I recently read that more than 64% of people in the United States alone are living paycheck-to-paycheck. That means that 64% of Americans are literally one flat tire away from being unable to pay their rent or their mortgage, and a layoff away from financial ruin. I’m fortunate to have developed financial savvy during my life, and while this is a bit of a departure for 3Sixty Insights, I wanted to share some advice to help others gain a level of security. Learning these fundamentals has given me the financial freedom to do things that those 64% of people couldn’t even fathom, like quit a job without a replacement lined up, or start a business. My hope is that by sharing what I have learned […]
Continue readingAuthor Archives: Nicholas Biron
For Insight Into Why a Company Might Be Failing, Look Beyond the Numbers
It never ceases to amaze me that when a business begins to fail, its leaders inevitably turn to the numbers. Don’t get me wrong: Numbers are certainly important. But focus too much on them, and you’ll be doomed to follow in the footsteps of the likes of Sears and other giants of yesteryear. It’s no secret that the recent pandemic and its lingering economic impacts have left their collective imprints on people and businesses far and wide. Unfortunately, the repercussions for some businesses have been incredibly detrimental, and many are grappling with a suddenly uncertain future. Now that the pandemic’s upheaval has stabilized, one would think these businesses should see a financial turnaround, and yet they continue to struggle. If it’s not the global pandemic, then […]
Continue reading3Sixty Insights Monthly Recap | June 2022
Latest Research: Research Note: Global Mobility – Strategize for the Employee Experience and Related Organizational Success In the wake of two-and-a-half years of a global pandemic, global mobility has become a strategic imperative for any employer wishing to compete in the international war for talent. This research note lays out the challenges, including a rash of concerns related to compliance, that organizations face in accommodating a borderless workforce. And it explains how Immedis is a vendor and partner with deep expertise and the related technology for human capital management to support global mobility. Anatomy of a Decision: GBS Worldwide Elects to Expand Use of PandoLogic Following Early Success After first trying Appcast and, then, Joveo, digital advertising firm GBS Worldwide deployed PandoLogic’s AI-enabled job advertising […]
Continue readingIs the Great Resignation to Blame for Corporate Shortcomings, We Think Not | Lessons Learned by JetBlue Failures
How many times have we heard that the Great Resignation is to blame for corporate shortcomings these days? Companies of all sizes, from small businesses to major multinational organizations, are struggling to keep up with demand. When they fall short, what’s behind that failure? Well, if simply repeating something makes it true, then the cause is a lack of employees. Certainly, staffing shortages can and will cause business to slow, but that shouldn’t lead to the large-scale disfunction we’re seeing in businesses today. The Great Resignation has simply become the scapegoat du jour—after all, it’s human nature to seek external sources on which to pin our failings. More often than not, though, we must look internally to find the true cause. Leaders of struggling businesses […]
Continue readingMaking the Most of Your Corporate Events in 2022
‘Tis the season for new year’s resolutions. We’re all thinking about how we can do better in 2022, and if you’re a vendor planning to host events in the coming year, 3Sixty Insights has some advice to share. We’ve seen many vendors going all-in on events in the COVID era. Some have been great; others, not so much. Below are our takeaways from the past few years. First, let’s agree that event hosts should always offer virtual options. Even as we prepare for more in-person events, we must continue to provide virtual accessibility. If COVID has proven one thing, it’s that we are all living with uncertainty: about the future, about the right decisions, and about our own and others’ comfort levels. At this point, […]
Continue readingHR Tech Alliances | December Virtual Collaboration Zone – HR Buyers Suppliers Showcase – December 8th 2021
Join the 3Sixty Insights team as we join executives from top suppliers of HR Buyer at HR Tech Alliances upcoming HR Buyer Suppliers Showcase, a virtual collaboration zone being held December 8th 2021. During this event, you’ll be able to meet with executives from top suppliers of HR buyers via Service Briefings, Q&A and Roundtable sessions, learning about how they are driving quality leads in 2022, their offerings, and client success stories. To learn more or receive access complements of 3Sixty Insights ($200 value), you can visit their website here: HR Tech Alliances | December Virtual Collaboration Zone – HR Buyers Suppliers Showcase – December 8th 2021
Continue readingCase Study: isolved Re-Brand Transforms Culture and Enables Company to Weather the Pandemic Successfully
Many organizations struggle with internal strife due to siloed teams or positions. Marketing and sales are frequent combatants, a situation that is particularly unfortunate as sales enablement works best when it’s the responsibility and purview of both teams. Although sales enablement is often perceived as marketing-led, the fact is that while the sales team needs the resources marketing provides, the marketing team also needs feedback and context from sales in order to source the most effective and useful leads. The two roles certainly do depend on one another, but if the communication is lacking, this interdependence can breed frustration for both divisions. Without proper synergy, the sales team will be uninformed about the company’s marketing campaigns, and the marketing team won’t know what actually helps […]
Continue readingThe Importance of Customer Support to Keep a Business Financially Viable
We recently wrote about the importance of delivery in keeping businesses afloat, arguing that maintaining your current customer base is in many ways even more important than winning new business. After all, you have already put in the work to win your clients over, and if you disappoint them now, you risk losing them. While your leads represent potential, your customers represent an investment you have already made. Maintaining the good will of your current customer base should always be your top priority, and support is a critical component of customer satisfaction. We have seen many organizations prioritizing outsourcing and automation in recent years, and we agree, efficiency is great—unless it comes at the cost of customer support. As customers of other organizations ourselves, we […]
Continue readingResearch Note: The Software and Technology Decision-Making Cycle—How it Has Changed
The past 15 years have seen dramatic changes in software and technology: leaps from flip phones to smart phones, desktop computing to laptops and tablets, on-premises software to cloud, big data, the Internet of Things, and others. With these new technologies and platforms have come an explosion of software vendors profoundly shifting the information technology and software landscape. As an example, we’ve seen a jump from 1,876 vendors in the marketing space to over 8,000 in just the past five years in marketing technology—not the only industry that has seen this exponential rate of growth. Almost every technology and software segment over the past few years has seen similar growth. However, we are not just seeing a fundamental change in the solutions available; there have […]
Continue readingUnderstanding Perception and How Perception Is Reality
Today, I wanted to write something that is a little off topic from our typical research. We can all agree that this past year has been one of unprecedented events, forever imprinted in history. And for many, it has been an outright difficult year. What hasn’t made things any better is the extreme bifurcation of the world on many of today’s issues. With this in mind, in today’s article, we wanted to take a different approach and focus on the power of perception. As someone once told me a long time ago, perception is reality. It has true power over how we as humans interact with each other, both from a personal and professional standpoint. As an example, psychology research shows that humans make a […]
Continue readingThe Importance of Not Making Decisions in a Bubble
As a leader, one of the most difficult aspects of the job, and most common at the same time, is decision making. Each day, leaders are constantly faced with making choices. Big or small, decisions will ultimately affect individuals, the company, or customers at any given time. Any leaders worth their salt are aware of the gravity of their decisions and the downstream ramifications regarding them. However, after peeling back the layers of failing businesses, what we find as the number one root cause of most failures simply comes down to bad executive management decisions. These decisions, typically made in a bubble, will begin leading the company down a downward spiral. As leaders, we like to think we know best—this is why we are leaders, […]
Continue readingHow to Develop an Account Planning Strategy – Infographic
It can be difficult to figure out a routine that helps to streamline account strategy. How do you manage contacts and leads and follow-ups and use your resources in the most efficient manner possible? It can be overwhelming and lead to a lot of inefficiencies. And there’s the notion of trying to figure out how to personalize that account strategy, too. Luckily there are ways that you can use accepted account planning strategies to do just that. Of course, you can start by figuring out what type of account you have – number of employees, industry, etc. But to really personalize things, you need to layer in the individual needs of the owners, employees, and customers in order to get a better understanding of how […]
Continue readingDecisions That Can Help Carry Your Business Through COVID-19
This is a difficult time for small business owners. The pressure is higher than ever for companies that already lived on narrow margins. Right now, smart moves are necessary for pushing your business into the future. Fortunately, we live in an era where technology is on our side, as long as we know how to use it. Here’s a look at a few types of tech that can aid business owners now: Connecting While Apart Social distancing never looked so efficient: Video chat software and other virtual connection tools allow your team to meet from the safety of their own homes. Remember, you need to take a tailored approach to virtual meetings to ensure they go well. If you haven’t already, make sure your team is using secure communications to prevent […]
Continue reading17 Life Lessons Learned to Do Better in Life and in Business
When anyone becomes a parent, they instantly want the best for their child and hope that they can achieve more in life than they ever did… I’ll be sharing something a little personal. Since before my son was born, I began somewhat of a journal to keep a chronology of his life events… Something to share with him when he gets older to reflect upon his life experiences, but through my eyes. Honestly, it’s extremely gratifying how he has progressed so much over the past few years and that we have a way of capturing those life moments. Recently, I wrote a passage of life and professional lessons learned over my years. My hope is simple: one day he will read them, and hopefully they […]
Continue readingThe Importance of Delivery to Keep a Small Business Financially Stable
Too many times we see businesses focus so hard on winning new business, they forget everything that follows the initial customer win… The stark reality is that only focusing on the initial customer win will ultimately lead to a large majority of businesses’ failures. Let us share with you a brief example. A few years back, 3Sixty Insights worked with a firm that was in the consulting services industry… This firm had seen six years of exponential growth, until they hit snag and had four years of declining bookings numbers. Their CEO thought they had strong brand in the industry and couldn’t for the life of him understand why their bookings numbers were declining. Afterall, they always had a large number of projects in the […]
Continue readingThe Importance of Technology in Your Small Business
A common theme within the writings and consultation that 3Sixty Insights takes on, is the pure and simple fact that businesses that remain stagnant can and will eventually fail… To avoid becoming stagnant, it is important for a business to constantly look into the mirror of self-reflection in order to find ways to continuously improve their business. One enabler within small businesses that we find commonly overlooked, is the area of technology… Technology costs money, and in the eyes of most small businesses, anything that costs money and doesn’t have a direct financial ROI, is taking money directly out of profits. However, technology is the unsung enabler within a small business that directly impacts how people perceive a business and its ability to efficiently communicate […]
Continue readingHow to Properly Prepare and Host a Virtual Meeting
Before mandated separation was in place, we all spent an incredible amount of time in virtual meetings. It was an essential part of how we all worked, but now that we are all stuck working from home, virtual meetings are a way of life. As a result, people have somewhat forgotten some of the essential rules for hosting and taking part of conference calls and online meetings. The purpose of this article is to share some quick tips to ensure you hold better and more efficient virtual meetings. Start with the invite itself – Remember, everyone’s calendar is stuffed with various agenda items. With people jumping from call to call, it is easy for your meeting to get lost in the mix of all the […]
Continue reading11 Tips to Realign Your Small Business for Success Today
We are in some difficult times. With essentially the entire world on lockdown, business has been tough. We are seeing businesses freezing budget, pulling back on expenses and laying off employees in record numbers, just to keep their heads above water. All is not lost, business around the world is being conducted and people are winning new deals. It has just become more difficult. In times like these, we continuously need to remind our teams that the slowdown is not a result of their actions and that their hard work can and will eventually pay off. Our rule of thumb is you have to work two or three times as hard in order to close the same (if not less) business… No level of complaining […]
Continue readingThe Importance of the Ding Email
As leaders, one of the toughest jobs we have is keeping a team motivated… When you break it down, we all spend on average 7.9 hours at work, and it is difficult for anyone to stay motivated 100% of that time. We are all human after all, and it’s natural to have cycles of intensity on the job. As leaders, we all have our tactics and secrets to team motivation… One that I wanted to share with you today is the concept of the “Ding Email”, which is something that not only can help motivate a team, but something that can help a team perform more efficiently as well. So, what is a Ding Email? Well, a common practice within many sales cultures is to […]
Continue readingFive Tips to Quickly Help Get Your Business Online, Before It’s Too Late
Something that we at 3Sixty Insights have been educating the small business market about for years, has been the need to have a digital and online presence The Importance of Having an Online Digital Presence for Local Small Businesses. Yet, some still haven’t made the change. As a result, slowly but surely, businesses that have not adopted digital and online strategies have been disappearing from the landscape one by one. However, up until recently, it has been process that has been slowly but surely killing them off… But, given the current economic pressures with essentially the entire world on lockdown, businesses no longer have years to make the shift. With most small businesses looking at significant loss of revenue, and in some cases losing their complete […]
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