What I do before pitching a conference

by Karl Sakas | Sep 26, 2018 | Attract Great Clients, Benchmarking & Optimization, Personal Growth & Development, Scale Your Agency

Speaking can be a great agency lead-gen technique—but you need to evaluate opportunities carefully. You won’t get leads from speaking if you never make it on-stage (whether a physical or virtual stage). In this article, I share 9 questions to help you get past...

PM training resources for agencies: Virtual + in-person options

by Karl Sakas | Sep 19, 2018 | Build a Stronger Team, Strengthen Client Relationships

Agency leaders regularly ask me for recommendations on PM training for their project managers, for struggling SMEs, and for themselves. Here’s my roundup summary of PM training options to help you and your team—including virtual events. [Latest updates: January...

How to read minds: Use these 14 “tells” to make hard decisions

by Karl Sakas | Sep 12, 2018 | Attract Great Clients, Build a Stronger Team, Personal Growth & Development

When you’re making decisions, you rarely have all the info you need—you need to decide with incomplete or conflicting data. For example, some job candidates will tell you anything to get hired. And when you’re considering a prospective client, they won’t volunteer...

[Part 2 of 2] How to handle a current “Reluctant Employee”

by Karl Sakas | Aug 29, 2018 | Build a Stronger Team

If someone can do the job but they choose not to, they’re a “Reluctant Employee.” You can avoid hiring them by asking the right interview questions. (More on that in Part 1.) Here in Part 2, I’ll share what to do if you realize one of your...

[Part 1 of 2] Warning: Are you about to hire a “Reluctant Employee”?

by Karl Sakas | Aug 22, 2018 | Build a Stronger Team

When it comes to agency hiring, one of the biggest risks is hiring someone who can do the job, but doesn’t want to do the job you need them to do—I call these types of hires a “Reluctant Employee.” If you need someone focused one way, and they want...