Biography
Jim McKean is an independent management consultant, entrepreneur, strategist, and technologist based in Bloomington, Indiana. He has extensive experience helping small and mid-sized organizations identify and pursue strategic options in markets, technologies, products, and services. He is known for his facilitation skills and his ability to dive deeply into organizations to determine their sources of value creation and dysfunction.
Jim is a trusted adviser to company leaders and owners. He is skilled at helping leaders map new directions, at designing measurement systems to track progress against goals, identifying key leading indicators to increase the probability of success, and conducting risk analysis to lower the probability of failures in human and technical systems.
He earned his M.B.A. from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business in Decision Information Sciences and Management. He completed the Six Sigma Belt training at Motorola University in Chicago and is a certified practitioner of the Franklin Covey 6 Disciplines of Execution and Vital Smarts Crucial Conversations. As Manager of Research for the IU Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Jim led dozens of management consulting projects for privately held companies in the Midwest, including manufacturers, professional service companies, distributors and transport companies. In addition to founding McKean and Co, he has served as an information technology executive, a partner in a career services start up, an executive coach and writer.
Download Jim's resume.
Jim McKean is a skilled presenter. Expect a lively conversation including audience interaction.
Topics
Seven signs that it may be time to rethink your business
Jim tells the inside stories of businesses that have lost their way and need to find a path out of the wilderness. He proposes 4 things that any business leader can do to find their way back.
Why strategic plans fail (and what to do about it)
Everyone knows that most strategic plans end up in a three-ring binder on a shelf. Jim talks about why that happens and what you can do about it. Listeners will learn about a simple technique that can shift your long range plan from a document to real action.
The revolution taking place in technology today and how it can change everything for the small business
The newest start ups have a secrets – they have learned to spin up their businesses for much, much less money in computers, phones, and enterprise software. Learn how the cloud has given these new companies a head start and how that may threaten traditional businesses if they don't catch up.
Other topics include:
Managing introverts in the workplace
Helping your employees attain their goals
How (and why) to set up an advisory board
The pluses and minuses of adding real talent to your management team
A simple performance scorecard that can change your company
The entrepreneur or the professional manager – which does your company need?
Managing the multi-generational workplace
