It’s a slippery slope to talk, write or even think about politics these days.

The holiday season tends to be a time for families to gather to celebrate togetherness and share in gratitude.  Yet, in the past year or two, I’ve heard more and more examples of families being broken apart because of differences of opinions in political matters.  And as I’ve listened, I’ve realized how grateful I am to work somewhere like Kenway Consulting.

Don’t get me wrong, I hear political debates at the office.  And there are significant differences of opinion.  However, I am grateful to work somewhere grounded in the philosophy of focusing on means vs. outcomes, i.e. doing what is right is more important than the outcomes that doing what is right cause.

In 1998, during the impeachment hearings of Bill Clinton, some members of the Republican Party said things about the impeachment process and the importance of that process that are completely inconsistent with the things those same members are currently saying.  In 2019, during the impeachment hearings of Donald Trump, some members of the Democratic Party have said things about the impeachment process and the importance of that process that are completely inconsistent with the things those same members said in 1998.  Why is a “principle” “right” during one hearing, but the same principle does not apply during a different hearing?

The answer is simple.  They are rooting for a particular outcome.  In 1998, many Republicans wanted a president removed from office.  In 2019, many Democrats want a president removed from office.  And the outcome they sought/are seeking is more important to them than the means followed to achieve it.

The examples are endless.  Supreme Court nominees in a presidential election year.  Will they be confirmed or not?  Past quotes from our Senate Majority Leader and Senate Minority Leader seem to be in agreement that if the president is from their party, then nominees should be confirmed.  But if the president is from the opponent’s party, they should wait until after the election?  Hypocrisy?  How about it!

The joy of Kenway – and let’s be honest, it’s often a difficulty – is that we avoid rooting for outcomes.  We simply do what we believe is right.  If that leads to increased revenues as an outcome, great.  If it leads to less revenues, that’s just as great.  Imagine if our politicians did the same thing?  If they confirmed Supreme Court nominees when a president nominates them, regardless of the election year or the party in control, that would be the honorable thing.  If they treated impeachment in a consistent manner, regardless of the president’s party, that would be the honorable thing.  When you get too focused on the outcome, principles become malleable weapons to be used when convenient, and discarded when not.

Oxford Dictionary defines a principle as, “a fundamental truth or proposition that serves as the foundation for a system of belief or behavior or for a chain of reasoning.”  Next time you hear a politician say, “it’s a matter of principle,” remember it.  Chances are, the principle will be discarded when convenient.  At Kenway, we never discard a principle, because as Oxford tell us, it’s our foundation.

If you are interested in hearing more about our principles, reach out to us at [email protected] or visit www.kenwayconsulting.com.

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“Something suddenly came up.”  These were the words Marcia Brady delivered to Charley in the 1973 “The Subject Was Noses” episode of “The Brady Bunch.”  She had a date scheduled with Charley for Saturday night, but “big man on campus” Doug Simpson asked Marcia out for the same night.  So, as to not pass up the great opportunity to go out with the football team hero, Marcia took the advice of her brother Greg, and told Charley that, “something suddenly came up.”

Forty-five years later, I had a lunch scheduled with someone on a recent Friday.  It had been on the calendar for several weeks.  That morning, about three hours before the lunch, I was told that “something suddenly came up.”  For the record, it was not a medical or personal emergency.  It was work-related.  Lunch was cancelled.

During the time between when the lunch was scheduled and when it was cancelled, I informed no less than four people that I could not attend various lunches/meetings that were at that same time.  I was honoring my commitment, my word, that I would attend this previously scheduled lunch.

There are more than 50 people who have access to my online calendar.  During the time between when the lunch was scheduled and when it was cancelled, I am certain that some subset of those 50 people looked at my calendar, with the consideration in mind to invite me to a lunch or meeting at that same time.  They chose not to invite me, because they could see that I was already booked.

When lunch was cancelled, I thought of the people who I told I could not attend their meetings.  I thought of the people who wanted me to attend a lunch, but chose not to invite me, because they could see that I was booked.  Instead of being in a valuable setting during Friday’s lunch hour, I was eating lunch by myself, thinking of these missed opportunities.

When you accept a meeting, you are giving your word that you will be there.  You’re busy?  We are all busy!  Someone invited you to an important meeting at the same time?  You made a commitment!  Something suddenly came up?  Something is always coming up!  It’s how you handle these things and prioritize your word and commitments that separates the good from the great.

What happened to Marcia Brady after she turned down Charley for Doug Simpson?  She got hit in the face with a football and had a dark, swollen nose.  Not that I wish ill will on the person who cancelled on me, but I hope they learn the same life lesson Marcia learned.  Honor your commitments.  Keep your word.  It does not matter how important another work event or work emergency seems to be, when you cancel your commitment, you are going back on your word.

And without people being able to have faith in your word, who are you?

My first job as a young boy was delivering the Boston Globe to roughly 30 homes in my neighborhood in Boston. I was 10 years old. I woke up at 6:00 on weekdays, 7:00 on weekends, to achieve the Service Level Agreement (SLA) that the Boston Globe established for its subscribers. I did this for four years. I was my own boss. Upon reaching high school and having a social life that involved evening activities, the feasibility of doing that seven days a week was waning. However, not being afraid to wake up early, I took a job at a Mom and Pop donut shop in Boston, Anna’s Donuts, which is still there by the way. I had my first true boss, Joe, a great guy and great at what he did. A couple years later, when I turned 16 years old and could legally operate a deli slicer, I changed jobs again to work at a Mom and Pop Irish delicatessen. I had another boss, Steve, another great guy and great at what he did.

College came next, and I had various work/study type jobs to have some spending money. Post college, post European travel and post passion pursuits, I took my first “real job” in Consulting in 1995. I worked for several strong supervisors, who were both strong in their field and strong in interpersonal skills. In hindsight, I know that all my work experiences up to this point were not the norm. I was exceedingly fortunate.

In 1996, I was staffed on a project for a large insurance provider and was faced with a supervisor who was extremely good at what he did, i.e. strong business acumen, excellent technology skills, solid communicator with the client, etc. I learned a LOT from him. However, he was a complete jerk to employees. I was wrapping up one Friday at roughly 7:00 p.m., after having worked over eleven hours that day, and over 60 hours that week, for what had been several weeks (maybe months) in a row. I was already told that I needed to work the weekend, so I decided that I physically “needed” to go play basketball at my gym. I needed to decompress, sweat it out a bit, and rally some energy to come back to the client on Saturday morning. My supervisor saw me leaving, while many of my colleagues were still there. He looked at me, saw me leaving and said, “what is this, vacation?”.

It was at this point that I comprised a viewpoint. I can tolerate (to an extent) people who aren’t very good at what they do, provided they exude effort, integrity and humility. And I can tolerate (to an extent) people who aren’t very nice people, provided they are very good at what they do. But what I can’t tolerate is people who have the “double whammy”, i.e. terrible at what they do, and bad people with ill intent. Until 1996, I was fortunate enough in that I hadn’t had to work for anyone with the single whammy, let alone the double. Since then, I have encountered all too many double whammies.

Kenway Consulting was started in 2004, thus ending my time reporting to supervisors. And with it, came a new perspective. I remember hearing a speaker who spoke about the obvious and undeniable right that clients have to fire their vendors. But what truly resonated with me, is that the speaker also spoke about the equal and opposite right that all vendors have, i.e. the obvious and undeniable right that vendors have to fire their clients. It is not intuitive, but it is true. In my time before Kenway, I had not been a witness to seeing a client get “fired”. But what a liberating concept! Now, let me be clear, when I say “client”, I am not referring to an entire company, although that may be the case as well. I am referring to individuals at a client, about whom you may need to make the decision to “fire” them, i.e. choose not to engage in business with them ever again.

Today alone, 3/12/2018 as I write this, Kenway Consulting is in the process of firing two such clients, individuals who work at two of our larger clients who have proven to be completely ineffective at what they do, and who lack integrity and a sense of right and wrong. Classic double whammies. Often times, people like them end up doing things that they believe will somehow cover up their ineffectiveness. Or, they are motivated by things like power, perception and job security vs. simply doing what is right because it is right. In other words, they are behaving a certain way in hopes of steering towards a certain outcome, rather than having concern with how they got there. Similarly, a lot of consultancies would tolerate that type of behavior from their clients as a means to an end, i.e. a necessary evil to make revenue. I am proud of the fact that Kenway will never focus on the end, in this case revenue, and overlook terrible behavior from an unethical person. We will proudly accept less revenue, in order to have self-respect and dignity. We will proudly fire a client, and expose their true nature, recognizing that it could have what many consultancies would call negative consequences. Kenway thinks of these “negative consequences” as outcomes of doing the right thing, nothing negative about it. That is how we deal with the double whammy.

The end of a year is a reflective time for me.  Each year since 2004, the year Kenway Consulting opened, a great deal of the reflection has been on the business.  What did each year bring?  What were the successes?  What were the learning points?

There are certain outcomes that inevitably are considered. Did we grow?  By how much?  How many new clients did we add?  Those are all interesting tidbits, but to me, they aren’t indicators of success.  To me, the greatest indicator of success is the mirror test.  Can I look in the mirror and be proud of our actions and our words.  In other words, did we deliver quality and integrity?  And when the answer is yes to both, I don’t worry one bit about the metrics.

But not far behind on the best indicator leader board, is the “stickiness” of our clients.  There are a lot of choices in the consulting space.  So, to earn the faith and trust in clients to not only take on a project, but to have earned it to take on many projects, over multiple years, varying in size and scope, creating a long-term mutually beneficial relationship…now, that is special.

To all our clients, large and small, spanning all industries, ranging from the longest tenured to the most recent additions, we thank you for your faith and trust in us.  I am humbled and honored to do business with you, and I extend all of you hugs and best wishes for a safe, happy and healthy holiday season.  May 2018 bring great things to you, your company and to our relationship!

I’ve been asked on many occasions, by many people and in many ways, “Why did you start Kenway Consulting?” With Kenway having been started over eleven years ago, through self-awareness and with the benefit of 20/20 hindsight vision, the evolution of my answer has resulted in a shorter, more succinct, albeit vaguer, version. The answer? I started the company for which I always wanted to work.

To fully dissect that statement, one needs to understand the context from which I was coming. Before founding Kenway Consulting, I had been witnessing working environments that were violating some of my core principles. Tenure was rewarded over performance, so we created a company culture based solely on merit (year to year), and past greatness is just that, in the past. Managing upward was more important than collaboration, so we created Theta Teams, comprised of every level of the company, in which there is no hierarchy, and the agenda is focused on innovation, collaboration and accountability. Doing what you were told was more important than doing what was right, so we emphasize that the longevity of client relationships is merely an outcome, and it’s the means to how you approach that relationship that matters, and it’s the means that we measure. Challenging the status quo was perceived as rocking the boat, rather than being rewarded for innovation, so we perform SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) Analyses on ourselves and applaud constructive, timely and diplomatic feedback. So, yeah, with the help of the most amazing group of individuals with whom I have EVER worked, we have created a company for which I am extremely proud to work.

But, as I mentioned above, my answer is still evolving…

Another “one of those things” that used to bother me about the structure of traditional consulting engagements was the pricing methodology. Sure, I was appalled at the prices at which I was billed out. Trust me, I was extremely proud of the value I brought to my clients, but I KNOW I wasn’t worth that kind of money. But more than just the dollar amount, something didn’t sit right with stating a price for my time, and, regardless of the value I brought to the client (or lack thereof), the dollar amount stayed the same. For example, if Kenway convinces you that your company can obtain a revenue increase resulting from our proposed work in the neighborhood of $110,000, and the cost of having Kenway perform that work is $10,000, it doesn’t take a mathematician to see that the return on investment (ROI) is $100,000. But what happens after the project? What if we perform the work, and you pay us $10,000 for doing it, and you only see a revenue increase of $5,000? Was it worth the $10,000? I don’t think so. Conversely, what if you see an increase in revenues of $1,000,000? Was it worth the $10,000? Absolutely!

Last quarter, I had the privilege of watching extremely talented Kenway employees draft a narrative that depicted a day in the life of Kenway Consulting in the year 2020. We appropriately call that narrative “Kenway 20/20.” In that narrative, with zero involvement of my own, it is stated that Kenway will be known for its creative pricing structure, where Kenway will share in the risk and the reward of its client engagements. Now THAT is a company for which I want to work! We are committing to, where possible, designing pricing for our engagements that allow us to share in the outcomes of the project.

So, how do we do that? Let’s look no further than our newest client, Paulina Meat Market, a landmark Chicago institution since 1949. Paulina Meat Market had a need to update their eCommerce site. However, from a financial cost perspective, we did not believe it would be feasible for them to hire Kenway unless we found a way to minimize its impact to the cash flow. Here is a case in point that a short-term project could be expensive (upfront) but could have a huge ROI down the road. But if a client in question doesn’t have the money for the upfront expense, they lose out on that opportunity, and miss larger returns on that investment. With our new focus on creative pricing strategies, we approached Paulina with what we believed was the ultimate win/win pricing structure. We significantly reduced our hourly rate, and priced in what we collaboratively agreed was an appropriate percentage of the ROI. Now, we share in the ROI. If the result of the project shows the ROI that we communicated we could deliver, we share in the reward (and make more than our normal bill rate). If the result is that we miss the mark, we (Kenway) lose money on the project and the client is not out a huge price tag, which is our way of sharing in the risk.

Kenway is like most consulting firms. We communicate a willingness to truly partner with our clients. We just want to take it one step further, and truly partner in the benefits and risks of every project.

What project do you have? And would you like a discounted upfront price so we can share in the outcome? Contact us at [email protected].

Kenway has a unique compensation structure. Every company does to some extent. But for a small company, we get pretty sophisticated by using custom applications and customized reporting and analytics to support our model and ensure proper implementation. On top of having these custom tools and processes, we spend substantial non-chargeable time, a significant opportunity cost, supporting said tools and processes. And it’s all in the name of fairness. One of our Guiding Principles is “to use a value minus cost formula for compensation.” So, it’s to honor this Guiding Principle why all these processes, solutions and effort exist.

What do we do? At the surface, it sounds simple enough. We evaluate all the inputs that comprise an employee’s cost. There’s the stuff that is unique to them (e.g. their benefits, their salary, etc.). And then there’s the stuff that is company overhead that gets allocated on a headcount basis (e.g. office management, workers’ compensation insurance, etc.) You add all that up for each individual and you have their total cost to the company. By dividing each employee’s hours worked into their total cost, you get their cost per hour. We then draw collaborative, subjective opinions about each employee’s value per hour. Here, things like degree of difficulty, level of success, efficiency, maintenance (as in, high or low) come into play. We look at the difference between their cost per hour and their value per hour, and the difference is allocated to them through their year-end performance bonus.

I explained this process a while back to someone outside of Kenway, and they said, “Wow. You guys have a P&L [Profit & Loss] for every employee. We need one of those.” I laughed and, thinking of the custom applications, reporting solutions and effort that goes into honoring our Guiding Principle, said, “No, you don’t.” But that, of course, was in jest. I am very proud that we do things this way.

Well, right now, this week, we are in the throes of it again. Bonus season. It’s hard. For example, the people who make more in salary must outperform the people who make less in order to earn the same bonus. Think about it. If two people are valued comparably at year-end, and they worked an equal number of hours, the person who “cost more” throughout the year is going to see a lower bonus than the person who “cost less” throughout the year. It’s the epitome of fairness. But it’s not typical. Many companies reward based on tenure and experience twice—once with a higher salary and again with a bonus as a percentage of that salary. We reward experience only once, when evaluating a salary, but that goes out the window when we evaluate value.

Anyhow, I’m not writing this to describe our process and solicit feedback on it. I’m not writing this to stake a claim that our way is better than others. I’m writing about it because this whole P&L process has got me thinking, what is my P&L in life? Not financially. In life. What Return on Investment (ROI) do I get for my efforts, and at what cost? Am I working on the right things? Am I spending time with the right people? Am I enjoying the time as it passes, or am I too focused on the potential of future return, and making too great of an investment in my present?

As I contemplate those questions, I feel pretty good about my answers. That hasn’t always been the case. Hearkening back to the Kenway compensation methodology, total value is based on the quantity of hours and the average quality of each of them. But each person’s real P&L, is the marriage of their Personal and Work P&Ls. It’s the ultimate work / life balance. I know that the Kenway compensation model allows our employees to make choices about the quantity of time they spend at work. Sure, lower quantity will result in lower compensation than if the quantity was higher, and that impacts their

Work P&L. But I hope it’s a conscious decision, offsetting any lost work revenues with “personal compensation,” where less time at work results in higher returns at home in their Personal P&L. A high Work P&L might be offset by a low Personal P&L at home. The inverse can also be the case.

As we approach the holidays, I wish all of you safe travels, large meals and relaxation with loved ones. And may you all boost your Personal P&L to the right levels.

As Kenway celebrates its 10th Anniversary this month, there is no doubt much time spent on reflection on past failures, accomplishments and the many lessons learned from both. Much of this quarter’s newsletter hearkens the past, celebrates it and cements Kenway’s place in Chicago’s consulting services industry. I take great pride in the kind words written by my fellow Kenway employees who write about their experience wearing both the hat of an employee, but also the hat of an employer as, in many ways, each of us has helped shape what Kenway Consulting has become today.

When I think of my professional career, I realize that I have consistently been given the feedback that I don’t take the time to enjoy success, and that I spend too much energy on my weaknesses and not enough time on my strengths. Well, after years of hearing that feedback and frankly not doing much about it, I’ve decided that the feedback isn’t so much a call to action, as it is simply a statement of fact. And you know what? I’m ok with it. I don’t mind focusing on my weaknesses. Heck, it keeps me busy, since the list is long! So, in line with my pension for improvement, I’m going to look at the past ten years and reflect less on the many pride-filled successes and more on the missed opportunities upon which we must capitalize in the next month, the next year and the next decade. In a word, it is growth. Growth, not as a goal, but as a necessary outcome of doing what we do. Now, we have grown every year in our ten year existence. So, in a way, the outcome has already been achieved. However, my hope is that in the days that are ahead, we are intentional about it, and less accidental, and capitalize on Kenway’s potential, which I believe has been far greater than our actual performance to date.

This past week, I sat down one-on-one with the Chair of a CEO Peer Group in which I’ve been a member for the past two years. I was speaking to her about our growth, and she asked me, “Why is Growth Important to Kenway?” And for about one minute, I was stumped. I honestly didn’t have a ready-made answer. Growth’s importance to Kenway is not to increase revenues, or to hire more people, or to diversify our client base or even to create opportunities for promotion by going from a smaller company to a larger company. Sure, those are all great outcomes, but they are not the things upon which we base our success. So, as I sat there dumbfounded without an answer, she asked a follow-up question, “You have always said that you started the company for which you always wanted to work, why is growth important for that company?” Then, it hit me.

I started Kenway Consulting because I believed there was an alternative to what I was seeing in the consulting landscape. I felt there was a way to focus on delivery, and let sales and growth be by-products of being good and spreading the word. I felt there was a way to focus on always doing right, even if that meant dips in revenue, believing that in the long run, growth would result from the integrity and good will that permeated. I felt there was a way to hire and retain talented personnel by focusing less on corporate goals, and more on the unique personal and professional goals of each employee. These were the attributes of the company for which I always wanted to work.

So what is the case for growth? To me, there are still far too many companies that get burned by consulting firms who over-promise and under-deliver. There are far too many consulting firms who sell services to their clients that, frankly, aren’t needed. And there are far too many great employees out there who work for these consulting firms, and day dream about the company for whom they always wanted to work, and might not believe exists. This is our case for growth. To spread the word to the people who may be a fit at Kenway. And to spread the word to companies who could benefit from what we provide. It is my belief that we have barely scratched the surface on both camps.

So, back to my one-on-one last week, my answer was an impassioned stream of consciousness focused on the sadness I felt for the companies that got burned in the past ten years going with the over-sellers and under-deliverers, and for the many good people who work for the companies doing the over-selling. Mix all that with a little “woe is me” that Kenway isn’t winning the business and hiring these people, and it brought me to my case for growth. And here it is:

Kenway needs to grow as a moral imperative. We need to grow because it is the right thing to do: for the companies with whom we do business and the people we hire. The case is as simple as that.