CAPTURE HIGH

Non-Traditional Strategic Planning Guru

Strategic Partner Business Advisors, LLC

Based on the cross-pollination from leadership roles in several industries, several technologies, and all major disciplines within a company, I work with owners and CEOs to envision a company's potential, and then implement the processes and develop the team to capitalize on that potential. This "envision the future" approach is in contrast with the traditional extrapolation planning that most companies use. The approach is discussed in the book, "Strategic Planning In This Age Of Disruption" (Amazon).

In this "Age of Disruption", knowing how to profit from the change in your industry is crucial to not only manage risk on the downside but also to exploit opportunity on the upside. We use ongoing strategic thinking, Voice of the Customer and SWOT analysis, and  Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal, and Environmental (PESTLE) awareness.

I have significantly increased profits at several companies by upgrading the culture, streamlining processes, and better understanding the "Voice Of The Customer" and how to build brand equity. In one company I increased annual profits by a factor of 30X and in another company by a factor of 10X.

In a coaching role, I have coached sales and marketing to a higher professional level, found exclusive positioning in a highly competitive market through "Voice of the Customer" studies. Other programs included a 5-year strategic plan in an industry experiencing disruptive growth, and establishing a domestic representative and distributor network in the specialty chemical industry.

The first step is to understand the current state of the culture and the market. The second step is to envision the 5-year potential of the company, and the third is to design and implement the processes and resources to transform the company. I have successfully implemented this entire transformation eco-system, as well as implementing just some parts as needed.

Managing Partner

BreakThrough Business Advisors

We worked with business owners to improve the profitability and value of their brand equity. Our focus was on:
* Developing personnel and teams, 
* Improving and re-engineering processes, and  
* Envisioning markets and products a company should plan for. 

Our experience in strategic planning, coaching, succession planning, management and leadership, and developing teamwork is remarkably effective in solving business challenges. Roles offered include fractional CMO, interim CEO, personnel selection advisor, mentor/coach, market research, and others.

Senior Consultant

Majilite Corporation

$40 million dollar manufacturer of specialty films and synthetic leathers for Automotive, Aerospace, Medical Device, Electronic, Apparel, and other markets. Recognizing that marketing and distribution needed to be specific to each market area, I brought the company's marketing into the 21st Century by sculpting messaging, designing market-specific web sites, collateral materials, and pioneering social media marketing for each market area.

With a team of five plus representatives and distributors for each market, we identified eight large, multi million dollar programs and successfully won the first three and got them into production, and we successfully moved the others through the feasibility stage and into field test stages.

I was part of the team that introduced the root cause analysis system, and was active in the introduction of Lean training.

VP Sales & Marketing

ACCUSTANDARD, INC

$10 million manufacturer of 40,000+ chemical reference standards for worldwide environmental, petrochemical, and industrial markets. Led day-to-day operations for this specialty chemicals manufacturer with accountability for P&L performance, strategic planning and execution, process improvements, customer / employee relations, new product introductions, product positioning, distribution and marketing and sales. Managed 65 employees and 60 distributors. 

Selected Achievements
30X increase in profitability over a 12-year period by successfully streamlining and enhancing operations
97%+ increase in sales with zero increase in headcount in most departments by reengineering processes to improve productivity 
20% international sales increased to 51% of total sales by leveraging strategic global relationships to penetrate markets
$500,000+ in sales growth by improving product positioning and promotion for company's pesticide product line despite a highly mature and competitive market
$200,000+ in new business by recognizing and responding to market demand for ISO Guide 34 accreditation, key to positioning company as the industry leader
$1,000,000+ in new revenue growth generated within 12 months by developing and implementing new product lines to penetrate untapped markets
47% increase in employee retention by launching a culture improvement campaign that fostered teamwork and eliminated friction between departments
50% reduction in cost of entering orders by introduction of e-commerce on company web site
Increased ROI with a management development program that transformed company's culture to a proactive, results driven, customer focused business
Assembled and ran highly productive Advisors' Council comprised of customers, suppliers, and regulators
Averted costly federal penalties and fines by leading efforts to upgrade business management and financial systems to accurately recognize inventory, A/R, and disposal of hazardous waste.

PRESIDENT

FOOD AUTOMATION - SERVICE TECHNOLOGIES, INC

Industry leading designer and manufacturer of computer systems, serving fast food restaurants and appliance manufacturers worldwide. Led all marketing activities for the company, was accountable for marketing and field sales support, marketing collateral, Customer Service, and trade shows. Supervised and trained 15 direct reports. Tracked and managed sales training requirements for 20-member field sales team and international representatives.

Selected Achievements
77% increase in sales closing rates with 90%+ decrease in sales costs by developing and implementing an innovative bundled product solution with unique financing and guarantees
Launched new Smart Commercial Kitchen (TM), networking data sources to significantly improve food safety, inventory, loss control, product quality, and management planning functions.

DIRECTOR OF MARKETING

VIBRA-METRICS, INC

Leading manufacturer of accelerometers and vibration monitoring equipment, serving aerospace and industrial markets worldwide. Managed and trained 15 direct reports plus 20 International Representatives. Served as Program Manager for the Pratt & Whitney F-22 sensor cost-plus design-build contract. Migrated expertise in contract production techniques, project management design, and process reviews to the commercial side of the company.

Selected Achievements
$8 million cost-plus, design-build contract won by spearheading efforts to define design specifications while adding unique organizational capabilities
$500,000 grant secured to develop and introduce a bridge vibration monitoring system for the state of Connecticut
Improved profitability by launching a new catalog of high volume standard line of sensors that successfully diversified the company into 60% industrial catalog products and away from dependence on special military orders
Grew sales by 263% and achieved profitability by focusing vision on diversification from government sales
Increased quality and reputation by implementing a culture of failure analysis and process reviews across Engineering and Production departments.

VICE-PRESIDENT & CO-OWNER

Ray Proof, Division of Bairnco (NYSE)

Led twenty-person sales department, plus twenty international representatives. Created all marketing materials.

Vice President of Sales & Marketing

FERMONT, DIVISION OF DCA

VP OF SALES & MARKETING

MOTOROLA C&E, INC

Sold to Federal Government accounts in Washington DC, plus coordinated national sales to USPS.

Regional Sales Manager

I help CEOs and Boards of Directors to envision their future.

That helps them plan how to exploit the arriving disruptive technologies and disruptive business models, and to build resilient and sustainable organizations.

We do this with traditional Strategic Planning tools, augmented to accommodate disruptive change. Then we apply our 4-step process, "Envision the Future". We plan backward to recognize skill sets and resources necessary to meet that vision. This is the flipped version of traditional strategic planning that extrapolates from today. This entire process is detailed in "Strategic Planning In This Age of Disruption".

I have benefited from leadership roles in several industries, technologies, and all major disciplines within a company. This has enabled me to envision a company's potential and to implement the processes and develop the team to capitalize on that potential. 

While my underpinnings are Fortune 100, my focus has been on smaller privately held and family-owned companies that want to grow to the next professional level. They are the most vulnerable to the arriving disruptions.

My management style is to drive EBITDA by focusing the team's energies on the "3 Cs and a V": Communications (internal & external), Customers (VOC, and Brand Equity), and Company processes to keep the company agile, and engaged.





Taplio

Bill McClain's Linkedin Analytics

Bill McClain

Want to drive more opportunities from LinkedIn?

Taplio

.css-1jgreyo{background-image:linear-gradient(284deg, rgba(39,43,72,1) 0%, rgba(33,47,183,1) 100%);color:transparent;-webkit-background-clip:text;background-clip:text;}Bill McClain's Linkedin Analytics

Bill McClain

Want to drive more opportunities from LinkedIn?

Bill McClain's Linkedin Analytics