Growth Insights for CEOs
The Chief Outsider
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You Can't See Growth Looking Only Inside the Business
You can run a company from inside the four walls.
You can't grow it well from inside the four walls alone.
Strong operators tend to know their businesses exceptionally well. They understand their people, processes, customers, financials, sales performance and operational constraints.
Recent Posts

Consumers Want Control of their Healthcare Creating Exceptional Growth for In-Home Diagnostics
Wed, Feb 17, 2021 — The in-home testing market that largely began with pregnancy tests back in the 70’s has been exploding for several years. New tests for health conditions we would have never imagined now serve as tools to empower consumers. Thus, companies that position products to leverage the in-home diagnostics boom drive revenue growth while improving consumer health.

Best Practice Process (Stage/Gate) for Successful and Profitable Innovations
Fri, Dec 18, 2020 — As we know with most business activities, a well-defined process is often critical to keep your project on track. But equally important is to have specific targets that must be reviewed and approved before continued investment of people and money can continue. Given the complexity of innovation and new product development, and the high levels of new product failure for most industries, these initiatives carry a greater need for a rigorous process.

The Importance of Innovation for Sustainable Growth and Profitability
Thu, Dec 3, 2020 — The initial success of many small to mid-sized companies comes from an innovative product or service they developed. Passionately designed, promoted, and differentiated from competitors, it resonated with their customers. However, despite this early excitement and success, many companies fail to maintain a focus on innovation. Markets, customer needs, and technology are constantly changing. Those that recognize this and respond will drive growth and ensure a sustainable business for years to come.
Stay up-to-date with the latest from Chief Outsiders

More Returns = More Sales? Amazing!
Thu, Nov 5, 2020 — How do you decide who your “favorite” online merchants are? With online ordering going through the roof, online brands and sellers have been focused on the best customer experience. They have focused on the “front end” – an easy to use web site, wide selection of items, and fast delivery, maybe even one or two days.

Driving Growth in Service Businesses
Tue, Nov 3, 2020 — Creating a sustainable and predictable growth engine is critical to increasing revenues, profits, EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization), and the corresponding multiple in a service business. Creating a successful engine is more than just an annual plan or an intriguing digital marketing strategy. To succeed in their marketplace, service businesses must shift their thinking to implement the appropriate combination of revenue growth planning, processes, and talent.

Relighting Your Economic Engine: How a Blue Ocean Strategy of Innovation Can Get You Back on Track
Thu, Sep 10, 2020 — As America’s economic engine continues its recovery from its pandemic-imposed slumber, businesses must adjust to a new way of selling in the “next normal.” This means, unfortunately, that all of the work and planning you previously put into your go-to-market strategy, and 2020 business plan, needs to be revisited – and revised – on the fly. Though some of your original insights may be salvageable, it is likely that the changed world means big changes for what you offer, how you offer it – and whether the market will respond.

The Marketing & Sales Accelerator
Thu, Aug 27, 2020 — 3 Steps for Achieving Greater Sales Co-authored by John Baglivo and Alan Landau A well-functioning partnership between Marketing and Sales is critical to the growth of any business. But how do you get there and ensure that your efforts are coordinated and that investments in these areas are as efficient and effective as possible? This question is more important than ever as you look to accelerate growth in a challenging market where the margin for error is slim. Unfortunately, misconceptions, misunderstanding and mistrust often get in the way of a collaborative relationship.

What You Should Do About “The 80%”
Wed, Jul 8, 2020 — Co-Authored by Kimberly Miller, CMO, Chief Outsiders and Chris Dohl, President, The Alias Group The conventional wisdom of the 80/20 rule is that 80% of your company sales come from 20% of your customers. If you believe that, then you might believe that those top 20% of customers would guarantee success. And from an operational standpoint, maybe the 80/20 rule could turn into the 20/80 rule, meaning that those 20% of customers should take up 80% of your sales team’s efforts. Now more than ever, businesses should be appreciative of their entire customer base—not just the top 20%. The 2020 coronavirus lockdown has shown us that diversity in service and product offerings and diversity in clients and prospects helps any business weather the storm.

Keeping Up With Technology
Thu, Jun 18, 2020 — According to a recent study by Chief Outsiders, a national business strategy consulting firm, 88% of Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs) see difficulty in staying ahead of technological advancements.