About the book "Escape Velocity!" Among other company benefits, using the concepts found inside these pages will produce: Lower customer acquisition costs Higher employee productivity Higher customer retention Higher sales volume per customer Lower administrative costs and headaches More fun, excitement, and enjoyment Inspired by real life business cases, "Escape Velocity!" focuses on one concept that will transform a good company into a great one. Written in allegory format, the reader is taken into the conversations, fears, and feelings of the characters to learn about how this one concept impacts every business. It provides insight into the constraints many businesses unknowingly have placed upon themselves and keeps them from the next level. Many people talk about taking the company to the next level but most do not know how to describe or define what that means, much less know how to get there. This book contains a map of levels so the leader can clearly navigate towards the next level. Many other real life business tools are found inside. This book is intended for leadership in privately held small to medium sized businesses. "Escape Velocity!" will challenge much of the established management education that is taught in business schools. However, this book is applies Evidence Based Practices and uses a wealth of solid research with a complete bibliography at the end. Keynote How often do we, as leaders, really consider how our actions, decisions, and behaviors affect those we lead? We are one of the most productive countries in the world yet, our workforce is only engaged less than 15% of the time. This book has the keys to unlock engagement and pull productivity significantly beyond 15%. In the process the business grows without extra resources being spent.
About the Author: Laird is an independent contractor delivering consulting, education and coaching for leadership teams wishing to improve their cultural skills in business and increase the velocity of their organization. He graduated from Iowa State University with a BA degree in Information Systems and received an MBA degree in Organizational Psychology from Northcentral University. He earned a Master Coach Certification from the Graduate Institute of Organizational Coaching and is certified as a Project Management Professional from the world standard in project management, PMI. Laird's background in business development spans 30 years as a leader in applying technology to business needs. From that base he has done analysis and organizational development in over 250 companies across 15 industries. Over the last 15 years he has acquired professional training, education, and experience in organizational development. He uses positive psychology to move organizations to new levels through leadership development. His broad experience with successfully helping start-up companies as well as providing leadership in large corporations allows him to understand the issues of the business owner and deliver extraordinary results. His passion and mission is centered on transforming good organizations into great ones by helping its people find their direction, strengths, and courage.