Join the CMA in Nashville

The Cabinet Makers Association considers providing educational opportunities to be one of our most important missions – educating yourself about business acumen, industry trends, and best practices for your craft is an important part of future-proofing your business. We’re happy to be bringing members another chance to come together and learn from thought leaders and peers at our national conference next March to celebrate our 25^th anniversary in downtown Nashville.

As a preview, we’d like to introduce our keynote speakers who will focus on the conference theme of Growth Strategies. Hopefully learning a little about Kevin McNulty and Doug Tatum will inspire you to join us in Nashville for a few days of education and networking.

Kevin McNulty is an internationally-recognized leadership strategist and coach with three decades of experience advising major organizations such as Jack Daniel’s, NASA, and Department of Defense.

Kevin served in the U.S. Air Force for 20 years, most of that time advising commanders, managers, and front-line employees on a host of leadership and people issues. He also served in a diplomatic capacity at the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv, Israel, and later was among a few professionals who became Air Force facilitators for the Franklin-Covey Leadership Center. In this role, he coached and facilitated Covey’s renowned programs, including “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,” “What Matters Most,” and “Principle-Centered Leadership.”

He is the author of The Gap Between Two Worlds, a book on change and transition, and also created several visual teaching models that help audiences grasp concepts around human and workplace dynamics.

After retiring from his military career in 2000, Kevin founded Humadyn-Life Skills Institute, a company that specializes in developing soft skills such as leadership, customer service, team-building, conflict management, mindset/strategic thinking, and more.

Kevin, who has a bachelor’s degree in communications and a master’s degree in business communications/leadership and influence, sent us these thoughts about growth strategy and future-proofing:

I’m a business owner who spends a lot of time thinking about the growth strategy challenge you’ll be focused on at the conference in March.

I recently thought about two conversations that made me really ponder the concept of my business and what it might look like in the years to come.

The first conversation came when I was sitting on a flight next to an older man who was a rabbi. We were talking about something to do with the future when he said, “Kevin, we people make plans, and God just laughs!” We chuckled about it and kept talking.

The second memorable conversation was with a potential coaching client. I asked him about what his future looked like, and after a big belly laugh, he blurted, “How can anyone sanely talk about the future after the last few years and now this wild and crazy economy?”

What’s the collective moral of these two stories?

You’d better keep a good sense of humor, even if it often doesn’t feel like a laughing matter at heart!

But of course, a good sense of humor won’t grow a business, let alone “future-proof” it. So what do we do? The truth is, whether it’s a good, bad, or wild and crazy COVID economy, we should always be “future-proofing,”

There are many practical aspects of preparing for a solid, secure future and healthy growth for your business. My area of expertise is helping clients work on the mindset side of things. Have you ever thought about the importance of future-proofing your vision? Do you have a clear, achievable, and sustainable vision for your company?

I look forward to challenging you to give yourself permission to take the time away from the day-to-day and really think about your business and the exciting things the future can hold. And I promise I won’t just talk about concepts – I’ll also give you tools that can profoundly change how you think and help you come up with solutions for future-proofing your business.

See you in Nashville!

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Doug Tatum is Chairman of Newport LLC, a national partnership of CEOs and senior executives who advise emerging middle market companies and assist private equity firms as they invest in and grow portfolio companies. He is also the Managing Director of TIP Seed Fund LLC, a newly formed seed stage venture capital fund with investments and investment rights in a diversified portfolio of companies.

Doug’s book No Man's Land: Where Growing Companies Fail has won four National Best Business book awards and has been translated into several languages. His insights about the economy and business have been cited in hundreds of media outlets, including Inc. Magazine, The Financial Times, and The New York Times online.

Previously, Doug was Chairman and CEO of Tatum LLC, which grew into a highly respected national professional services firm with 30 offices and more than 1,000 professionals and employees. The company was sold to Spherion in 2010.

He is also a member of the teaching faculty at the Jim Moran College of Entrepreneurship at Florida State, as well as Advisory Board Chairman for the Business Dynamics Research Consortium at the University of Wisconsin – Extension. Its mission is to study exceptional growth companies, the capital markets, and overall business activity to learn more about their impact on employment and economic growth.

Here are a few thoughts Doug shared to give members a preview of his presentation at next year’s conference:

No Man’s Land, the title of my book, refers to the territory of scary transitions and dilemmas businesses encounter as they grow. Rapid growth sounds like a dream outcome, but it can bring plenty of stress and challenges.

When I talk about growing your business, it’s with the understanding that growth is defined in many ways. You can stay small and make money and be extremely satisfied and build wealth doing that. But it's a whole different ball game to go to that next level, so you have to think through what you’re willing to take on and be honest with yourself about why you want to grow. There’s got to be a good reason for it.

You might say, “I want to get bigger and have more revenues,” but you need to realize that you can grow yourself right out of business.

I believe every business owner eventually has to wrestle with the question, “Is it better for me to stay a small giant or try to scale through No Man’s Land?” And deciding to stay small can be one of the wisest, most strategic decisions an entrepreneur can make.

Once you make that call, it’s time to consider the next question: “How do you take the smaller version of your business and maximize its potential and minimize its risk?”

I’ll talk about that more in March, but here are a few thoughts.

Look at your profitability and risk at the client level, with particular attention to your largest clients. They're usually either really, really good to have, or not good to have. There usually isn’t an in-between.

I believe the key to the value of the business is the risk associated with the business, so one of the most important questions to ask yourself as an entrepreneur is, “What are top two risks I face?” You've got to think through those risks and put in backup plans.

All businesses face challenges that are beyond their control. Like many other industries, I know the cabinetry industry has been wrestling with supply chain issues, for example. To survive something like this, you need strong client relationships that enable you to establish realistic client expectations. I don't think there’s a shortcut. Related to that: Your reputation – your brand – future-proofs your business.

In Nashville, I’ll share my experience as a business owner, investor, and longtime student of business growth, and tell you how to:

I look forward to seeing you in March.

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The Cabinet Makers Association has been helping shops grow since 1998. We will celebrate our 25th anniversary March 8-10, 2023 in downtown Nashville. Join us to learn strategies to build your business.

Here is the link to learn more and register:
https://www.cabinetmakers.org/events/cmas-25th-anniversary-national-conference

Amanda Conger, Executive Director
Cabinet Makers Association (CMA)
www.cabinetmakers.org