April 10, 2023

CFO Advice: How to Protect Your Business Bank Accounts

CFO Advice: How to Protect Your Business Bank Accounts

Protecting your corporate or small business bank accounts from the possibility of a bank failure seems like one of those worries that shouldn’t keep a small business owner or C-suite executive up at night.

Then came the failure of Silicon Valley Bank. And Signature Bank. And the rescues of First Republic Bank and Credit Suisse.

Jamie Dimon, the Chief Executive Office of JPMorgan Chase who rallied big banks to rescue First Republic, said in his annual letter to shareholders that it ain’t over yet. Even when the current crisis ends, he wrote, “there will be repercussions from it for years to come.”

Suddenly, a good night’s sleep is just as much at risk as your company’s cash. 

So we asked four of our RED Team CFOs to share their advice about how small business owners and executives at lower middle market and middle market companies can protect their business bank accounts in an uncertain banking environment where the next bank failure is as close as the next viral tweet that sends depositors scrambling to make immediate withdrawals.

Please note that these experienced CFOs offered advice based on their personal opinions – it should not be considered tax or legal advice. 

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April 7, 2023

Seeing with New Eyes: Cross-Pollination in Business Has Advantages

Seeing with New Eyes: Cross-Pollination in Business Has Advantages

When a company is in need of new leadership, chances are the board and CEO are going to enlist a search firm that will comb through the same old group of people in search of that new leader. They will search for someone who has served in that job at a similar type of company and almost always in the same industry.

It’s the way the business world works.

But is it always the right approach? Not necessarily.

Instead, Lloyd A. Perlmutter, a C-suite executive with years of experience leading businesses through exceptional growth curves, says cross-pollination in business — hiring executives outside of the industry — can be the way to get the kind of innovative ideas that spark innovation and disruption.

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March 28, 2023

Firing a CEO: The 4 Questions Every Board Should Ask When the CEO Needs to Go

Firing a CEO: The 4 Questions Every Board Should Ask When the CEO Needs to Go

So you’ve made the decision that a change needs to happen at the CEO level, and heaven knows it’s painful! You rely on the CEO as quarterback of the team. It feels like the chief executive is indispensable. But you signed up for service on the board of directors. You know that while corporate governance is a general and varied responsibility, the shareholders trust the board to choose the right CEO. It is, perhaps, the board’s most important decision.

Of course, you’ll go through a permanent search that will be thorough, even if internally focused.

But what happens if you need to fire the CEO and find a new leader right now? Having a CEO exit with no CEO succession plan in place can create a leadership vacuum. The resulting instability within the organization can cause major issues and harm company performance.

The need for a new Chief Executive Officer, the right Chief Executive Officer, is urgent.

After a CEO dismissal, the first thought for many public companies is to look around the boardroom table to see who’s brave enough to be named interim CEO for Sarbanes Oxley compliance.

But, where’s the guts in just appointing a placeholder to keep the seat warm?

The modern world now presents you with a far more robust choice: a true interim CEO. A veteran executive who’s been there, done that. Who is expert at jumping into companies going through points of change. And who is accountable for action and results.

When considering whether to bring on a placeholder versus a true interim CEO until you can hire and onboard a new permanent CEO, here are the questions to ask at your next board meeting.

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March 22, 2023

Decoding Executive Titles: The Difference Between Interim, Project, Part-Time & Fractional Executives

Decoding Executive Titles: The Difference Between Interim, Project, Part-Time & Fractional Executives

Interim, acting, project, contract, fractional, part-time. The array of executive titles can make your head spin. But they all point to a specialized type of executive that companies call on when they are going through transformation.

What is an interim executive and how does that differ from a part-time executive, a project executive, or fractional executive?

Let’s break it down.

What is an Interim Executive?

Interim executives are highly-skilled, experienced C-level executives who typically contract to work for a company for a defined period, versus full-time executives who are hired by the company. The defined period can be as little as one month or last as long as two years.

There are highly qualified interim CEOs, interim CFOs, interim COOs, interim CIOs, interim CMOs and CSOs ready to step into a position.

Why would a company choose an interim executive over a full-time executive?

There are many possible reasons, but in all cases, the company needs some kind of change or upgrade.

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March 21, 2023

5 Mistakes You’re Making in Interim Executive Search and How to Fix Them

5 Mistakes You’re Making in Interim Executive Search and How to Fix Them

These days, it’s easy to hire a temporary executive. Whether you want a fractional manager – someone who works part-time or on a project basis – or a full-time interim leader who can take the reins for a certain period of time, interim executive search increasingly is the go-to option. 

But it can be a tricky business.

Sure, there are plenty of managers who are interested in becoming interim leaders. Chances are your HR team has interviewed more of them for vacant C-Suite positions this year than at any time in the past. 

And chances are they are making some serious mistakes in interim executive search and hiring.

Here are the most common mistakes we see and how to fix them.

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February 14, 2023

2023 Predictions: Business Trends Accelerating Need for Interim Executives

2023 Predictions: Business Trends Accelerating Need for Interim Executives

Every new year means new challenges and new opportunities. This new year, 2023 is no different! When we asked 204 C-level executives for their 2023 predictions, their responses reflected five clear business trends:

  • A surge in executive retirements and leadership departures
  • Ongoing workplace changes
  • Continued supply chain challenges
  • Technology needs
  • The looming threat of an economic downturn

Let’s take those one at a time.

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January 31, 2023

Why ALL Executives – Not Just the CTO – Need to Understand Technology

Why ALL Executives – Not Just the CTO – Need to Understand Technology

Did you just buy new tech for your company? Congratulations! Now, it’s time to start thinking about an upgrade.

So says David Mitchelhill, a long-time interim Chief Technology Officer.

Mitchelhill, who served in various CIO roles at organizations like Klarna, Freeletics, and the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Justice, is a sharp-tongued critic of everything from Salesforce to Microsoft to company owners who don’t take the time to learn about and understand technology.

By the time a company’s technology solution is a year old “it’s already decrepit,” he says.

The speed of technology development is doubling every year. Companies that don’t have AI-driven decision-making are now too late for three reasons:

1. Difficulty acquiring complex knowledge  

2. Scarce talent expertise 

3. Time to interweave AI-driven knowledge into the company’s fabric  

If this describes your company, don’t feel like you’re alone, he says. “I mean, Microsoft missed the internet — Marc Andreessen and Netscape completely blindsided them!”

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January 18, 2023

How a Turnaround Now Can Help You Avoid Business Bankruptcy Later

How a Turnaround Now Can Help You Avoid Business Bankruptcy Later

First, the good news: Corporate bankruptcies in 2022 have been running below average. Now, the bad: That is about to change. Big time.

Government stimulus, post-pandemic demand, and historically low interest rates combined to give companies the edge during the first half of 2022. Organizations that survived the pandemic shutdowns thrived as the world recovered.

In fact, Cornerstone Research, which tracks business bankruptcy trends in Chapter 7 and Chapter 11 bankruptcy filings by companies with assets of $100 million or more, says in its midyear 2022 update report that there were only 20 bankruptcies filed by companies with $100 million plus in asset during the first six months of the year. It’s the lowest midyear total since the second half of 2014.

But the US Federal Reserve is waging war on inflation with historically fast increases in interest rates – more than 3 percentage points in just six months. That, coupled with the threat of a global economic recession, is spelling trouble for highly leveraged companies and underperforming firms.

We asked two turnaround specialists to walk us through the highly charged bankruptcy landscape as 2023 looms.

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December 21, 2022

12 Secrets to Family Business Success

12 Secrets to Family Business Success

There are some family businesses that have been around for 100 years and continue to thrive under the leadership of 5 or more generations. But they are rare – as rare as a child who loves basketball making his way to the NBA.

So notes John Messervey, an organizational behavior consultant who counsels high-wealth families through very difficult conversations about their family dynamic, their family business, and their hopes for the next generation.

His years of experience working with family businesses and entrepreneurs led him to develop these 12 lessons for family business success:

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September 29, 2022

CEO Turnover: Why the Bosses Are Leaving & Who’s Replacing Them

CEO Turnover: Why the Bosses Are Leaving & Who’s Replacing Them

Millennials and Gen Z employees might get all the press for their “Great Resignation” but they aren’t the only ones who are leaving their jobs in droves. CEOs are too. The Great CEO Turnover, which peaked in 2021 and early 2022, has leveled off a bit. But it certainly doesn’t mean that your CEO is planning to stick around for the long haul.

Outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas compiles a monthly report on the CEO turnover rate. The July 2022 report shows that CEO changes at U.S. companies fell to 58 in July, down 45% from the 106 CEO exits recorded in June. It was the lowest monthly total since the early pandemic departures of April 2020.

However, departing CEOs are hardly a thing of the past.

When Deloitte and independent research firm Workplace Intelligence surveyed 2,100 employees and C-level executives in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia, they found that an eye-popping 70% of top management are seriously considering quitting for a job that better supports their well-being. And 81% of the top execs say that improving their well-being is more important than advancing their career.

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