Nov 22, 2017
Kathy Steele, CEO of Red Caffeine Marketing +
Technology, discusses her career and bouncing back from a business
crucible. After overcoming numerous challenges, her re-launched
business is now profitable and growing. She has created an
intentional culture with people who share a purpose, and key core
values. Kathy pursues agile solutions with a think-tank approach,
and how leaders don’t ignore the importance of shared values
amongst the team.
Key Takeaways
[5:01] Kathy had a business
divorce four years ago that led her to found a new business based
on things she believed. To reboot her business she focused on
purpose, mission, vision, core values, and the tenets of operating
the business. Investing in culture helped triple business revenues
in four years.
[8:46] Culture Club serves to share financial
results, project wins, things that could be improved, education and
motivational keynote speakers.
[11:14] Kathy embraces open book
operations and the ‘small giants’ philosophies as the right way to
do business. After the unfavorable business divorce, Kathy saw
transparency as an essential factor in a profitable business.
Within the first year, they exceeded sales projections and became
debt-free.
[17:54] Kathy displayed
vulnerability to bring her team together to rally around the
financial challenges they faced in the first year, and improve the
ways they do things, through gaming elements and mini-games. One
game involved time-tracking — time loggers against
non-loggers.
[21:42] When something doesn’t go well, Kathy
investigates how she can be more clear about delivering on
expectations.
[23:40] Kathy depends on a solid go-to-market
framework so sales aligns with production and
delivery.
[25:44] Growth of complexity within the company
creates collaboration and teamwork challenges. Kathy aspires to
agile solutions for problems, using a think-tank approach.
[30:23] Kathy contrasts her
younger business self with her leadership approach today. She
credits mentors (including her husband) that fueled her successes.
[34:30] Running a business is
more difficult than Kathy ever imagined and at any stage, there are
many different challenges. Seek people who share your
values.
Website: RedCaffeine.com
Twitter: @RedCaffeineInc
Twitter: @KathySteele
Facebook: Red Caffeine Inc.
LinkedIn: Kathy Steele
Forbes:
“What's In Your 'Stack?' It's Not
Just MarTech Driving Business Today”
Forbes:
“Your Growth Goals Are Unrealistic
Unless You Create A Company Growth Engine”
B2Community:
“Wake Up! How to Create a More
Engaged Workplace Culture”
Quotable Quotes
“It became critically important
to me that I founded … a new business … established on things that
I believed.”
“I just honestly don’t know why
more businesses don’t operate ‘open book’ or embrace the small
giant philosophies.”
“You’ve got young people working
for you; what kind of gift do you give them, to teach them the
reality of finance?”
“When things don’t go well, I
really do feel that … there’s something that I haven’t been clear
about.”
“I really discounted how much
values meant until I went through that business
divorce.”
Bio
Kathy Steele is
passionate about people, serious about business growth, and loves
to help the underdog cause in her community. She is fortunate to
"do it all" in her role as CEO of Red Caffeine Marketing +
Technology. She is the company visionary overseeing growth,
strategic partnerships, and employee engagement.
Kathy speaks and writes about
being an entrepreneur and how marketing impacts business. She is a
contributor to Forbes and Business 2 Community. She has delivered
keynote presentations, and workshops on branding, marketing, and
building business culture.
She also has a relentless
enthusiasm for great causes, donating her time and expertise to
industry groups and non-profit organizations. She is on the
Advisory Board for Enterprising Women, an Executive Council Member
for the Executive Breakfast Club, Chicago’s Local Group Leader for
the Small Giants Community, and a Great Game of Business
Practitioner. She likes to foster relationships with leaders who
share her strong focus on business ethics, social responsibility,
and economic sustainability. The Red Caffeine team has contributed
over $200,000 in time, talent, and monetary donations to causes in
their community since 2014.
Red Caffeine, Marketing +
Technology is a digital agency that fuels the growth of
market-leading brands. To speed up growth demands building a brand
that customers want to work with, and employees want to work for.
They believe establishing a clear business purpose aligns internal
teams and will boost sales. They partner with marketing, sales, and
HR teams to create strategies that have both financial and
operational impact.
Red Caffeine works with
recognizable brands like Mitsubishi, Amazon, Elk Grove Village,
Baird & Warner and some amazing companies you may not have heard of
but manufacturer the products you use every day.
In her leisure, Kathy spends
time with her wonderful husband, their four grown children, and is
“Gigi” to two amazing grandkids. She enjoys a competitive game of
tennis, traveling to exotic locations, and being just good enough
to golf some of the world’s most breathtaking courses.
Books mentioned in this episode
The Great Game of Business: The
Only Sensible Way to Run a Company, by Jack Stack and Bo Burlingham
Small Giants: Companies That
Choose to Be Great Instead of Big, by Bo Burlingham
Teaming: How Organizations
Learn, Innovate, and Compete in the Knowledge Economy,
by Amy C. Edmondson