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3 Ways GGOB Underpins Lasting, Evergreen Companies

Aug 23, 2019 by Dave Whorton 0 Comments
I believe Evergreen™ businesses are the most important companies in our society today—successful, profitable, and lasting companies, those that positively impact their employees, customers, suppliers, communities, and most importantly, families. These companies are fueled by purpose, put people first, and are committed to continually growing to last 100 years—or more. In many Evergreen companies, GGOB plays an essential role in the competitive advantage that these businesses enjoy.
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Leadership Begins With Thinking About Yourself

Aug 16, 2019 by Jason Hynson 0 Comments
I recently saw a semi-truck with a large arrow pointing towards the cab of the truck and this statement, “Our greatest asset sits 63 feet up here.” I have seen it before, but this time it struck me differently. I thought, Does the culture of that company support this statement or is it no more than a marketing slogan? Companies want to be “on top”, “cutting edge”, “innovative”. The question is: Does the culture support the cutting edge marketing? It’s great to have a catchphrase or some values on the wall, however, it is not easy to lead a group of people every day, month, and year after year. It’s not easy to lead the pack and in fact I am going to say DON’T lead the pack. Lead yourself first. Any great business coach will tell you to know your team, but do you know yourself, who you are, and why you do what you do?
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Business Success Through People Success is the New Leadership Frontier

Aug 13, 2019 by Santiago Jaramillo 1 Comment
As business leaders, we care deeply about employee engagement, but we can’t operationalize a culture of engagement by ourselves. Without a strategy for scaling it across the business, it’s tough to move the needle. As my own business has grown, I’ve realized that the best thing we can do for our employees is to focus on the top two or three actions that will have the greatest impact—and hold our people-leaders or “trusted lieutenants” accountable as owners of those initiatives.
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Can Equity Ownership be the Ultimate Stake in the Outcome?

Aug 8, 2019 by Martin Staubus 0 Comments
We all know the fundamental building blocks of the Great Game of Business®: Know and teach the rules Follow the action and keep score Provide a Stake in the Outcome® When it comes to that third step—providing a stake in the outcome—what’s the best way to do that? Two common choices include cash bonuses and equity sharing. Many owners, especially those new to the Game, are skittish about sharing equity with employees. They can’t always put their finger on why it makes them nervous, but the reality is that using equity interests can be a great way to provide a stake in the outcome to your associates.
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4 Takeaways for Achieving Results in Your Business Transformation

Aug 5, 2019 by Kylie Sprott 0 Comments
How does someone take three conservative intellectual property businesses with very traditional cultures and transform them into an engaged, high-performing business? To compound the challenge, we were now publicly listed and were moving the business from a partnership model to complete transparency. The Great Game of Business® helped us to overcome these challenges, culturally transform our business, and achieve both improved engagement and financial results. In the process, we learned four important lessons:
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Questions to Avoid (and What to Ask Instead) to Be a Better Great Game™ Leader

Jul 29, 2019 by Chris Hutchinson 0 Comments
You’ve likely experienced people who occupy leadership positions and people who are leaders. There’s quite a difference. People who only occupy the position use power to get what they think is needed. Their use of questions often includes blame or demands control. Perhaps you’ve heard this one: “Don’t you agree, or is there something you didn’t understand?” People who are true leaders do the opposite. They ask questions to get people thinking about and owning the results of their work and the collective results of the company.
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5 Reasons You Need a PayBrand Story to Scale Your Business

Jul 22, 2019 by Kathy Steele 0 Comments
Great Game® practitioners have many shared values, such as a commitment to High-Involvement Strategic Planning, and the belief that every employee can impact the bottom line. Another shared value, which may at first seem too obvious to mention, is an attention to the numbers. As Great Game of Business practitioners, we are attentive, even passionate, about the numbers. To successfully scale and grow our business, this passion and thought must apply to all numbers on the balance sheet. Having a “why” behind every employees’ compensation that can be sustained long-term is critical to keeping top talent around and attracting the best new hires.
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Scoreboarding: The Whats, Hows and Whys

Jul 18, 2019 by Eric Rieger 1 Comment
There’s an old quote attributed to Peter Drucker that says, “What gets measured gets improved”. While I firmly believe this is true, it’s important to understand that what you measure is equally as important as how and why you measure it.
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Keeping The Game Alive: Educating Through Gamification

Jul 5, 2019 by Lisa Halfmann 0 Comments
Over more than two decades, our employees have consistently been exposed to the teachings of the Great Game of Business® through meetings and trainings at Daryl Flood, Inc., but we found that we wanted to take this training beyond the classroom to interact directly with employees on an individual level. How? Through gamification of our training courses. This allows us to share content with employees in a format that is fun and motivates them to engage in learning at their convenience. There are four things to focus on when building a successful gamified education program:
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Lessons Learned in an Open & Honest Company

Jul 1, 2019 by Michael Otis 0 Comments
“In school, you're taught a lesson and then given a test. In life, you're given a test that teaches you a lesson.” ~Tom Bodett I remember the grip of fear and dread that day. How could I forget? After 18 years in business, we faced a nearly insurmountable crisis that could have brought it all to an end. A few months earlier I had hired a bright young man that seemed to have what it takes to grow into a valuable member of our team and become a shining star. His name was Travis and he applied to be an estimator and project manager. Filling this role successfully would increase sales and help us grow. But in time I learned my assessment was wrong! Oh, how wrong!
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About The Great Game of Business

Our approach to running a company was developed to help close one of the biggest gaps in business: the gap between managers and employees. We call our open-book approach The Great Game of Business. What lies at the heart of The Game is a very simple proposition: The best, most efficient, most profitable way to operate a business is to give everybody in the company a voice in saying how the company is run and a stake in the outcome. Let us teach you how to develop a culture of ownership, where employees think, act and feel like owners.