Be Authentic: Interview with Michael Kurland, CEO of Branded Group
I recently went one on one with Michael Kurland, CEO of Branded Group.
Adam: Thanks again for taking the time to share your advice. First things first, though, I am sure readers would love to learn more about you. How did you get here? What experiences, failures, setbacks or challenges have been most instrumental to your growth?
Michael: Thank you, Adam, for this opportunity. I share the details of my journey to being the CEO of Branded Group in my new book, “Broken to Better: 13 Ways Not to Fail at Life and Leadership.” Around the time of the early 2000s, I had just divorced, experienced a foot injury and was completely out of shape. I basically lacked any sense of purpose in both my personal life, and career. While I was doing well at my job in the facility management industry, I was simply unhappy, frustrated, and unfulfilled. I knew there had to be a better way. I knew that I could do better for myself. That’s when I decided to sell everything I owned, move across country and launch Branded Group.
Concurrently, I also adopted a healthier lifestyle including eating better, exercise, and meditation. Running or hiking, and spending time at the beaches in Orange County, California were a few new habits I began practicing. I have continued these to this day and encourage my team to commit to their personal wellness.
Adam: How did you come up with your business idea and know it was worth pursuing? What advice do you have for others on how to come up with and test ideas?
Michael: During my time as a sales manager in the facility management industry, one of my core strengths was building relationships and being honest with my clients. While I recognized that businesses have to be profitable, if this is your only motivation, ultimately you will be unfulfilled and your team will see that you’re only interested in them to fatten your bottom line. I could see that the industry was ripe for a shakeup, for something new.
I also knew that the East Coast was saturated with facility management companies so I had to look outside the box if I wanted to launch my business. I researched what was available in California (since I was going to move there), and quickly saw that there was little to no representation in the industry. That’s when I called upon a former colleague, asked her to join me, and we headed to the West Coast. With our combined experience and complimentary skillsets, I knew we could launch a successful organization.
We continued to do our research in areas such as employment law, setting up a company in the state, and learned about the various regulations so that as we grew we would be prepared.
My advice to anyone who has an idea for a business is to first and foremost, look for a gap in the market, identify how you can meet the need, and how you can do it better than anyone else. Don’t leave any stone unturned. Reach out to others who have started a business, find a great mentor, and then go for it!
Adam: What are the key steps you have taken to grow your business? What advice do you have for others on how to take their businesses to the next level?
Michael: We have always been an organization that thinks ahead. We were ahead of the curve when we set up our cloud technology years before it was a thing. This forward-thinking enabled us to go 100% remote when the pandemic hit in under 48 hours. Additionally, our sales team keeps an eye on trends in the industry so that we can put services in place to help our clients.
Perhaps and most importantly, within a year or so of launching the company, we developed our vision, purpose, and core values that would be the foundation of our company culture. We also created a social impact program that our employees support. This program is a driving factor for attracting new hires as well.
To grow your business, you have to be able to take risks and step out. Of course, these should be well-researched and not just done on a whim. But if you have a gut feeling about something, then you need to have the confidence to try it. If it doesn’t work out, you will have learned valuable lessons for next time.
Adam: What are your best sales and marketing tips?
Michael: Sales is about relationships. If you can build a trusted relationship with your clients, vendors, and even your employees, you will be successful. To do this requires you to be authentic, honest, and humble. It also means you have to do what you say you will do. Integrity and character are two words we don’t hear much about anymore but without them you will simply churn and burn through your client list and your sales team will spend all of their time trying to repair broken relationships.
Marketing your business is about sharing your story. What is your “why?” Simon Sinek said that people don’t buy what you make, they buy why you make it. One of our first big client wins was secured because, unlike our competitors, we did not tell them about our services as an FM company. Instead, we shared our social impact program successes and how we were making a difference in people’s lives through our volunteering efforts. The company was so taken in by our authentic approach, that they signed with us that day and have been a loyal client for nearly a decade. When you focus your marketing and sales efforts on your “who,” the clients will come.
Being consistent in messaging across all channels is critical as well. Your sales team cannot be presenting a message that conflicts with your social media postings. Consistency, repetition, and engaging with your following in meaningful ways help you to tell your brand story.
Adam: In your experience, what are the defining qualities of an effective leader? How can leaders and aspiring leaders take their leadership skills to the next level?
Michael: A purpose-driven leader must be authentic, empathetic, and agile. First, you have to be authentic with your team, your clients, and your colleagues. Honesty is always the best policy. Leaders (of all levels in your organization) need to have empathy towards their teams and colleagues. In today’s ever-changing world, you never know what others are experiencing and you must be able to relate to the whole person, not just the worker. Agility goes without saying. If the pandemic and the events of the past few years have taught us anything, it is that we need to be flexible and be “on the ready” to address the challenges that may be presented to us.
Adam: What is your best advice on building, leading and managing teams?
Michael: To build a successful team, you have to foster a spirit of collaboration, mutual respect, and diversity. Everyone brings something to the table and each person has to feel that they can contribute freely. A team that has complementary skillsets will be more productive because there will not be duplication of effort and each person can utilize their strengths and talents. In my company, whenever we saw that someone was struggling, we took a step back to review their overall performance. Many times, they were simply in the wrong role and when moved to a different team or function, they excelled.
A great manager or leader must put the needs of their team first. They have to recognize when someone is needing assistance and not to write anyone off because they are having a difficult time. This is where empathy comes in. It’s not only about managing a team any more. It’s about being a mentor and coach as well.
I think it’s also important to identify who should be in leadership. Just because someone is good at their job does not mean they are meant to manage a team. They may not even want to. We need both individual contributors and leaders for a successful team.
Adam: What are your three best tips applicable to entrepreneurs, executives and civic leaders?
Michael: Be authentic. Be humble. Be generous. These are the three areas that I focus on as a CEO, a member of the business community, and as someone who wants to make a difference in the lives of my employees and my community. When we lead with authenticity, then it instills trust in those we are leading. Today’s generation can see right through someone who is not being transparent and they are not afraid to call them out on it. When we truly know who we are, with our strengths and weaknesses, then we can be ourselves and we can confidently sell our services and products to people, knowing that we are being honest about everything we do.
Humility is important. As leaders, we do not become successful on our own. Our team, colleagues, mentors, and even our clients have contributed. We must acknowledge them and give credit where credit is due. No man is an island and no successful executive got to where they are without other people’s help.
Being generous is also an important trait for entrepreneurs, executives and civic leaders. This is not only about dollars and cents, but about sharing our time and talent with others. Even a new small business can do something to make a difference in the world. Conducting a food drive and volunteering at a local shelter or pantry are just two examples. To be an organization that strives to align purpose and profit, generosity is critical.
Adam: What do you hope readers take away from your new book?
Michael: My book is really about taking a critical look at how you can become the best version of yourself so that you can do good for others. I talk a lot about self-reflection and how important this is as a leader. The better you know yourself, the better leader you will be. I hope people reading my book will learn that anything is possible if you believe in yourself and are willing to take a risk for something you want.
I also hope that people will see that there’s more than one way to launch and grow a business. My way may not be your way and that’s okay. My leadership style may not be other’s style and again, that’s okay. The key is to find your lane and find your leadership sweet spot while always staying focused on being better in all areas of your business and personal life.
Additionally, I hope that readers will be inspired by my story and see that there are others who experienced the same or similar challenges and were able to rise above them. When I set out across the country to launch my company, I truly believed that I would not fail. I was committed to making it a success and would do anything to make that happen. It was long hours and lots of traveling and even doing tasks that I was not good at but between my co-founder and I, we did it. We made it happen. I wouldn’t change a thing about the process and I couldn’t be more grateful to everyone who contributed to my personal and professional success.
Adam: What is the single best piece of advice you have ever received?
Michael: I think the best piece of advice I ever received was from my father. He told me that I don’t have to be the smartest person in the room, but if I outwork everyone else, I will be successful. In every job I’ve ever had, I always outperformed my peers. I went the extra mile and it has paid off. I have a “never say fail” attitude that has enabled me to do things like jump out of a plane, launch a podcast, and write a book!
Not being afraid to step out of your comfort zone will be a key factor in your success. If you’re not taking risks, you’re not being the best version of yourself. You’re living small and I’m all about living big and being better every day.
Adam: Is there anything else you would like to share?
Michael: A few years ago, I jumped out of a plane to commemorate a milestone birthday. To say this was stepping out of my comfort zone is no joke! However, just as when I launched my business, I did a good deal of research about the skydiving process, had lengthy conversations with the instructor, and then I decided to take the risk. If we let our fears control us, we will never accomplish what we want.
I learned a lot about myself through my skydiving experience. However, the biggest lesson I learned was to be laser-focused on what was directly in front of me. The same is true for my business. When my team stays focused on our vision and purpose, we are able to service our clients with excellence, create a rewarding and engaging company culture, and give back to our community.
Adam Mendler is the CEO of The Veloz Group, where he co-founded and oversees ventures across a wide variety of industries. Adam is also the creator and host of the business and leadership podcast Thirty Minute Mentors, where he goes one on one with America's most successful people - Fortune 500 CEOs, founders of household name companies, Hall of Fame and Olympic gold medal winning athletes, political and military leaders - for intimate half-hour conversations each week. Adam has written extensively on leadership, management, entrepreneurship, marketing and sales, having authored over 70 articles published in major media outlets including Forbes, Inc. and HuffPost, and has conducted more than 500 one on one interviews with America’s top leaders through his collective media projects. A top leadership speaker, Adam draws upon his insights building and leading businesses and interviewing hundreds of America's top leaders as a top keynote speaker to businesses, universities and non-profit organizations.
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