food during busy workdays. It lets your employees know you appreciate their hard work.

9. Provide Sabbaticals for Long-Timers

For employees who have been with the company for five, seven, or 10 years (for example), consider providing them with sabbaticals. That way, they can take quality time off work to pursue their passion and return to work refreshed and ready to re-engage with your company.

10. Use the Power of a Post-It Note

I left this for last because it's something you can start doing today!

Who doesn't like a personal touch to show appreciation? A simple post-it note with a meaningful message that you place on an employee's desk is a simple act that can go a long way to show appreciation.


These are just a few things you can do to recognize and reward your employees. Doing so can help keep employees happy and can also help build a foundation of increased loyalty to your company.

And what business leader wouldn't want that?

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I have an announcement! I am now providing a new service to prospective and current clients. I'm still determining my messaging, so here's the bare-bones description:

If you or anyone you know are stuck in the middle of a project and don't know how to get it moving forward...

Or, you want to start projects, but don't have the internal bandwidth to undertake them, talk with me!  I have over 30 years of project management expertise, so I can help accelerate projects over the finish line.

Interested in learning more? Click the button below to schedule a chat!

This week I am honored to have Henning Schwinum as my guest writer. He has great thoughts to share on SMARTER Delegation as a Leader!

# # #

Delegation is a core element of successful leadership in companies large and small.

Good delegation saves time, develops people, grooms a successor, and motivates. It provides growth and development opportunities and allows a leader to focus on other priorities.

Poor delegation, on the other hand, will cause you frustration, demotivates and confuses the other person, and fails to achieve the task or purpose itself. Delegation often fails for a number of reasons: lack of clarity, the preparation and resources available to the delegate, and choosing the wrong person in the first place.

As such, delegation is a management skill and a business process that's worth improving. It is a series of deliberate actions or motions leading to results. It is not a gutfeel, spur-of-the-moment type activity.

Let’s start with what to delegate. When deciding, use the same rule you apply for goal setting: SMART or SMARTER.

1. Specific
   
2. Measurable
   
3. Agreed
   
4. Realistic
5. Time-bound
6. Ethical
7. Recordable
   

Then, have a clear understanding between yourself and the delegate because every time you delegate work, three core elements of delegation are in play. (1) Authority, (2) Responsibility, and (3) Accountability form an integrated process and must be applied as a unified whole.

1. Authority Can Be Delegated

As a leader, you can transfer pieces of your formal authority to another teammate when assigning a task to that person. In essence, you can deputize your teammate to take action on your behalf within the boundaries of the delegated (transferred) authority.

2. Responsibility Cannot Be Delegated, but It Can Be Assigned

As a leader, you can assign responsibility to another teammate in terms of the results that need to be achieved. However, you need to keep in mind that you only assigned responsibility to your teammate. You can never entirely hand off any of your responsibilities to someone else. Assigned responsibility should be made in terms of the goals or results to be accomplished, not the detailed specifics for doing the job.

3. Accountability

Accountability is the moral compulsion felt by a teammate to meet the goals and objectives of an assigned task. As a result of accepting a task assignment, your teammate, in effect, gives you a promise—either expressed or implied—to do their best in carrying out the activities associated with it. Having taken on the task, your teammate is obligated to complete it and thus is held accountable by you for the results produced.

And for start-ups and smaller, growth-minded businesses Amy Volas has some very encouraging news:

“Every single scaling company will reach a point where delegation is essential for future growth. …if you can truly empower the brilliant people you've surrounded yourself with to offset what's bogging you down while providing them with a chance to take on more, learn, grow, and thrive, the returns will be tenfold.”

# # #

Contracting an interim or fractional executive is an act of delegation. I encourage you to reach out to Henning to find out how he and his team can make you successful.

__________________

Derwin Dexter Sy – Why Is Delegation So Hard?
LeadingBlog – The 3 Core Elements of Delegation
Amy Volas – Why Delegation Isn’t an Option, But a Necessity in Sales Leadership

I've been talking to a prospective client over the last couple days about the benefits of Scrum and how it would be a great tool to use for their CRM implementation.

Not sure what Scrum is? In short, it's a project management framework is used for developing products.

Anyway, it got me to thinking--it's been awhile since I've talked about the value of Scrum. So, I thought I would share with you an experience I had with a client to illustrate how this Agile tool revolutionized this manufacturer's business.

Prior to my engagement with my client, they had a very cumbersome, rigid product development process. This became evident when it took them two-to-three years to develop their last new product. Considering the complexity of the product involved, it took them waaay too long! They were like a truck stuck in the mud!

The CEO knew there was a better way. That’s why he hired me! And because I'm a certified Professional Scrum Master, this project was right up my alley.

The first thing I did was to carry over lessons learned from their previous development effort into the new process. I did this to prevent those issues from happening again.

Next, I trained them on Scrum and we developed the new process together.

In just two months, the process development piece was complete and I left the project in their very capable hands.

And the results were great! Eight months later, they launched not only their originally planned product, but five other component systems that fit across their whole product line. If you take the additional products they developed into account, they experienced a product speed-to-market increase of over 100%!

They are so thrilled with Scrum, they are implementing it company-wide, including non-product related functions, like Marketing. And the results have been great so far!

So, if you want to prevent your project from getting stuck in in the mud and want to kick it into high gear, Scrum could be your answer.

And if you're interested in learning more about Scrum or how to transform you business, I'd love to have a chat! Just click the button below to schedule a time

With all the crazy stuff going on in our world, finding peace of mind and a serene center may be difficult.

I don’t know about you, but that’s certainly been the case with me lately. I've been playing catch-up after Michael Cantu and I launched our paperback version of our best-selling e-book, No-Nonsense Digital Transformation, last month. I have more than I can do at this point!

In times like these, I love to use the following techniques to help me feel more serene and present in my circumstances.

I’m sharing them with you in hopes they’ll help you, either now or in the future, when life gets crazy.

1. Practice the 5-Senses Grounding Technique

When I’m too excited about something or am stressed out, and my brain is going 90 mph, practicing these grounding techniques helps me. I’ll find a quiet space to focus intently on these five steps, moving slowly from one to the next.

5: Acknowledge FIVE things you see around you. ...
4: Acknowledge FOUR things you can touch around you. ...
3: Acknowledge THREE things you hear. ...
2: Acknowledge TWO things you can smell. ...
1: Acknowledge ONE thing you can taste.

You’ll hopefully feel calmer and more present in your circumstances when you finish.

2. Share Your Life with Friends

If you’re anything like me, I work from home with no one but my dogs to keep me company during the day. The isolation can sometimes get to me.

Since I am an external processor, I make it a point to reach out and share my life with friends to have in-depth, authentic conversations. Doing so helps me to stay more centered. And even in times of excitement, sharing your recent experiences with friends can be fun. That can even uplift them!

3. Journal

I’ve been journaling since my late 20s, and it has been my lifeline. If you have a myriad of emotions you’re experiencing, working through those with pen and paper can be therapeutic. It’s certainly been that way for me.

And there’s proof of how powerful journaling can be. Studies show that journaling can reduce the adverse effects of stress, decrease the symptoms of chronic health conditions, improve clarity, and help with problem-solving.

If you’re unsure how to start, there’s no set formula. Just start! You don’t have to think about what you’re going to say. Just let the words flow.


I hope these tips will help you reduce your stress levels. If you have a chance to try them out, I’d love to hear how they worked for you!

# # #

Speaking of stress, are you facing challenges in your organization that seem unsolvable?

That’s where I love to come in! As a business transformation expert, I enjoy helping organizations solve their most pressing problems.

If you’re interested in learning more, I’d love to hop on a quick phone or Zoom call to help point you in the right direction.

Click the button below to get started!

By: Kathy Kent Toney, CEO & Founder of Kent Business Solutions

As an avid Chiefs fan, my mind is still on the incredible win the Chiefs had against the Los Angeles Chargers on Thursday Night Football last week.

The person who comes to mind is Jaylen Watson, the game's hero. He intercepted the ball on the Chargers three-yard line and ran it back for a 99-yeard touchdown. That’s pretty amazing in itself, one of the longest “Pick 6s” in Chiefs history and the longest go-ahead fourth-quarter Pick 6 by a rookie in NFL history.

But that’s not the only significant part. Jaylen's backstory is incredible. After committing to play football at USC, he had to de-commit after five months because of academic issues. He couldn't find a good job back in his home state of Georgia, so he took a job at Wendy’s while still finding somewhere to play football.

So why talk about all of this?

Here are some great leadership lessons about his life that I believe we can embrace to become more effective leaders:

1. Never Give Up and Never Give in

When the cards are stacked against you, rearrange the cards! Jaylen did that after he flunked out of USC. He realized the necessity to turn things around. So, when he landed at Washington State, he worked hard and ended up getting straight A’s while beginning to make a name for himself on the football field.

Lessons learned: stay determined to achieve your goals, no matter what obstacles or challenges stand in your way.

2. When Your Name is Called, Be Ready

Jaylen wasn't even supposed to be playing in this game. Trent McDuffie, another rookie, was injured in last week's season opener. Jaylen was the next man up. In his own words, he said, "I've just been working my butt off, and if the time came where someone went down, I was going to be ready and prepared, and that's what happened.”

Lessons learned: stay proactive in your day-to-day professional life. Sharpen your saw through learning opportunities. Make the most of mentoring relationships. Stay on top of your obligations, and don't forget to pass your wisdom on to others.

3. Anticipate Great Things to Happen

In a post-game interview, Jaylen said he woke up knowing he would get a Pick-6. Since he was a rookie and a seventh-round NFL draft pick (the bottom-of-the-barrel talent, in NFL speak), he knew the tests would come early from the Chargers quarterback, Justin Herbert. And when it happened, he was ready.

Lessons learned: envision your success, knowing you'll succeed in whatever comes your way. Be confident that great opportunities are on the horizon.


As business leaders, we would all do well to embrace these qualities: through never giving up, preparing ourselves to serve well, and envisioning our success, we will become better equipped to lead with excellence.

Speaking of leading with excellence, Michael Cantu and I discuss how to do this in our best-selling book, No-Nonsense Digital Transformation. We cover quite a few topics on leading well: transforming culture and mindset, effective project planning, and building productive teams, to name a few. So, this book would still be an excellent read, even if you're not interested in digital transformation!

If you’re want to learn more, click the button below!