The Greenhouse

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Be More Colorful is a VR and 360-degree media provider located in Fargo, North Dakota. I’m the co-founder and CEO of the company. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with PM and Associates?

We’re working with PM and Associates to do our Entrepreneurial Operation System (EOS) implementation. We went through all of the phases of the EOS onboarding process and now we’re doing our quarterly full-day meetings with them. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

EOS is based on a book called ‘Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business’ by Gino Wickman. Essentially, it’s a process of building out your company and making sure that your meetings run efficiently. It also ensures that you’ve got the right positions defined and that you have the right people in those positions. There’s this whole methodology that they go through on how to make sure that it happens within your organization. It also presents how to address issues where maybe someone is a good fit for the organization, but they’re not in the right spot. In going through all of that, most companies that use it becomes really well-established. 

Even before we brought on our first employees and based on what Patrick (Founder) had relayed to us, we decided to right off the bat get on with the OS. The main reason for doing that is our goal to make the OS well-ingrained within how we function and how we bring on our first full-time employees.

For example, they've helped us become more efficient in our meetings. The meeting methodology is one that by working on the highest priority items and broadest items first, you end up taking care of the little things. There’s a trickle-down effect by doing that prioritization and not getting hung up on a minor thing such as in the intro part of the meeting. There’s really a structure to it that helps us make sure that every meeting we have is as efficient as possible — that’s just the meeting side of it. 

Currently, we’ve moved on to the strategy building and business development phase. The PM and Associates team provides insights into the company’s strategy, growth, and helps to keep our momentum going. As part of that, we’re going through the vision building and development of our mission, vision, and values, which holds a huge value for us. The things they do for us is not available in the business school. I’ve got my master’s in business administration (MBA) and none of the stuff we’re running through with PM and Associates was brought up in my program.  They’re also working on helping us hire some interns and they’re assisting us with the interview process. 

What is the team composition?

We have one dedicated person from their team who works with us.

How did you come to work with PM and Associates?

I met Patrick (Founder) at an HR session, and he was one of the speakers there. I went up to him afterward and I talked a little bit about our growth and direction of our company. We really hit it off, and from there we had emails back and forth. Then, I kept coming across him in other communications we would have. As we started to grow, I remembered his talk about making the company scalable and making sure meetings are efficient — that really started to resonate with me. As a result, I reached out to him and we looked at how a full-scale implementation would look like. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started our engagement in March 2019, and our collaboration is ongoing. Our first phase ended within the first 2–3 months of the partnership.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

We’re having way more efficient meetings than we’ve ever had. We have a weekly meeting where we hammer through literally hundreds of topics and we have a methodology in place for how it all gets prioritized. As part of that process, we’ve been able to work through the most pressing issues first, and then we’ve been able to triage all of the issues that we’re facing. 

They really help you with entrepreneurial things — so they can guide you through it or help you figure it out. Overall, the team serves as a guide to ensure that we address high-level things that are really important for our company — in order to identify our culture, core values, and making sure that it is reflected in every person that we bring on board. 

How did PM and Associates perform from a project management standpoint?

Their communication has been great. The only time we’ve had delay has been on us when we’ve needed to push a meeting back. They’ve always been super responsive and accommodating for those things. Moreover, they’ve been highly flexible. The team has always met their deadlines and they’re always looking out for us. Even if we’re not doing the meetings, if they find a contact that they think we should be in touch with — even if it’s a time in between — they’ll just go ahead and make that connection.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They never get fazed no matter how big the challenge is that you throw at them. They’re always ready to take things head-on. We’ve had some pretty big problems that we’ve brought their way and every single time they’ve been able to address it. They break it down into pieces and address the most important things first. They really have a way of splitting challenging problems into much more manageable chunks so that we can figure out why a situation is happening and what’s going on in the company that’s making it happen. Then, they will think of ways on how to solve the problem instead of just putting a bandaid on the symptom. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

Right now, I don’t have any requests for specific things they can improve. I know that they’re growing really quickly, I just hope that we’re able to get the same level of the fantastic support that we’ve gotten over the past year as they continue to grow all their services. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

They’ve got a 90-minute session which is free of charge and that’s what hooked us. I would say if they’re considering working with them, just call them up and ask for that session. By the end of it all, you’re going to know if it’s right for you or not. If it is, go for it. If not, the really nice thing with them is that they’re not high pressure — we’ve never felt they’ve pushed us into purchasing something and they’ve just consistently helped us determine if they’re offering the right solutions for us. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of marketing and communications for an eye clinic.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with PM and Associates?

There were new positions being added and staff turnover, so they came over to restructure and prioritize everybody’s roles in the company.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We’re a small company, with around five people. The top two people from the company left and went to another firm in the industry, as well as another director. They came in and looked at the most efficient way to have our employees work together and our roles as we had new people start.

We had full-day trainings on how to run our weekly staff meetings. We set goals, and were trained on how to achieve those goals.

What is the team composition?

I’ve just had contact with one person from them.

How did you come to work with PM and Associates?

Our former director found them, but I’m not sure how that happened. It was before I started.

What is the status of this engagement?

They started in March 2020, and we’re still working together.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

My position was created as a result of PM and Associates consulting, and it’s been an important part of the company. They’ve helped with setting up long term goals and establishing lines of communication, allowing us to support teammates when they have needs. We increased the number of studies that we’re able to do, thanks to their work. In just six months, we’ve seen drastic changes with workflow and efficiency.

How did PM and Associates perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re excellent. They’re very quick to respond and very helpful.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their communication, availability, and their directness all impress. They explain what they’re trying to accomplish directly and are not afraid to have tougher conversations.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, nothing comes to mind.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Don’t be afraid to spend money. You have to spend money to make money, and our investment with them has paid off.