Leadership / 8 posts found

80/20 isn’t just about dropping the 80%

by Iyas
I'm sure you've read the tips from the business and entrepreneurship writers about 80/20. Drop the bottom 80% of your clients because they're more hassle than they're worth. Drop 80% of the tasks you do, because they generate negligible value. Drop 80% of your offerings because your growth is coming from the top 20%. All sage advice, except that those writers never then go binary on the fact that doing this is not enough. You need to get all over the remaining 20% to actually make your consultancy…

The Value/s Led Consulting Framework for Profitable Growth Leading with your Values

by Iyas
We've distilled our experience of profitably growing and scaling technical consultancies and digital agencies into the Value/s Led Consulting framework. That experience includes going from a 2 man startup to a £40 million+ full services agency and tech consultancy. This framework comprises 9 business areas, and 2 underpinning core practices. With templates, training, videos and coaching. This blog post introduces the framework, and, disclaimer, also links for you to join us!
Perks and Culture

Perks build culture like lust builds a relationship

by Iyas
You're in tech. Everyone else in Shoreditch has a fusball table. So you buy a fusball table. Or you offer a breakfast bar with criossants and muesli. You've now got "a culture" which will attract and retain great staff, right? Perks and benefits are important. But they need to be consistent. Choose your perks to reflect and reinforce your values, or to reflect elements of your culture that you want to maintain. Your perks don't define your culture - rather, they should be defined by them and by…
The Road to Untold Riches

How to meet your consultancy’s goals in 2017

by Iyas
Our wish for you for 2017 is that your business only does these two things: (1) what you absolutely want it to do, meaning what is aligned with your vision and values, or; (2) what the government dictates that it must! And nothing else. This is the most direct way to meeting your consultancy or agency's goals, and in principle, is very simple. But, obvious as it may seem as a principle, it is pretty hard to do in consistent reality. Our opening 2017 post is very simply entitled "How to meet your…
The Boss's Offsite Friday Meeting

How Do We Foster Team and Company Loyalty In Our Consultancy?

by Iyas
Retaining your best consultants is no easy task. The most effective way to do it is to foster loyalty in your team, both to your consultancy and to each other. That takes a lot more than decent pay or yet another fusball table (spare me). Here are some real tips based on my experience of taking consultant employee churn down from 40% to an industry-leading 6%.
Rusty skills

Have your skills gone rusty since you started your consultancy?

by Iyas
Are you worried that your technical or design skills have gone rusty since you started running your consultancy or agency? Rusty Skills Syndrome is more common than you'd think for founders and leaders of consultancies and agencies. Here's what to do about it.
Culture

How Culture Created Currency (…and Fun) at our Consultancy

by Iyas
Think company culture only matters in textbooks and for change management consultants? In the consultancy / full services agency I sat on the board of, it translated quantifiably to multiple 7 figures added to our bottom line. Add everything else I've not tried to quantify, and it could easily be four times that.
Your Values Went Thataway

What ONE Value Will Your Company Be Remembered For?

by Iyas
Whether a company's values go no further than a link on their website, or are rooted through the organisation, there's often one that ranks higher than the others. And usually, the company's leadership has little control over it. Do you know what yours is?