Peter J. Boni: Part 2 of an interview by Bob Morris

Boni 1Peter J. Boni has advanced by taking on the tough assignments of repositioning organizations that had run aground. During his career, he added nearly $5 billion of value as a science and technology CEO (public, private, IPO), consultant, director, and private equity/venture capital investor. His firms were recognized on the Inc. 500, Software 100, Fast 50 and Fortune 1000 several times.

He was twice cited in Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year competition, most recently in 2011 as Master Entrepreneur in Philadelphia. Boni has commentated on CNBC, Fox Business, and The Street.com and has been featured in The Wall Street Journal and Investor Business Daily. His book, All Hands On Deck: Navigating Your Team Through Crises, Getting Your Organization Unstuck, and Emerging Victorious, was published by Career Press (June 2015)

In addition to a BA from University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Boni earned a Rice Paddy MBA in leadership through adversity on a “full scholarship,” courtesy of Uncle Sam. A decorated military veteran, he spent 15 months in combat as a special operations infantry officer.

Today, as Managing Principal for his consulting firm, Kedgeway, Boni serves as Vice Chairman of The Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE), which has brought entrepreneurship training to 600,000 poor, inner city youth in 21 U.S. states and nine countries. He is founding co-chairman of its Philadelphia branch.

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Morris: When and why did you decide to write All Hands on Deck?

Boni: By the mid-1980s, I had moved from Fortune 500 executive to high tech CEO by tackling tough assignments and succeeding. I read a best seller, What They Don’t Teach You at Harvard Business School: Notes from a Street-Smart Executive, written by Mark H. McCormack, featured 14 things organized in three sections, People, Negotiating and Running a Business, that he said that they don’t teach at HBS that would accelerate a career.

McCormick had never even attended Harvard Business School. Rather, he was a Yale law graduate who had founded a highly successful sports marketing company, International Management Group. Among his early clients were Arnold Palmer and Gary Player. He used the lessons of his real life to promote the notion that the 3% who have clearly written goals will out-earn by 10X the 97% who don’t take the time to think their goals through and write them down. His practical advice ranged from how to read people, making the right first impression, effective negotiations, taking the leading edge to run meeting, making friends and gaining international experience…all designed to further advance a person’s achievements, and, therefore, better position his or her career for further growth.

My observation was then, and is now, that a major, multi-chapter Section 4 was missing. It could be a book all by itself. Take an troubled or dysfunctional unit, team, department, office or whatever…one that has run aground and is stuck in the mud for whatever the reason… get it off the ground and out of the mud (“kedge off,” in sail boating terms) so it can safely “sail” again and turn it into something. Recognition and rewards will come more quickly to one’s career and even allow someone without the pedigree and credentials of an Ivy League education or MBA to advance beyond, even leapfrog, the individual with a superior educational pedigree and an old boy’s network. It was working for me.

As I progressed with the thrills of victory and the agonies of defeat in my career, I began to label and refine my approach with the notion that it would make an interesting book one day. That day has come. I announced my retirement as CEO of Safeguard Scientifics in 2013 and formed Kedgeway as a platform to consult, speak, teach, invest and direct my philanthropy. Kedgeway provides guidance and training to avoid, anticipate or overcome obstacles and advance…your organization and your career.

My plan to write a book moved from the back of my mind to the forefront of my activity. Now, here we are with All Hands on Deck: Navigating Your Team Through Crises, Getting Your Organization Unstuck, and Emerging Victorious.

All the pundits have written that to get to the top of your field, one needs to study the right thing at the right school and have the right network. In reality, only 5% of the college educated population has that pedigree. And less than half of them reach the top of their fields. The pundits will have you believe that the deck is stacked against 97% of us.

I’ve got another notion on how to get to the top. Disruption creates 10X the career opportunities to advance. Shakespeare said “When the sea was calm, all boats alike show’d mastership at floating.” In what boat do you want to sail? The tested ship, of course. Become the tested ship and advance.

Last year set a six-year record for turnover at the top, not only inside 25% of the Fortune 500, but in 1300+ organizations (both profit and non-profit) to boot. Ask the boards of JC Penney, Target, eBay, Mattel, McDonalds, Credit Suisse, AMD, The GAP, and countless others what credentials they’re seeking for their top dogs. You’ll hear a lot less about credentials and pedigree and a lot more about the ability to lead through difficulty.

I’m tired of reading academic diatribes written by consultants, educators, and journalists who do a pretty good job of “talking the talk.” Where do you want to do for advice? Someone who has written a case study or someone who has lived it? My book is a practical “how to” handbook written by a practitioner who has walked the walk.

Morris: To what extent (if any) does the book in final form differ significantly from what you originally envisioned?

Boni: My first vision of the book included many of my personal anecdotal stories. As I got started, I realized that adding Section 3, featuring memoir-style case studies of real people who showed the ABCs in Action in varying fields, would be far more memorable to convey these principles with greater credibility.

Morris: You devote the first chapter to Captain Josiah Nickerson Knowles whom you characterize as “the greatest captain of them all.” Why do you hold him in such high regard?

Boni: The 19th century press characterized Captain Josiah Nickerson Knowles as “the greatest captain of them all.” He was held in high regard by society overall. Captain Knowles practiced a timeless technique of leadership. He practiced the “ABCs to Advance” and led his passengers and crew to survival AND rescue. Shipwrecks were known to be deadly in the 16th through the 19thcenturies. Aren’t they still? To be both shipwrecked and marooned on a wrongly-charted and deserted island in the middle of nowhere in the Pacific Ocean and live to tell about it was no small feat.

Morris: What are the most valuable business lessons to be learned from him?

Boni: The Captain was highly selective. Only the very best could be hired to serve on his crew. And he trained the daylights out of them. They were a competent and professional force. Who do you want on your team when the chips are down? The best, or course.

After achieving the impossible, Captain Knowles, his crew and many of his passengers advanced throughout their careers as a result of the achievements stemming from the shipwreck of Wild Wave. Their story of survival and rescue demonstrated the ABCs in Action long before organizational psychologists ever studied about the leadership dynamics of high performance teams and put labels to them.

Fundamentals are timeless and ring true time and time again.

Morris: When an organization encounters (shall we say) especially rough waters, why does “competition for the captain’s role thin out”?

Boni: Not everyone has the ambition or guts to take on the challenge of dealing with difficulty. It’s much easier and less risky to take a conventional or easier path, especially for those with a pedigree. Many prefer to let their inside track carry them. Hence, competition thins out.

The truth is that it’s tough out there. Storm clouds and rough waters can come about in a heartbeat. Those who can show that they’ve been able to surmount difficulty are the ones who really have the advancement edge, with or without a pedigree. Or they can set their pedigree apart.

Morris: You introduce a three-phase strategy, “The ABCs to Advance.” What are its core principles?

Boni: The driving premise behind All Hands on Deck is very simple. Disruption, when something goes awry, creates 10X the career opportunity to advance, if someone has the ambition, the guts and the knowhow.

While I encourage the ambition and the guts, I’ve packaged the knowhow in the form of the ABCs to Advance to lead an organization, department, team, or you name it out of a jam. If practiced early enough, the steps will also serve to keep an organization out of a jam.

Morris: What are the most important dos and don’ts to keep in mind when beginning each of the three phases? First, Hatch the Plan

Boni: You’ll need the people who will execute the plan to be fully supportive of the plan. Be collaborative.

Ask questions and listen. While you’re at it, Ask for help. You’ll likely get it.

Base the plan on what you hear and see. Use your background and experience to base it also on what you don’t hear and see.

Challenge the sacred cows or status quo. They’re often the impediments to forward progress.

Share the vision of the resulting game plan to generate a collective energy. You can’t execute it alone.

Morris: Next, Kick Off the Plan

Boni: Get your team fully aligned as you kick off the game plan:

Act boldly to kick off the plan. Anytime you’re tentative, you’ll likely get hurt.

Build on the strengths that you find rather than lament your weaknesses.

Control through active measurement of the things that matter. Make them highly visible.

Streamline the activity schedule around a few goals to focus the energy and resources around a few critical success factors.

Morris: Finally, Execute the plan

Boni: Execute to achieve noteworthy results and overcome the obstacles you find along the way.

Assert yourself at the focal point

Borrow from alliances and partnerships. Don’t try to do everything yourself.

Communicate (heck, over-communicate) to get/stay on track. Be transparent on what’s working and where you need improvement.

Spread the rewards of wealth and recognition when things break your way. Reinforce behavior. Avoid taking an individual bow.

Morris: Which of the three phases seems to be most difficult to complete? Why?

Boni: A thoughtful plan, well executed by passionate, talented and committed people, generally produces rewards.

A bad plan that is well executed is just as bad as a great plan that is poorly executed. The plan doesn’t have to be perfect. An imperfect plan that is well executed is superior to a better plan next year. Mid-point corrections can always improve the plan but you can’t wait for perfection. That’s especially true when the chips are down. The execution will be off the mark if the resources and the people aren’t properly aligned. Everyone needs to be rowing in the same direction.

You need all three…support, alignment, and execution that has both follow up and follow through. It’s not just one or two. It’s all three.

Morris: Section III consists of six stories of the ABCs to Advance. In each, there is a severe organizational crisis of some kind. Briefly, what were the nature and extent of each and how was the given crisis resolved? First, Safeguard Scientifics (NYSE: SFE):

Boni: Safeguard’s first attempt to rebound its venture capital-like business from the burst of the internet bubble left is debt-ridden, obsolete and near ruin. I altered the business model, applied a new strategy, maneuvered during the financial crises and rallied a team around the game plan. The company now has achieved record net cash, a paid-off debt, a stock that reached a decade high, and an investment track record that rivals venture capitals’ top-tier.

Morris: Maidenform

Boni: Dorvin D. Lively, a man from a small, Arkansas farming family who was encouraged as a youth to do anything he set his mind to, challenged the sacred cows to improve business practices and competitive manufacturing methods. He steered the venerable consumer products company from bankruptcy through a successful IPO. The company was acquired by HanesBrands for a huge premium.

Morris: Advanced BioHealing (ABH)

Boni: By restarting a failed business at ABH, Kevin L. Rakin used his knowledge of venture capital and regenerative medicine and built an incredibly high performance team. On route to an IPO with $200 million of revenue, the firm was acquired for a windfall.

Morris: The Lahey Clinic

Boni: The Clinic had become rudderless until Dr. David M. Barrett, who was disappointed to be passed over for the top job at the Mayo Clinic, found his life’s work. It was in the midst of a severe cash crunch as a result of a botched merger. Barrett focused the organization, raised the profile of the Clinic, made inroads into the Boston community and turned the Clinic into a $4 billion enterprise (more than a three-fold increase).

Morris: TechAmerica

Boni: Shawn K. Osborne transformed the technology industry’s largest trade association that suffered from misalignment and defection and was on the edge of bankruptcy. Through restructuring and a merger, the organization rebounded and continues to serve the technology industry’s players in both public policy & advocacy and business networking & information.

Morris: Finally, the University of Arizona

Boni: Stagnation threatened the future of the University of Arizona. President Ann Weaver Hart set a “Never Settle” strategic plan in place to bring the University into the twenty-first century.

Morris: For about 30 years, it has been my great pleasure as well as privilege to work closely with the owner/CEOs of hundreds of small companies, those with $20-million or less in annual sales. In your opinion, of all the material you provide in All Hands on Deck, which do you think will be of greatest value to leaders in small companies? Please explain.

Boni: Passion, focus and people make all the difference. First, passion around a meaningful value proposition. Second, focus on just a couple of things with a game plan that delivers that value proposition to its constituents. And third, high quality people that share the passion that can execute the game plan.

Once the owners and CEOs of small businesses embrace the fact that they can’t do everything alone, that they need to share responsibility and authority with a skilled crew, they more they will achieve. Passion, focus and people. Perhaps I should have started with “people.”

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To read Part 1, please click here.

Peter cordially invites you to check out the resources at his Kedgeway website by clicking here.

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