Description:  Now that people are putting their masks aside, company leaders are faced with a litany of operational and cultural questions about when and how to return to the office. Hanson Bridgett — a full-service, midsize law firm in California — began working on all that (and more) about 14 months before the pandemic began. The firm’s leadership didn’t foresee the crisis, but starting in 2018, they had been looking to reduce fixed costs and spend the savings in creative ways to become more competitive. In this article, I present four lessons from the firm’s successful shift to remote and hybrid work. As Hanson Bridgett has demonstrated, announcing a hybrid work policy does not mean immediate implementation. They’ll patiently work out the details, communicate carefully, achieve alignment, and then implement. Midsize companies would be well advised to do the same.

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Description: The pandemic has accelerated change that will significantly affect demand trends, and forward-thinking midsize companies must understand the change in demand patterns and adapt through innovation. One midsize company, Kern Oil & Refining Co., has an impressive track record of adapting to major changes in demand. They’ve been successful because of three main capabilities: investments in innovation, extensive external information-gathering, and a culture of collaboration. Midsize companies in every industry can have a big role in making the future better. But their work must begin now, fueled by systematic investment in those three areas.

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A new breed of predator sees your profitable, established business as a tasty lunch. Don’t wait to be devoured.  Follow this strategic plan to help increase sales and business growth.

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Startup companies that thrive react to a new market opportunity at lightning speed, long before big, established companies even recognize what’s happening.

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33voices is a global conversation about things that matter in business and in life. They create impact by keeping important ideas moving. They bring together the most influential thinking and thinkers on the planet to help entrepreneurs and business creators build great businesses and live great lives.

Having coached entrepreneurs for over 25 years, they have discovered that often times, the tipping point between merely surviving and building a thriving business, is perhaps a new relationship; a new perspective on an existing challenge, or simply just a bit of inspiration. In short, they are convinced that access to an inspired community is what leads to exponential growth.

On October 25, 2014, 33voices is featuring a interview they had with Robert Sher.  Won’t you listen and watch and share these with your cadre of business associates and friends?

Preview Clip      Slide Deck       Listen to the Interview

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Robert Sher was quoted in the Inc. Magazine’s September print issue in this article about innovation— asserting that too much innovation can actually hurt your business.  The article reviews statistics that prove the point, and distinguishes between different types of innovation.

It underscores the importance of picking the best ideas—and developing them, as well as focusing on scaling high-growth core business opportunities to cash in on proven innovations, and to reduce focus on new ideas during those intense high-growth times.  Read the story on-line here.

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Robert Sher’s Keynote Address– December 8, 2010
for Grant Thornton’s Event
“The Quest for Innovation”

This keynote was delivered for Grant Thornton’s 4th Annual Food and Beverage Industry Forum on December 8th, 2010 in San Francisco at the City Club. Watch the first 10 minutes of that presentation.

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For a mid-market company, choosing where to place your innovation bets is a dangerous game. Where you spend your time and invest your dollars are decisions that can make or break you.  How much time should a CEO and his team invest in looking at “new ideas?”  And how does a CEO select the most promising innovations and ignore the rest?

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The convergence of the food, personal care, healthcare, and health services industries is happening, and this article explores opportunities in this area, and the deep strategic thinking that must happen for ideal positioning.

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Does innovation fundamentally differ when you’re talking small firms vs. big firms? Lisa Noble, CEO of Farmhouse Foods, provides some insights into what makes a company successful for more than a century.

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