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27 May 2022
Courier Weekly provides inspiration and tools to help you work better and live smarter.
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Brought to you this week by Atelier100.
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Your weekly round-up of briefings, trends and news.
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The rise of the gig CEO
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Typically the phrase ‘gig economy’ conjures up images of Uber drivers and Deliveroo food-delivery couriers, not a CEO running a small business. But in the wake of the pandemic and the widespread adoption of remote-working technologies, a growing number of executives are offering their services on demand to companies that need a quick hit of leadership.
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What's a gig executive?
A gig executive, or fractional executive, is a part-time employee working at the top level of a department, who's contracted to work with a business for an average of six to 24 months. They'll often work with multiple businesses at once, spending as little as one day a month with a company. Think of them as a consultant, but a consultant who's integrated into a business and responsible for delivering results, not just ideas. A company that hires a fractional executive is effectively renting a portion of a leader's time. Early-stage businesses, for example, will often hire a fractional chief financial officer to work one day a month to help with strategy and bookkeeping (venture funds often mandate this for companies they invest in), or they might hire a part-time chief marketing officer to provide guidance on marketing strategy.
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An interim executive is related but distinct. They typically work full-time with a business for a temporary period and will be responsible for implementing large-scale changes. For example, an established business that's technologically behind its competitors might contract a chief technology officer; or a company that's suffered losses across the board might bring in a CEO to make broader management decisions.
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Feel the churn
Fractional leadership traces back to the 2008 recession, where layoffs and a weak job market saw seasoned professionals turn to contract or freelance employment. Similarly, the pandemic has resulted in a larger pool of career-change executives ready to join the gig economy. These executives are leaving gaps in their previous organizations, which is also driving demand for leadership in the short term.
Ben Wolf – the CEO of Wolf's Edge Consulting and author of a book on fractional leadership – says that improvements in remote-working technology – think Zoom, messaging app Slack and work management software Monday.com – mean business owners can look further afield to find the talent they need. While a business could hire a full-time remote employee, given economic uncertainty, a permanent hire may feel too much like a significant commitment and cost.
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No corner office needed
A small company with a founder or CEO and a couple of employees will often need another leader to be able to grow the business but, until they grow, they often can't afford that hire. Ben calls this the ‘entrepreneurial catch-22’, which bringing in a fractional leader can solve – a short-term hire can help a business scale without committing to the long-term cost of a high annual salary. That's beneficial both ways – an interim is typically someone who's ‘seeking challenge, not a corner office’, according to Robert Jordan, founder and CEO of recruitment firm InterimExecs.
Burnout – often brought on by common leadership challenges like decision fatigue – is a big issue for business founders used to wearing a lot of different hats. Fractional executives, with years of experience in a specific industry, can offer that bit of unfiltered, actionable advice that comes with ‘been-there-done-that leadership’ that a growing business needs, according to Ben.
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Our top five stories online
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Inspiration for the home, plus things to eat, drink and wear.
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A product expert's favorite things
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While we love sharing our picks with you, this week we're passing the Stuff mic to a very special product spotter: Natalie Sportelli, head of content at Thingtesting, the go-to destination for discovering and vetting brands online. Here, she shares her latest favorite finds.
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Developed for parents with an eye for aesthetics, Freestyle is a line of hyper-absorbent, design-forward diapers made from bamboo pulp. Co-founders Mike Constantiner and Russ Wallace collaborate with different artists to create a range of colorful patterns. |
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DECEM is a range of 10% ABV light spirits that debuted in April. It includes London Dry, which is similar to gin; Spiced Blend, which is made with Caribbean rum; and Aperitif, which is made with a range of botanicals. The London-based brand ships throughout the UK, with all of its products made and packaged in England. |
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Plink! is on a mission to transform your boring glass of water. Its dissolvable drink tablets come in three flavors: watermelon and cucumber, pineapple and grapefruit, and pomegranate and berry. Plink! claims that its range has 98% less carbon impact and 99% less packaging than traditional canned and bottled drinks. |
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These reusable face masks from Experiment are a bold acid-lime color and come in two size options. The beauty brand aims to cut down the plastic waste caused by single-use sheet masks. |
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Is there a brand you love that you want to share?
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BRAND PARTNER: Atelier100
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Courier partners with a brand-new design incubator
We're excited to be the official editorial partners of Atelier100, a design incubator program backed by IKEA and H&M, bringing together makers and manufacturers within 100km of London. To kick off our content series, we spoke to Camilla Henriksson (H&M's global brand innovation manager) and Marcus Engman (chief creative officer at Ingka group, IKEA's largest franchisee) to learn more about this radical initiative.
Read our first installation here
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Tips and tools to become better at life and work.
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How to nail employee retention
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In the nearly 10 years that it's existed, apparel brand Bombas has lost only 25 employees. For the now 230-strong company, those figures are a fraction of the average turnover rate that most companies experience in a single year. With a quarter of American workers promising to look for a new job once the threat of the pandemic has gone, it's more important than ever to think about how best to keep hold of your team. Here, Bombas co-founder David Heath gives some pointers on creating an employee-focused workplace.
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01. Hire people who align with your core values
‘The foundation of building a great company culture is making sure that you find people who share your values,’ says David. He suggests nailing down your company's values early on, so that you can use them to guide your hires. To this day, part of Bombas' interview process centers around the company's core values of ‘making a difference’ and ‘being quality-obsessed’.
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02. Upend your hierarchy
David doesn't see himself as above anyone in his organization, despite being the CEO. ‘I play a role on this team in the same way that the person who greets people at the front desk and the people who clean our offices do, because we wouldn't be able to do the work without them,’ he says. He suggests that founders seek feedback from new and junior employees.
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03. If you can't pay competitively, offer something else
‘Early on, when we couldn't competitively pay on a base salary or bonus perspective, we gave everybody in the organization equity,’ says David. He suggests using equity to offset any difference in salary (ie, if you can afford only a $50,000 salary for a $100,000 job, offer at least the rest of the value in equity). According to David, early-stage business founders should always offer more equity, because employees are taking on risk.
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Things to avoid
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Not giving regular feedback: ‘Nothing is more wasteful than an employee resigning for a reason that could have been solved.’ Ensure there are mechanisms in place so that an employee can have a meeting with their manager's manager – typically referred to as a ‘skip-level meeting’. |
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Pitting departments against each other: ‘Many organizations naturally give more resources to the revenue-generating parts of the business, like the sales department. But they're creating resentment in the back-office operation.’ |
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Compensation inequality: ‘At Bombas, either everyone gets their bonus or no one does.’ |
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Want more tips and tools on working effectively and living smarter?
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Other great stuff we loved this week.
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