Category Archives: Strategic Planning

June 4, 2012 · 6:20 pm

Terry Murray Discusses the Strategic Imperative of Creative Thinking in Business on the CBS Radio Network

The need for creative thinking has moved well out of R&D and marketing departments.  The speed and dynamics of today’s economic world require adaptive solutions to unprecedented challenges at every touch point within the organization.  I recently had the opportunity to discuss how to go about cultivating the type of organizational agility successful companies require in the 21st century with Walt Shaw on the CBS Radio Network.

You’re welcome to listen to the interview on the player below:

© 2012, Terry Murray.

© 2012, CBS Radio Network.

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May 24, 2012 · 3:11 pm

Crowd Funding Considerations

Key Concept ~ President Obama signed the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act into law the other day.  The Securities and Exchange Commission has 270 days to comment and advise on the new statute, so it will be interesting to see how they weigh in on this legislation.  While this may hold exceptional promise for many aspiring entrepreneurs, there are a few things you should consider before you secure this type of funding.

Last November I wrote a blog entitled, The Crowd Funding Conundrum, as the JOBS Act came to the house floor.  The legislation is designed to open up crowd funding for equity investments.  The bill waives the accredited investor requirements of the SEC ($250,000 per year income for three consecutive years or $2 million in net worth, excluding primary home asset) as well as the need for Private Placement Memorandums and many of the other controls and reporting requirements so familiar to the private equity world.  While the buzz is really starting to hum on the internet, entrepreneurs that have never gone down the private equity road would be well advised to understand the potential repercussions crowd funding can have on later-stage financing rounds, accounting expenses, reporting requirements, etc.

The bill caps the small investor’s sum at $2,000 and allows for up to $1 million in financing annually.  Here are some things you may wish to consider prior to going down the crowd funding path.

Shareholder Communications ~ Are you prepared and structured to consistently and uniformly address 500, 1,000 or 2,000 shareholders’ concerns?  You’ll need to be ready to do so.  Most entrepreneurs never see how much time a CEO spends on investor relations.  If you don’t have an investor communications strategy, and the capabilities to execute on it, this one area alone could quickly swamp your time.

Legal Structure ~ Are you an LLC?  An S-Corp?  A C-Corp?  Be sure you understand the differences in legal entity structure.  An LLC is not readily designed for investors and are state-regulated entities.  As such, the interstate reporting requirements, if investors are involved from around the country, are substantial.  An S-Corporation also is not designed for broad investment.  If you’re going to pursue equity investors, you really should be doing so as a C-Corporation.  Keep in mind, if you’re accustomed to doing business as an LLC, this will be a major change for you.

Company Pre-Cash Valuation ~ Do you know what your company is worth?  Pre-cash valuation is just that, the value of the company before it is driving cash flow or received equity financing.  This is highly speculative and requires some insights into early-stage growth, barriers to entry, competitive response, and time line to break-even.  Missing the mark on pre-cash valuation can have terrible repercussions on your liquidity event.  A down round (a subsequent round of equity financing in with the per share value has gone down from the previous round of funding) is the death nell to larger, more sophisticated investors.

Dilution ~ If you’re going for equity financing you’ll soon understand the implications of dilution.  This also has strong ties back to the pre-cash valuation.  Equity financing is the sale of a percentage of ownership in your business.  With each subsequent round, you will become more and more diluted in your ownership position.  Give up too much ownership (because you didn’t have an accurate pre-cash valuation) early and by the time the company is at scale you’ll have very little ownership left in hand.

Defensible Intellectual Property ~ Is your firm intellectual property (I.P.) based?  Is your I.P. protected by solid, defensible patents?  Are you prepared to reveal your trade secrets in open, crowd sourcing venues?  The investors will want to know what is special about your firm.  Even Angel Investors and VCs don’t sign non-disclosures.  How are you going to manage sensitive, competitive information as you seek out funding?

Due Diligence ~ The due diligence process in traditional, private equity funding is intense and extensive.  Don’t think you can sidestep the proper preparation you will need to conduct even with crowd funding.  Eventually you’ll want to go to the more traditional suppliers of equity financing and you’ll need to have this ready.

Entanglements ~ Want to kill a deal on arrival in the Private Equity world?  Show up with shareholder legal entanglements.  Crowd funding opens the door for possible conflicts from every direction.  I’m not saying crowd funding will lead to entanglements that will derail later stage rounds, but it will certainly elevate the probability of entanglements and conflict to emerge.  Remember, the crowd isn’t nearly as astute, experienced, and sophisticated as an accredited investor.

Exit Strategy ~ Equity investors get in to get out.  Working with a small group of Angel Funds helps align interests and expectations as to when the next round of funding will occur.  This is the liquidity event the investors are seeking.  What will be the objectives of 500, 1,000 or 2,000 individual investors?  How will you align them?

Expertise ~ One of the least talked about value of traditional private equity investors is the resource they represent, both through their expertise and networks.  If you go down the crowd funding path you will not get this additional support and guidance that can be key to an early stage company’s survival.

This is just a start of the conversation you should be having prior to considering crowd funding.  Here’s a great article on the new law from the Wall Street Journal that had some great advise and comments.  It also has a link to the full PDF copy of the JOBS Act you can download.

© 2012, Terry Murray.

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April 18, 2012 · 8:29 am

Igniting Your Entrepreneurial Fire ~ Part II

Key Concept ~ Continuing our series on the three key elements for accelerating successful startups, here’s part two of three of excerpts from my book, “The Transformational Entrepreneur ~ Engaging The Mind, Heart & Spirit For Breakthrough Business Success”, which was cited in the March edition of the academic Journal For Economic Literature for its contribution to thought leadership and the field of business management.  It discusses enlightened strategic planning.

When I was a young executive working in Corporate America, I began to experience something that, at the time, I couldn’t quite explain.  As I was given responsibility to create or turn around business units, I would always start by sitting down with my front-line managers and field associates to discuss where we were, what internal and external challenges were before us, and solicit their opinions as to what we should do to move the business forward.  I felt strongly that by taking an inclusive approach I would begin to gain their trust and best serve the interests of the company by embracing the experience and day-to-day knowledge of what was really happening in the trenches.  We would then embark on the strategic planning process during which time we would openly challenge our assumptions in lively discourse and stretch the boundaries of what was traditionally perceived to be possible.  From this process a momentum would emerge, more rapidly and more powerfully than what any of us could have imagined!

I had come to appreciate that the strategic planning process was an iterative one, and the questions that we asked of ourselves were often more important than the answers we would eventually discover.  Upon reaching agreement on the plan of action, I would travel to the field to communicate the vision and strategy that we had developed, again drawing the associates into a lively conversation of what was and wasn’t working.  I emphasized we had a shared responsibility to ensure we were taking care of our customers and embracing the spirit of our strategic plan.  I would continuously remind everyone that the strategic plan was a living document, it was not etched in stone, and everyone was empowered to help calibrate the implementation of the plan moving forward.

The one constant that I began to observe surprised me.  At the point in time that we had perhaps fifty to sixty percent of our strategies implemented we would be on track to achieve our objectives!  It seemed illogical to me at first.  How could we be tracking 100% to plan when we were only half way through the implementation and execution of our strategies?  What I know now is that I was observing the power of collective intention, the cumulative energy that accelerated the manifestation of our vision!  This energy was a direct result of the culture we had co-created.  A culture that was kindled by the intention and creative visualization that was expressed through the strategic planning process (we will explore this further in step-by-step detail in Chapter Seven).

The concept of employing creative visualization as the first step in manifesting a new reality is not new.  Our intention helps us create a wondrous reality that we, as spiritual beings, are meant to enjoy.  On the surface it may sound a bit New Age to some people, a bit beyond the pale of what we, as Westerners, consider realistic.

Yet haven’t we all observed a similar occurrence that is very common in athletics?  We have all heard a broadcaster covering a football or basketball game suddenly exclaim how one of the teams has all the momentum.  We cannot see the force behind the momentum yet we can observe its effects on the game.  Suddenly, through a shift in attitude and energy everything seems to fall into place for one of the teams.  In a matter of a few plays, one team is more dynamic than the other, and their execution becomes so well orchestrated the other team almost looks as if they are standing still trying to defend them.  A quarterback or point guard is suddenly in the zone, their timing is in perfect alignment with their teammates, they’re somehow anticipating the defense…they just can’t miss.  The announcer exclaims, “They’re really feeling it now!”  It is the exact same phenomena I was witnessing in business.

Athletics offer us a wonderful example of presence, which is a core attribute of conscious leadership, of being totally present in the moment, in the now.  An Olympic gymnast is not thinking about all the details of a routine as they perform.  A golfer cannot be thinking about the nuances of mechanics during his or her swing.  They quiet their minds and enter into a near meditative state as they compete.  They are conscious of their performance but not thinking about their performance.  Athletes, when at the top of their game anticipate and act rather than think and react.

This phenomena is supported by hard science.  When we are fully engaged and enjoying what we are doing we enter what renowned researcher and psychology professor Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi refers to as flow.  Dr. Csikszentmihalyi’s research looked into the psychological state of a wide variety of professionals operating at peak performance.  When they were fully engaged, focused, and enjoying their endeavor, their biochemistry reflected an increase in cortisol (part of the hypothalamic/pituitary/adrenal or HPA axis in our brains) which brought them to a place in which they were taking full advantage of their cognitive and physical abilities.  If the HPA axis shot past this optimal point due to stress, adrenaline and cortisol levels continued to rise and performance rapidly diminished.  His work proved that a person’s emotional state is a governing factor in cognitive and physical performance.

When a group of athletes are engaging in team competition (and doing it well) they manifest a cumulative energy.  Their combined intention, their collective consciousness, elevates the team to an entirely new level of performance.  We can achieve the same thing in business; fore it is not simply physical or mental execution but the collective consciousness of our team that generates this remarkable energy.  The key is in creating a strategic plan and dynamic culture that empowers our associates to be present in the moment, to concentrate on creating and delivering value to our customers now, rather than being consumed with what may come tomorrow or concerned about what wasn’t done yesterday.

Strategic planning as a form of creative visualization that also enables presence may raise the question, “How are you in the moment when you are looking one, three, or five years ahead?”  It is a logical question.  Let me use an analogy to help explain this:

Let’s envision a business, just for a moment, as a tribe of hunters and gatherers living ten thousand years ago.  As the leaders of the tribe, we are highly aware of our environment.  As time passes, we begin to observe a change in the climate; with each passing year it is getting colder much earlier in the year and staying cold much longer into the spring.  We observe the birds and other animals beginning to migrate south much earlier than what we have historically observed and notice they are also returning later in the spring.  From our observations, from our awareness, we develop a Vision that these elongated winters may be less severe in the South.  It stands to reason that if the migrating animals are leaving earlier and staying longer food supplies are most likely more abundant as well.

We establish a Goal of migrating south to ensure the tribe will continue to prosper.  In order to do so, we must cross a large mountain range before the early autumn snows begin and block the high passes.  We now have an Objective that is critical to the success of achieving our Goal; we must clear the high passes before the snow flies or we could become stranded and perish.

There are many passes we can choose from, some representing a more arduous climb, but are more direct, and others that offer a gentle slope, yet will take longer.  We must now decide upon our Strategies.  The amount of risk we are willing to incur and how we intend to balance the risk of each approach with the risk of failing to reach the passes before the snows begin.

Our Strategies reflect the constraints we have identified through a thorough Self-Assessment.   We have examined our strengths and weaknesses.  How many children and elders must survive this trek?  Do we have ample supplies for the journey?  Who are our harbingers for this journey that can blaze the trail for the remainder of the tribe?  Have we carefully evaluated the landscape and challenged our assumptions of the risks involved?  What is the Competitive Landscape; are there hostile tribes living along the way that may wish us harm?  Might there be opportunities to partner with other tribes?  Have we properly scouted our options and truly know what we face?  Have we challenged our assumptions and appreciate the fact we still don’t know what we don’t know?

At the end of all this discussion and evaluation we realize that the only way we can manifest our Vision (abundance for the tribe) and achieve our Goal (to be in the South), and to secure our Objective (navigate the mountain passes before the autumn snow), is to walk south every day one step at a time, regardless of the Strategic path we have chosen.  Our Tactics…for each of us, once the decision has been made to take the journey, must simply focus on taking one step at a time in the moment.

Much like the tribal elders in this analogy, business leaders have the responsibility of formulating a clear and concise vision, communicate it effectively so that others can share in it, and to discern the best path for the organization to follow through the mature evaluation of risks and rewards.  In doing so, we can, in combination with a healthy, vibrant, and trusting culture, enable associates to concentrate on each step they are taking in the moment, to be truly present, to execute on the plan now and make it a reality for us all.

© 2012, Terry Murray.

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April 12, 2012 · 12:41 pm

Igniting Your Entrepreneurial Fire

Key Concept ~ While the cacophony of social media,  cloud technology, mobile apps, etc., continues the dominate the business landscape, the core fundamentals for success remain the same.  Over the next three blogs, I’d like to share the fundamentals I learned over my 25 year career in both corporate leadership roles and in entrepreneurial settings.  Your success will greatly be determined by three critical elements.  These next three blogs are an excerpt from my book, “The Transformational Entrepreneur ~ Engaging The Mind, Heart & Spirit For Breakthrough Business Success”, which was cited in the March edition of the academic Journal For Economic Literature for its contribution to thought leadership and the field of business management.

Creating transformational performance is like igniting a fire; it requires three fundamental elements.  A fire requires a source of heat, fuel, and oxygen in order to burn.  Transformational performance requires authentic, conscious leadership (the heat), a visionary strategic plan (the fuel), and a creative culture that fully engages the entire workforce (the oxygen).

While transformational performance cannot occur without all three elements, the quality of leadership will greatly enhance or diminish both the ascendance and long-term success of a business.  The intensity of its energy and the clarity of its intention can emulate that of a paper match or an acetylene torch.

The quality of the strategic plan will influence sustainability and growth; it can take the form of seasoned hardwood or half-rotted pulp.  The final element, culture, can fan or extinguish the brightest leadership and the most thoughtful strategies.  Like oxygen, we cannot literally see culture, yet it is the air we all breathe.

~ Authentic Leadership

Leading a business requires a strong and unflinching sense of responsibility for the associates who depend upon your wisdom, integrity, and stewardship.  Their livelihoods, dreams, and aspirations are invested in your guidance.  This is a sacred trust.  Associates trust that you will do your best to ensure the health and vitality of the business.  The stronger their level of trust in your leadership, the more willing they will be to fully invest their time, energy, and enthusiasm in the success of the endeavor.  The level of authenticity a leader expresses in their daily interactions with people and in how they address challenging situations will have an enormous impact on execution.

Authenticity may sound like an unusual word to describe leadership, but its meaning reflects several key characteristics that are critical to successfully leading human beings.  There are three primary definitions of authenticity in the dictionary; the quality of being authentic, trustworthy or genuine, and the displaying of undisputed credibility.

The quality of being authentic begins with being true to one’s self.  This quality emerges through self reflection and inner exploration and infers an active awareness of one’s consciousness.  The complete spectrum of who we are physically, intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually.  This includes being in touch with, and trusting in, one’s own intuition.  We’ll explore the role of intuition further in Chapter Four.

At times, being true to one’s self isn’t easy.  It can test our moral courage.  In the late 1990’s while serving as the vice president of sales and marketing for a highly acquisitive life science company I experienced this conflict.  I found myself confronted with having to decide whether I would lead with authenticity or “go along to get along”.

Shortly after our company purchased a small manufacturing concern we found ourselves with two mid-level executives with overlapping responsibilities for managing our European sales business.  One was from our organization and one arrived with the acquired company.  The president of our company had sidestepped a decision on realigning responsibilities for two months.  The new executive was very political and focused much of his efforts and energy to develop a social relationship with the president, inviting him to play golf and entertaining him at his home.    After more than a year of diligent work on the part of our director to build our business in Europe the ambiguity began wearing on his emotions and productivity.

The situation left me uneasy at what I felt was inherently unfair.  At the very least, our director deserved a word of clarification on the issue.  Finally, on a Friday afternoon preceding our director leaving on a scheduled trip to meet with our European partners (who would be looking for direction and clarification as well) I felt compelled to address the situation with the president.  My inquiry infuriated the president who proceeded to lash out verbally.  I took some lumps and expended significant political capital, but my authentic concern for my direct report resonated throughout the sales and marketing organization, building trust and resulting in measurably marked improvements in sales performance.

As the years progressed, I began to realize my sensibilities of leadership didn’t correlate with what I was consistently experiencing in Corporate America.  While my performance was frequently lauded by my superiors, I would eventually find myself at odds with the status quo.  Somehow, my presence made my fellow executives uncomfortable.  Our intentions didn’t match.  I eventually came to the realization I didn’t belong in this environment and made the decision to strike out on my own and start a business focusing on coaching entrepreneurs on leadership, strategy, and business process.  In discovering and following my authentic self I now work from a position of service that has created the greatest joy and satisfaction I have ever experienced in my life!

The second definition of authenticity is “trustworthy or genuine”.  Trust is an energy that flows in a circular orbit.  It cannot move in one direction without returning to whence it came.  Some people allow themselves to trust more readily than others, but once trust has been broached it is often nearly impossible to mend.

Cultivating a trustworthy environment dispels people’s fears and calms insecurities.  It enables people to function in the moment without worrying about the repercussions of making an honest mistake.  The legendary salesman and early leader of IBM, Thomas J. Watson, was once quoted as saying, “Recently, I was asked if I was going to fire an employee who made a mistake that cost the company $600,000. No, I replied, I just spent $600,000 training him. Why would I want somebody to hire his experience?”

Sometimes we learn more from our mistakes and allowing for the occasional mistake without the anticipation or fear of punishment builds trust.  Trusting associates empowers people to work from their heart which draws upon the energy of positive intention.  It opens the door to passionate engagement and reveals the hidden workforce lying quietly just beneath the surface in many businesses.  Creating an environment that encourages mature, thoughtful risk-taking delivers returns that far exceed any potential losses.

In the context of our discussion, the definition of “genuine” refers to being from the original stock or lineage, of being a genuine human being.  This implies we see each other as universally and energetically connected as a single entity of creation.  In doing so, we are able to express empathy for one another as easily and openly as we are able to care about our selves.  The resonant power of empathy consistently expressed by leadership cannot be overestimated.  It conveys genuine concern and respect for an associate’s well-being.  In doing so, it lowers barriers and engages the heart as well as the mind.  It is something we all can relate to.  Ask yourself, how much more are you willing to do for someone that genuinely cares about you?

Several years ago I was engaged in a strategic planning project with an immersive learning company.  They focused on teaching empathy in health care environments in response to malpractice lawsuits.  The financial exposure the risk of malpractice introduces to insurance companies, hospitals, and physicians’ practices has resulted in extensive, scientific research into the reasons why people sue.  We tapped into this research as part of our planning process and what we discovered was very surprising.  It turns out people sue based upon how they feel they were treated after a medical error had occurred and not directly because of the error itself.  Patients and patients’ families that were treated with empathy were significantly less likely to sue.  That’s a powerful statement.  In the midst of experiencing one of the most severe health and emotional crisis humans may encounter, empathy was the balm that soothed the intensity of a catastrophic medical event.  Imagine the power empathy can have in an everyday business environment!

The third definition of authenticity is “undisputed credibility”, which emphasizes the importance of being impeccable with your word and ensuring the consistent alignment of your actions with your words.  Walking the walk and talking the talk.  In the noble words of St. Francis of Assisi, “It is no use walking anywhere to preach unless our walking is our preaching.”

One of the fastest ways to disengage a workforce is for leadership to display behavior that is inconsistent with their words.  It conveys the existence of double standards; one for associates and a separate, privileged set of standards for executives.  If you want associates to perform at a high level then live, work, and consistently display that level in your own behavior.  Keep in mind it is human nature to remember the missteps.  You can be consistently credible 99% of the time but it will be the one time you are inconsistent with your word that associates will remember.

Another powerful, yet often overlooked attribute of authentic leadership is the ability to sense and respect people’s boundaries.  Hierarchical leadership has a tendency to create boundaries that run in one direction.  Actually, they are more like barriers than boundaries.  Barriers that create a set of expectations that govern behavior and one-directional communication that are meant to sustain authority and control.  Projecting a lack of respect for the boundaries of subordinates causes emotional barriers to be erected.  As emotional barriers come up associate engagement goes down.  Conversely, enabling the creation of healthy boundaries engages associates’ sense of worth and creativity.

People need to feel secure in their own space; this extends to emotional and intellectual space as well as physical space.  When people are able to create and maintain a container of self their creativity will blossom.  When physical space is constrained, such as when cubicles are used for workspace, fostering healthy emotional and mental boundaries is even more important to fully engage associates.  Authority figures that roll over these boundaries lead people to freeze up and withdraw, working while keeping their heads down to avoid further transgressions into their comfort zone.  Giving associates the space to think and, at the appropriate time, to simply be, engages the imagination and the heart.  The consistent expression of authentic leadership will rapidly reveal previously unseen opportunities for the organization.

© 2012, Terry Murray.

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March 28, 2012 · 12:28 pm

The Transformational Entrepreneur Cited in the Academic Journal of Economic Literature

For Immediate Release – March 28, 2012 -

Terry Murray’s groundbreaking book, “The Transformational Entrepreneur ~ Engaging The Mind, Heart & Spirit For Business Breakthrough Success” was recognized and cited in the peer-reviewed, academic Journal of Economic Literature’s March 2012 quarterly issue.

Performance Transformation, LLC™ (Venice, FL) announced today that their founder and Managing Partner’s book, “The Transformational Entrepreneur”was recognized and cited in the academic Journal of Economic Literature for its contribution to professional business literature and thought leadership.

“We received the unsolicited notification letter from the Journal last week,” responded Mr. Murray. “It was both humbling and exciting at the same time.  I’ve been working on the business side of the life sciences, medical technology and health care sectors since 1988, so I have an enormous appreciation for the diligence of peer-reviewed, academic journals.  As a business executive, and not an academic, this is a distinct honor for my book to be recognized for its contribution to the field of business and economic professional literature.”

The Journal of Economic Literature is published by the American Economic Association (AEA), a professional organization of economists, academics, and business thought leaders with more than 22,000 members.

“My executive career has spanned some truly remarkable changes in the global business landscape,” added Terry.  ”Historically, there’s always been a lag in leadership, strategy and organizational philosophy in response to market shifts in value creation.  I entered the biotechnology world during its infancy.  This was the beginning of the knowledge-based economy and coincided with the boom in personal computing.  Yet the methods, perspectives, and philosophies we were trained for in business school all emerged out of the Industrial Age.  We literally had to discover a new approach to business as usual along the way, but it is only today, some 25 years later, that the strategic imperative of human creativity in business is beginning to move into the mainstream.”

“The Transformational Entrepreneur” will also be indexed in the American Economic Association’s internet database, EconLit, which is accessible at libraries and universities around the world, as well as to licensed institutions and AEA members.  The electronic bibliography indexes over 120 years of economics literature from around the world.  The database complies professional journal articles, collective volume articles, working papers, dissertations, and books of note on the subject of economics and business practice.

“The shift in the source of value creation truly began in the 1980s, but information technology bridged the productivity gap for thirty years, masking the need for a change in the approach to  leadership, strategy and organizational development.  By the turn of the century it was already beginning to hit a point of diminishing returns, right at the time the explosively disruptive power of the internet began to take off.  Even old world industries are doing business in ways they never could have anticipated ten years ago,” commented Terry.

Mr. Murray went on to say, “Perhaps because I was immersed in the knowledge-based economy for so long I saw the need for a more human-centric approach to business.  Research scientists, physicians and engineers, and their creative talents, are the raw material for value creation and competitive advantage in this new era of business.  You cannot lead creatives the same way we once managed assembly line workers.  Two years after I began writing my book, the IBM Global CEO Survey exemplified the perspective and approach I was writing about at the time, reporting that creativity and the ability to cultivate creativity throughout the workplace was the single most important attribute CEOs are looking for in future leaders.”

Terry’s book was published two months after IBM released the results of their bi-annual survey in December of 2010.

About the author ~ Terry Murray is an author, speaker, entrepreneur, and professional business advisor/coach with twenty-five years of progressive experience in strategic development, executive leadership, and the deployment of highly profitable business teams. His work with Fortune 1000 and startup companies has directly contributed more than $1 billion in market capitalization growth throughout his career.

He is the founder and Managing Partner of Performance Transformation, LLC™, a professional and strategic development firm focused on igniting breakthrough performance by optimizing and aligning authentic leadership, mindful strategy, and an engaging, creative organizational culture.  The company’s evidence-based programs and pragmatic approach employs their proprietary Accretive Coaching Process℠.  This innovative, developmental process integrates concepts from published research in the neurosciences, emotional intelligence, performance psychology, quantum physics and Applied Behavioral Economics with Equine Facilitated Experiential Learning.

For more information, please visit http://ignitingcreativityinbusiness.com.

© 2012, Performance Transformation, LLC™.


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March 12, 2012 · 10:00 pm

Performance Transformation Launches Igniting Creativity in Business

PR Newswire – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Performance Transformation, LLC™ (Venice, FL) announced today the launch of their new professional development programs and workshops designed to cultivate creativity in the workplace.

“We’re very excited to bring our innovative approach into the marketplace,” said Terry Murray, Founder and Managing Partner of Performance Transformation.  ”Regardless of your industry, creativity thinking is now a strategic imperative for cultivating and sustaining competitive advantage in the 21st Century.”

In fact, the 2010 IBM Global CEO survey identified the single most important attribute CEOs are looking for in future leaders is creativity and their ability to cultivate creativity throughout the organization.  However, a peer-reviewed research study conducted by Cornell University  and published in The Journal For Experimental Social Psychology identifies a disconnect.  The research identified a heretofore unseen bias in business.  High potentials that display creativity are often sidetracked on their way up the corporate ladder.

“The accelerating complexity of the global marketplace we’re currently experiencing is unprecedented,” adds Mr. Murray.  ”Creative thinking can no longer be relegated to the R&D or marketing functions.  It needs to be present at every touchpoint throughout the organization.”

More than four years in development and validation, the Igniting Creativity In Business series of professional development programs and workshops are entirely based upon peer-reviewed research from diverse, scientific disciplines.  Research findings from the neurosciences, emotional intelligence, biochemistry, Applied Behavioral Economics, Core Mammalian Emotional Systems, performance psychology, creativity research, Kolb’s Adult Learning Style Inventory, and quantum physics have been integrated into a multi-dimensional, innovative approach for sparking creativity and innovative thinking.

“For the past four years we’ve been focused on developing and delivering programs and workshops that align and optimize leadership, strategy, and organizational culture,” states Terry.  ”Our baseline programs, first released in 2010, Transformational Leadership, Adaptive Team Building, Igniting Breakthrough Sales, The Emotionally Resilient Nurse, and Warriors in Transition set the foundation for the next evolution in professional development.  When we saw the results from the IBM Global CEO Survey a year and a half ago we realized we had identified the fundamental elements necessary for promulgating creativity in business.”

In the past two years, more than a dozen research studies and surveys have been released by global consultancies, universities, and leading institutions all pointing to the growing disconnect between leadership and employees.  Economic volatility and the global recession contributed to this issue. On a macro level, more than 70% of employees are disengaged with their company.  Trust in leadership is at an all time low (10%) and fear dominates many organizational cultures.

Terry goes on to state, “Fear kills creativity.  It is part of our Core Mammalian Emotional System.  When we promote fear as a motivating factor, we get a predictable response; disengagement.  When we promote another of our part of our Core Mammalian Emotional System, seeking, we also get a predictable response; engagement and creativity.”

Today’s multi-cultural and multi-generational workplace provides significant opportunities for devising and implementing creative solutions to challenges and opportunities alike.  It does, however, require a fresh approach to leading, planning, and delivering a culture capable of engaging every human perspective in the business.

“Creative thinking requires both divergent thinking and convergent focus,” added Terry.  ”Diversity of perspectives, coming from diverse people is key.  Inclusion of diverse perspectives has never been more strategically important for companies than it is today.  The other key element for creative thinking that is often overlooked in business is novel stimuli.”

Performance Transformation delivers novel cognitive, emotional, and psychological stimuli through their proprietary Accretive Coaching Process℠, which can include Equine Facilitated Experiential Learning workshops.  The carefully crafted, ground-based exercises with horses introduces a novel, neurological response triggering the development of new neural pathways.  This approach, followed up with a rigorous educational and coaching process helps professionals shift their response to new challenges away from conditioned thinking into an exploratory, neurological response.

Terry concludes, “The challenge is to first promote the formation of new neural pathways in the individual through the introduction of emotionally, cognitively, and psychologically novel stimuli.  To break out of the wheel worn paths of conditioned thinking.  The brain is very conservative with energy, so it has a tendency to follow the path of least resistance.  Developing new neural pathways takes more energy than following established ones.  The more practiced we are in developing new ways of thinking, the easier it becomes to respond to unprecedented challenges in creative ways.  We then work to help client organizations connect and amplify the nodes of though throughout their company.  This approach to cross-pollinating organizational thinking is the key to success going forward.”

© 2012, Performance Transformation, LLC™.

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February 29, 2012 · 5:52 pm

Leading for Creativity Advantage in Entrepreneurial Startups

Key Concept ~ The creativity of your organization must be a strategic imperative for success in the 21st century.  Unless you’re a Millennial, we all must appreciate the fact that we matriculated through a business world that was optimized for the Industrial Age.  Leadership philosophies, managerial processes, attitudes towards inclusion and process that we were taught are completely incongruent with the nature of business today.  Fortunately, the first calibration entrepreneurs need to make in order to embrace the new paradigm is close to home…it lies within one’s self.  

Seth Godin released his 30,000 word manifesto on transforming the school system earlier this week entitled, “Stop Stealing Dreams” StopStealingDreams – PDF.  In it, Seth points out the fact that the public school system was created and optimized to support the need for workers and consumers during the height of the Industrial Age.  It does what it was designed to do, but that design no longer aligns with what companies now need in order to create and sustain competitive advantage.  The same is true in business.  The approach to leadership, strategic planning, and organizational develop that was optimized for the Industrial Age no longer fits the source of contemporary value creation; human creativity.

While Seth speaks for the need to transform our educational system, the same position can be taken (and often is on the blog) towards the structure, leadership, and processes that mainstream businesses still cling to twelve years into the new century.  Information technology helped masked the underlying shift for several decades, but technology, in and of itself, is reaching the point of diminishing returns.  We need simply to look to the numerous research studies and surveys to see how the transactional leadership approach of the past has created the worst employee disengagement crisis since serfdom.  Disengaged associates are not creative associates, and creative associates are the fuel for success going forward.

At point 22 (there are 132 points in the manifesto), Seth points to the concept that we are in the Age of Connections.  To quote Mr. Godin, “The industrial revolution wasn’t about inventing manufacturing, it was about amplifying it to the point where it changed everything. And the connection revolution doesn’t invent connection, of course, but it amplifies it to become the dominant force in our economy.  Connecting people to one another. Connecting seekers to data. Connecting businesses to each other. Connecting tribes of similarly minded individuals into larger, more effective organizations. Connecting machines to each other and creating value as a result.  In the connection revolution, value is not created by increasing the productivity of those manufacturing a good or a service. Value is created by connecting buyers to sellers, producers to consumers, and the passionate to each other.”

I can see where Mr. Godin is going, but I think we need to take this a bit deeper to reveal the source of value creation.  The most important connections are within the human mind.  How we, as human beings, can make connections between disparate points of knowledge, experiences, and perspectives to create entirely new opportunities.  Without this neurological spark of creative insight the external connections are just more noise in an already cacophonous landscape.

Leading for creativity advantage demands that the soil be tended and cared for in order for intellectual property to germinate.  This starts with the leader’s level of consciousness, with their insights and understanding of how to connect, engage, and inspire those around them.  In order to do this with resonance, the leader must first connect, engage, and inspire their authentic self.  Transformation cannot occur without transparency.  The answers to our adaptive challenges aren’t out there floating in the technological ether, they’re in here, within our own capacity to create new neural pathways and actually change the way we see, think about and react to the world.  This does entail some self-reflective work, and typically doesn’t emerge of its own accord.

Seth also speaks about fear and passion.  He points to how schools leverage fear to control large student bodies and how this disengages the young people from pursuing their passions and dreams.  It’s a good point, and one that is also prevalent with transactional leaders in business (light on the carrot…heavy on the stick).  Command and control doesn’t propagate creative thinking.  It creates risk-aversion and passive-aggressive behavior in the workplace.  The research of Dr. Jaak Panksepp demonstrates that fear is part of our Core Mammalian Emotional System.  Our ancient survival hardwiring that is shared by all mammals.  The flip side of fear, however, is seeking.  Cultivate an environment of fear and you’ll get a predictable, emotional response; disengagement.  Cultivate an environment of seeking and you’ll also get a predictable, emotional response; engagement.  Engagement is the pre-requisite for creativity.  Enabling seeking holds the space for the discovery of passion.

Passion involves the brain and the embodied neural networks of the enteric nervous system (the gut) and the heart. When we engage in our sense of authentic self, when we consciously choose self-awareness and empathy over conditioned behavior, we align our entire neural network and enter into a state of biochemical coherence (R. McCraty, M. Atkinson, “Psychophysiological Coherence”. In: Children D, McCraty R, Wilson BC, eds. Emotional Sovereignty. Amsterdam: Harwood Academic Publishers, forthcoming).  Coherence promulgates what researcher Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi refers to as flow.  When we enter into flow we are at our highest point of creativity and performance.  We’re firing on all cylinders!

Google is a great example of how a once entrepreneurial startup got this right.  Not only do they promote seeking (20% of their engineers’ time at work must be spent on a project of individual interest that is independent from the company), but they also promote two other Core Mammalian Emotions; playfulness (ping pong tables around the office) and caring (all the little perks on their campuses).  Can anyone argue with Google’s results?

This is the strategic imperative for entrepreneurial firms that emerge from the creation of intellectual property…to lead, plan, and organize the business in such a way as to maximize creative flow with associates.  Research from Applied Behavioral Economics clearly demonstrates how we feel about companies is as important, if not more important than what we think about said companies.  The leadership lessons for entrepreneurs working in the 21st century lie within our very own nature.  The path forward begins with walking a path inward.

© 2012, Terry Murray.

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January 24, 2012 · 7:27 pm

There’s No Secret About it ~ There’s a Conscious Path for Success!

Key concept ~ I was participating on a LinkedIn discussion thread from the Leadership Think Tank group and a gentleman posted a pitch for his program for success using the Law of Attraction and “The Secret”.  Well, you can imagine how lively this discussion became!  Now, I’m a big believer in the role the human spirit plays in business success, but books and programs like this always feel a bit predatory to me, offer no real value (spiritually or otherwise) and take advantage of emotionally and financially vulnerable people.  We’ve invested more than three years canvasing the research from the neurosciences, Emotional Intelligence, Applied Behavioral Economics, consciousness studies, quantum physics and performance psychology to unearth what’s truly at play, just below the surface, that explains much about human behavior and relationships.  During the discussion, one woman confessed she’d been trying to follow this supposed secret, was still failing and asked for advice.  Here’s what I had to offer:

1.) Examine your vision within the context of your intention. What does your vision look like? Now what does your intention feel like? Are they in alignment? If they are, if your vision of where you want to go and want you want to do aligns with a positive intention of being of service to others, and resonates within you, it will resonate with others as well. Either way, other people will feel your intention.  Applied Behavioral Economics demonstrates 70% of economic decision making is emotionally-driven, with the remaining 30% based in rational thought.  How people feel about you is highly influenced by how you approach and engage them, which reflects your intention.

2.) Conduct a Self-Assessment from a position of elevated Self Awareness. This is the first step in cultivating Emotional Intelligence (self awareness helps build self management skills). Examine your strengths, weaknesses, and core competencies…your unique gifts and talents you were born to share with the world. This will help bring clarity of purposefulness and identify areas for personal and/or professional development.  Entrepreneur…know thyself!

3.) Conduct a Market Assessment (or needs assessment in the case of a nonprofit or personal life plan) by first following your intuition. Allow yourself the freedom to openly explore your possibilities and opportunities using lateral thinking as opposed to vertical thinking.  Creativity, by way of intuitive insight (that aha! moment) is non-linear in its very nature.  Linear thinking disengages us from the way our brain draws correlations between data, our experiences, and the environment.  At this stage, if we’re too attached to a projected outcome we might walk right past the greater opportunity without ever seeing it!

Allowing yourself to wander freely will engaged your higher functioning brain as well as the neural network of your heart (the heart has more than 5 million neurons just like the ones in your brain, and science is showing us they’re just as active). This will also engage your enteric nervous system, the neural network of the gut. Our enteric neural network has more neurons than our entire spinal column. These embodied neural networks connect to our basil ganglia through the vagus nerve. When we reconnect with our embodied intelligence centers we can begin to do, what Christian de Quincy says, “Feel our thinking”*. You see, the basal ganglia is an ancient part of our brain. Because it evolved so early, it has no direct neural pathways to our linguistic center. It speaks to us through feelings…through emotions (remember the Self-Assessment from a place of higher Self Awareness?  This is where it comes into play as well).

Now, validate your intuitive discoveries through concrete market research of the actual conditions that exist (or in the case of conducting a life plan, review your constraints). Are your intuitive assumptions validated by real world conditions?  Unleashing your intuitive abilities will bring you places you might not have thought of cognitively.  It can also reveal insights you may not have seen before (note the word “in-sights”).  Look inward before looking outward!

4.) From this higher place of awareness, state your Vision and Mission. Examine how you and others think and  feel about these statements. This will help you build competencies in social awareness and relationship management, the next steps in cultivating Emotional Intelligence. Ask yourself, does what I’m trying to accomplish resonate on a cognitive and emotional level with others? This is a fundamental principle from Applied Behavioral Economics. If you cultivate positive emotions in others you create engagement and build rapport. These are the first steps in developing authentic relationship.  When properly communicated through aligned language and congruent action, this will accelerate your journey towards success!

5.) Articulate your Goals, Objectives, Strategies, and Tactics.  Now is the time to set your Goals (3-5 year visionary statements), Objectives (tangible achievements that you can measure this coming year), Strategies (the methods you will employ to achieve your Objectives), and Tactics (the daily steps you must take to implement your Strategies). This is a form of creative visualization that will help cultivate presence…focusing your energies and activities in the now, the only place we actually physically exist and can take action. While your Goals are over the horizon, each successive planning step pulls you and the manifestation of your vision closer to the present, where you can take little steps every day that contribute to a cumulative effect.  When this emerges within aligned teams, it is accretive, meaning the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.  That builds momentum!

If you do this, with positive intention, I think you will see some remarkable progress in achieving your dreams. This is the essence of my book, which goes into much greater detail, includes planning exercises, and provides examples of where I’ve seen this done to create remarkable success. Success on your own, heart-centered terms.

Test drive it on a small item first, to see if it works for you. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised!

Best of luck!

* From the book, “Radical Knowing – Understanding Consciousness Through Relationship”, Christian de Quincy, Park Street Press, Rochester, VT, 2005.

© 2012, Terry Murray.

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January 19, 2012 · 3:00 am

Interview with Larry Whitler and Robin MacBlane on the AM Ocala Show

Key Concept ~ I was invited back to speak with Larry Whitler and Robin MacBlane on the radio program AM Ocala earlier this week.  Here’s a podcast of the interview.  

Larry and Robin are remarkably conscious and generous hosts.  They’ve been great advocates of my book and my philosophy towards creating a mindful approach for entrepreneurial success in the 21st century.

We explored the critical drivers of entrepreneurial success including:

~ Leading with positive intention.

~ Leading from a perspective of being of service; to your clients, prospects, and community.

~ The resonate value of embracing a mindful strategic planning process.

~ Value-based pricing strategies.

~ How one’s perspective towards their value proposition can redefine their entire market.

~  The critical nature of emotional and cognitive engagement in driving entrepreneurial success.

~ How we can define success on our own terms.

~ How the human spirit is the source of courage and resiliency with successful entrepreneurs.

~ The interplay between entrepreneurs and investors.

~ How we can all succeed in launching our own business…regardless of our age.

It’s a lively and fun discussion and I hope you’ll find some value in listening in!

You can listen to to interview by clicking the play button below:

© 2012, WOCA-AM Ocala.

© 2012, Terry Murray.

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December 22, 2011 · 6:29 pm

Three Simple Questions That Will Help You Avoid Costly Missteps in 2012

Key Concept ~ Successful, growing businesses are highly aware of where they are, what they’re doing, and why they’re doing it.  As you look to make strategic improvements in any facet of your company for next year, here are three simple questions you should ask yourself and your team to help ensure sustainable growth.

I don’t know about you, but 2012 flew by for us at Performance Transformation, LLC™.  As we were reviewing our accomplishments against our 2011 strategic plan, I found myself asking us the same fundamental questions that have served me well for over seventeen years.  Since 1994, I have reviewed, consulted, coached, or written well over 100 business plans, strategic plans, sales launch plans, and the like within both the startup and corporate community.  Over that period of time I discovered three simple questions that can cut through the superfluous and strike at the strategic imperatives that are essential for success.  I hope you find them as helpful as I have over the years!

1.)  How does this contribute acknowledged value for our customers?  Every process and activity within your firm should be able to answer this question with decisiveness and clarity.  This is helpful for reviewing entrenched activities as well as evaluating new initiatives.  If any activity isn’t delivering tangible value that your customer acknowledges and embraces, why are you doing it?  Research into worker productivity demonstrates that in many circumstances associates are only contributing to the creation of customer value approximately 50% of their time at work.  This single question can help you dramatically improve productivity, intra-office communication, and organizational focus on serving your customer base.

2.) How do we know that?  During my executive tenure at STERIS® Corporation this was the legendary founder and CEO Bill Sanford’s killer app!  How one answered this question during strategic review meetings with Mr. Sanford would make or break a career in 30 seconds or less.  This single question ensured we validated every assumption we had about our customers and marketplace with real-world evidence.  Here’s the challenge for each of us…we all have what I call a blind bias.  It is a conditioned pre-disposition to see the world through a myopic lens based upon our own recent experiences and tendency to fall for the law of small numbers.  When we are attached to an outcome, we can unknowingly shade our judgement as to the probability of success based upon recent success or failures and a tendency to see trends in sample sizes that are not statistically significant.  For example, when watching a baseball game and a career .300 hitter coming to bat is 0 for 4 late in the game we tend to think that hitter is due for a hit.  Statistically speaking, this isn’t true.  A sample size of four or five is not large enough to reflect their lifetime tendencies.  Asking this one question when any assumption is presented as fact can avoid sending the entire company down a dead end street.

3.) How does this cultivate emotional and cognitive engagement, both internally and externally?  This is my most recently added critical question.  It is based upon decades of experience combined with three years of research into what differentiates breakthrough performance from mediocrity.  It takes into account the mission-critical importance of cultivating passion and excitement for your business.  Research conducted by Gallup® and published in the Harvard Business Review® supports this perspective.  Company’s that engage both their employees and their customers, on an emotional and cognitive basis, enjoy a 240% improvement in financial performance.  Additional research from the field of Applied Behavioral Economics supports this as well.  Economic decision making, even in a business-to-business setting, is 70% emotionally-driven, with the remaining 30% based in rational thought.  In an age when we are bombarded by anywhere between 3,000 and 5,000 marketing messages a day, cultivating authentic relationships with your customers and prospects is more important than ever.

These three questions should not be reserved for annual reviews of performance or in creating new strategies.  Use them throughout the year, whenever you come across a questionable activity that may look sensible on the surface (we’ve always done it this way) but doesn’t feel right in your gut.  You’ll be amazed at the focus and clarity these questions can delivery throughout your organization!

© 2011, Terry Murray.

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