Ken Blanchard and company have been inspiring business leaders for 30 years. This month they have three new must-read books on organizational change, partnering for performance, and how to run effective meetings (and each is supported with keynote and workshop presentations for your events):

Who Killed Change?
Solving the Mystery of Leading People Through Change

Every day, organizations around the world launch change initiatives-often big, expensive ones-designed to improve the status quo. Yet 50 to 70 percent of these change efforts fail. Find out who or what is killing change!

“Who Killed Change?” keynote available from Ken Blanchard and Pat Zigarmi

Helping People Win at Work
A Business Philosophy Called “Don’t Mark My Paper, Help Me Get an ‘A’”

In the first book of Ken Blanchard’s Leading at a Higher Level series, Blanchard and WD-40 President/CEO Garry Ridge reveal exactly how WD-40 is “Partnering for Performance” with every single employee-and achieving unprecedented levels of engagement and commitment.

“Helping People Win at Work” keynote available from Ken Blanchard

The Hamster Revolution for Meetings
How to Meet Less and Get More Done

The Hamster Revolution for Meetings is a quick and entertaining read that gives you a number of tools you can use immediately, including a Meeting Quality Wheel that can be used to diagnose and treat 12 key meeting challenges.

“The Hamster Revolution” keynote available from Vicki Halsey

Learn more about the books on Amazon.com:

 

Posted under Leadership Development, Motivational Speakers, Organizational Excellence, Speaker News

In our ongoing effort to help meeting planners and business leaders create the most exciting, results-oriented meeting agendas, we’re excited to introduce the 10 newest additions to our roster of speakers (in alphabetical order):

 

• Stew Friedman – Stew is the Director of the Wharton Work/Life Integration Project and author of the 2008 national bestseller, Total Leadership: Be a Better Leader, Have a Richer Life. Invite Stew to your group or organization to improve performance at work, at home, in the community, and for the private self, and learn how to score four-way wins with Total Leadership, benefiting you and the most important people in your life.

 

• Bear Grylls – Bear is best known as host of The Discovery Channel’s Man vs. Wild, but did you know he’s also the youngest Briton to climb Mt. Everest – at age 23? Two years before the climb, he had suffered a near fatal parachuting accident and narrowly escaped being paralyzed for life – requiring a year of rehab. He is one of the youngest motivational speakers on the international business circuit and has won over even the toughest of audiences.

 

• Vicki Halsey – Dr. Victoria Halsey is a spirited, inspirational speaker, author and trainer who energizes audiences worldwide by engaging their hearts well as their minds. As Vice President of Applied Learning for the Ken Blanchard Companies, Vicki specializes in partnering with organizations to inspire people to be in touch with and unleash their greatness.

 

• Terry Hawkins – One of the most sought after speakers in Australia, Terry is relatively new on the speaker circuit in the US. Her high-impact, hilarious and thought-provoking presentations leave audiences inspired and motivated, equipped with new tools to create outstanding results in their personal and professional lives.

 

• Dave Horsager – Through Dave’s book and program, “The Trust Edge,” he shares the secrets of using trust to impact the bottom line. Combining humor, illusions and memorable stories with research and insight, Dave sheds light on the confusion and misconceptions surrounding the cornerstone of personal and professional success. He offers tangible steps that audiences can incorporate into their own lives right away.

 

• Mark Jeffries – As an economist, former stockbroker and TV host, Mark brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the events he speaks at and facilitates. He has the unique ability to serve as an entertaining emcee, an incisive and knowledgeable facilitator, and a popular speaker with a ‘hugely entertaining’ and ‘immensely practical’ keynote presentation entitled “Using Soft Skills to Gain the Business Advantage.”

 

• David Kralik – Called one of the “Top Ten Changing the World of Internet and Politics,” David is the Director of Internet Strategy at American Solutions, founded by former Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich. Based in Silicon Valley, he is constantly scouting new technology and finding ways technology can migrate government and politics into the 21st century. For both political and non-political organizations, he offers great insights into how to leverage technology to tell your story online and mobilize supporters (and customers).

 

• Jason Lezak – We would not be hearing about Michael Phelps winning a world-record eight gold medals at the 2008 Olympics if not for Jason Lezak. As team captain, Jason swam the fastest split in 4X100M freestyle relay history to keep Phelps’ hope of winning eight golds alive. Your audience will be inspired by Jason’s competitive nature and will to succeed.

 

• David Nour – David Nour is a social networking strategist and one of the foremost thought leaders on the quantifiable value of business relationships. His “Relationship Economics” presentation, based on his book by the same title, teaches individuals how to exchange Relationship Currency, accumulate Reputation Capital and build Professional Net Worth. It’s about learning the art and science of relationships.

 

• Pat Zigarmi – Dr. Zigarmi currently serves as Vice President of Business Development for The Ken Blanchard Companies. She is an expert in the areas of leadership and change management and is coauthor of Leadership and the One Minute Manager, the third book in Ken Blanchard’s best-selling One Minute Manager Library, and Leading at a Higher Level. On the speaker’s platform, she is engaging and passionate with the ability to blend power and warmth, as well as knowledge and instinct.

 

Contact The Speakers Group today to inquire about these and other dynamic speakers for your upcoming events.

Posted under Event Management, Leadership Development, Motivational Speakers, Organizational Excellence, Planner Tips, Speaker Recommendations, inspirational speakers

Our thanks to Ben Stein for speaking out about the importance of the meetings industry on CBS News:

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=5075350n%3fsource=search_video

Way to go, Ben!

Posted under Event Management, Planner Tips

The online edition of MPI’s June 2009 One+ magazine includes an article about how meeting and event professionals can manage speaker costs in the current economic climate: “Talk Ain’t Cheap: How to secure a speaker for your event with as little fiscal pain as possible.” Robert Farmer, author of the article, writes:

For planners, the art becomes how to contain speaker costs. Indeed, there are methods in which savvy planners can manage the cost of their keynotes, while also delivering a program about which their clients will surely be talking. The trick is to work with speakers and their agents to ensure both parties get what they need from the deal.

The article also includes insights from Sam Silverstein, president of the National Speakers Association, Marc Reede, president of Nationwide Speakers, and The Speakers Group’s own founder and president, Shawn Ellis. Ellis spoke of how some speakers are helping planners by discounting their fees, while others are doing so by adding value to their engagements:

“…I think the value-added element is what’s really occurring these days, and there is a wide range of ways in which that can play out. Speakers are offering everything from follow-up webinars along with their keynotes to doing breakout sessions and offering more in terms of takeaways.” [This is the essence of The Speakers Group's ROI Speakers initiative.]

While “adding value” doesn’t take money off the top of a speaker’s fee, it does have financial benefits to planners, which is discussed in the article as well our “Think Added Value” blog post here.

In the end, Farmer hits the nail on the head when he writes, “Cooperation among planners and speakers remains the key to success on both ends.” Read the full “Talk Ain’t Cheap” article on MPI’s web site here.

Posted under Book Review, Event Management, Planner Tips

Dr. Kevin Freiberg and Dr. Jackie Freiberg are two of our favorite speakers – because (1) they’re good, cool people, and (2) they are great assets to individuals and organizations who want to go “BOOM!” and break the mold of business-as-usual. We’re happy to share this special message from them for everyone who wants to build their personal brand as a go-to, get-it-done, well-connected, indispensable employee. Please share and help people hang on to their jobs in these challenging times!

–

We’re at a twenty-five year high, but sadly it is not a good high! Conservative data suggests there are 5.7 million people unemployed in the United States, and the number is expected to grow over the next few months. With statistics like that looming on the horizon, we suspect that everyone is looking for ways to hold on tight to their jobs.

However, if through uncontrollable circumstances you do find yourself in the growing pool of the unemployed, there’s no better time to build your personal brand and increase your marketability.

Here are a few ideas…

We challenge you to start by taking Nike’s slogan to heart…. “Just do it!”

Get good at telling your story. Let people know what you are working on and the value you have added to the department, the team, the business, or even the value you have added to clients.

Take personal inventory. Create a summary of your projects and accomplishments over the last few months. If you don’t have much to summarize and celebrate, it’s time to make s_ _t happen!

Collaborate. Create a list of your ongoing projects and invite others to collaborate and offer feedback and insight. Cross-functional collaboration will make you more visible, will grow your network, and will give you more cross-functional experience.

Make your presence known. Be a player; be willing to arrive early or stay late, or put in some extra time over the weekend. Take a project home and work on it remotely. If you are trying to avoid the axe by being invisible and working in the shadows, be careful, it may backfire! Invisible might lead to dispensable.

Volunteer. Help a department or a project that is limping along. In the short run, yes, it may stretch you and even stress you. But in the long run, it will benefit you by growing your reputation as a go-to, get-it-done, well-connected person.

Get Focused. Rally your team and ask this question, “What can we ALL do to become more focused and more purposeful in realizing our strategy or marketing our business?” Then hold each other accountable and do it! Measure your progress and share your successes with your boss. Perhaps even share your success in your online newsletter or in-house publication. Your story may give other teams valuable ideas.

Be more efficient. Host a working lunch and brainstorm creative cost savings ideas… remember each idea holds a value; every penny counts and they will add up! Ask everyone on your team to come up with at least one way to:

• Stretch company resources
• Cut costs
• Improve efficiencies
• Grow your market
• Expand your customer base
• Help others who are struggling

Again, hold each other accountable, measure your progress, and tell your story.

Think LESS and temporary! Suggest cost savings ideas to your boss. Can you and others “temporarily” cut back your hours to get through a tough time? Can you hire a temp for the summer (think student)? Can you bring on an intern? Can you work remotely? Can the office cut back by 1 or 2 hours a day? Suggest “summer hours”; people might enjoy the freedom! Maybe offer half-day Fridays just for the summer?  You might discover that people actually get more focused and get more done in less time!

Reach out. Expand your network and get connected. Have lunch with colleagues from different parts of the business. Set goals, try and meet or reconnect with one new person a week. Shake it up when you reconnect; make it a healthy WALKING lunch. Summer is the best time to get out and get fit.

Remember, it’s not just about you! Check in with your boss more frequently (make it purposeful and efficient). Ask how you can help meet certain goals or fuel special projects. Check in on your boss’s major stressors and find ways to be helpful, perhaps even ease the stress.

Don’t be shy. Talk to company executives and ask them relevant questions about the business. Be engaging and knowledgeable. Demonstrate through your conversation that you are informed (make sure you are) and involved (let them know what you are working on and how it relates to the success of the business). Show that you are doing your part to get through these crazy times.

Audit your performance. Be objective. No one is paying you today for what you did yesterday, last week, or last month. Track your contributions and your impact as a player in the business. Are you an MVP? Are you consistently inconsistent? Are you benched? Are you on the DL? Self evaluate, then set goals and start training to become a better player.

Monitor your style. Don’t be a whiner. Whining adds no value. Don’t SUCK… the life, energy, and motivation out of everyone you work with; it is toxic. Instead, make life at work more fun. Choose to be a problem solver, not a moaner. Choose to see the good in others, not the flaws. Choose to listen more than you talk. Choose to give more than you take. Choose to be more optimistic and hopeful; it’s contagious!

Retool. Don’t wait for the company to train, recertify, or retool you. Take responsibility for your own professional development and let your boss know what you’re doing to stretch, grow, and gain skills.

Stay alert. Become a junction box for knowledge. Set Google alerts for your company and industry to help you stay informed and current. If you discover helpful information, get in the habit of forwarding it to colleagues and your boss as, “good info to know.”

Things to avoid!

• Don’t think and act like you’re entitled to keep your job because of tenure and loyalty. An entitlement mentality will get you nothing but a pink slip these days. Tenure and loyalty used to be valued. Contribution and ROI are what matter these days.
• Don’t ask for a raise; instead find a way to justify your salary! What contributions have you made lately? What cost savings have you championed? What business have you developed? What is the ROI in you?
• Don’t ask for a promotion. Now is the time to do more than is expected without any extra compensation and a bigger, better office suite.
• Don’t ask for paid time off.
• Don’t ask for more benefits, in fact, now is the time to celebrate whatever benefits you still have.
• Don’t gossip and don’t participate in rumors. Stop them.
• Don’t do social networking and personal net surfing. That means avoid Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, texting, personal blogs, etc! Let’s face it; we are at a place and time where these things are becoming major (wait… did we say MAJOR!!) distractions to our efficiency and productivity at work. Any time a boss or supervisor approaches and you are clicking out of a program or you have your cell phone in your hand, it is NOT a good sign!
• Don’t be fooled. Yeah, there is some pretty cool press about the job offers happening on Facebook and Twitter. But one must remember, these people have been laid off! Perhaps they wouldn’t have lost their job in the first place had they left the social networking for personal time!

Relax! You’re normal if these ideas are making you nervous. But you’re crazy if you don’t embrace any of them. Times are insane and everything about the way we engage in business is changing. As tough as it is for us to write and for you to read, businesses are expecting more from everyone, and everyone has to work harder than ever before. You want to hang on to your job? You want to be indispensable? Then it’s time to think survival of the fittest! Embrace these ideas and you’ll build your personal brand. Share them and you’ll build your business brand.

About Dr. Kevin Freiberg and Dr. Jackie Freiberg: World-class speakers, thought leaders, and authors of the best-seller NUTS!, its sequel GUTS! and recently BOOM! The Freibergs’ messages inspire and equip individuals and organization to build distinguished Brands recognized for accountability, commitment, innovation, performance and a reputation that blows the doors off-business-as-usual!

Posted under Leadership Development, Motivational Speakers, Organizational Excellence