For my entire life, my father, Alan Burkhard, has been my best mentor. At every turn he would share sage advice on seemingly anything – business, life’s obstacles, career crossroads, really any damn topic that the rest of us knew less about than him. Today, Alan is a 75 year old retired grandfather who […]
“Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go.” – T.S. Elliott The truth is, those who know me are tired of hearing about my Mount Rainier climb. I don’t blame them – the preparation was all-consuming for me. In fact, I should start with a […]
Build Your Top 20 We often think of being “results based” as simply achieving outcomes. Getting shit done. Hitting your forecast or sales quotas. Winning. You get the picture. But before you work full-steam ahead towards these outcomes you must clearly and succinctly understand what you’re trying to accomplish. What is the desired […]
In 2009, many businesses ground to a halt – almost a complete stop. Corporate customers stopped buying. Consumer sentiment was down, and people stopped spending. In the U.S., this was our entire economy. Most leaders found themselves navigating uncharted business waters, and leadership became narrowly focused on one thing: survival. I am proud to […]
The world of business is fast-changing. Fickle, almost. Climates evolve rapidly, markets come and go, consumer demand is continually in flux. Any company that navigates these inherent trials and tribulations with grace isn’t doing so because of sheer dumb luck. They have a secret sauce: Their employees. The lifeblood of any company is […]
“Recently, I was meeting with our recruitment consultant, Freddy, over lunch and I shared this story. Back in the early days of Placers 1.0 and the CBI Group, we set out to propel one of the key tenants of our culture: employee empowerment. We asked ourselves how self-directed our teams could really be. Would they […]
