A case for building engines

Last week, I had a conversation with a sector leader of a professional services firm. Talented individual. Sharp leader.

When the conversation came to accelerating the growth of the sector, the leader said the plan was to hire more people. More people = more production = growth.

At face value, that seems reasonable. But when you look behind the curtain and start to poke around, I see some holes. If the current partners (the base) aren't producing at the level you'd like, why is adding more going to solve the issue?

More people and more revenue don't equate to better, more efficient, more sustainable results.

So I challenged the leader...

"What if you weren't allowed to hire another person? What would you do to enable the growth you're looking for?"

This is where engines come into play.

Why engines matter

Think of engines as defined and predictable systems or processes that are running within an organization at all times. Engines matter because they create more predictable progress toward critical goals. They reduce variables and chance so you can go from hoping things occur to ensuring they will.

Engines can be built with technology (but don't have to be), and they automate manual tasks or define standardized ways of doing things that allow people to do things at a new scale or with a new level of consistency.

Effective engines are built WITH PEOPLE, FOR PEOPLE, and IN SPITE OF PEOPLE.

WITH PEOPLE

Engines should be built WITH PEOPLE so that we add structure and routine to the ways we collaborate with one another.

Example: My marketing partner and I meet weekly on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

The primary purpose behind those meetings is for him to interview me to understand my ideas and the "isms" I write about here and on LinkedIn. Then, we work together to turn those interviews into the many LinkedIn posts and newsletters you read here.

The structure and cadence are the engine of my entire content strategy. It's been built and it continues to run on a weekly basis, resulting in the things you see me sharing.

FOR PEOPLE

Engines should be built FOR PEOPLE so that we automate (or have organizational departments do) tasks that allow people to work on their highest and best value to the organization.

Example: I once spoke to a partner at a firm I'm advising.

He said, "I made $600k this morning."

He shared that he spent the majority of his morning processing 125 bills for $600k.

My response: "No, you didn’t make $600k (you actually lost $5k in client revenue). You processed the paperwork for $600k of work already completed."

He equated revenue with value—but he wasn’t generating new value. He was moving paper.

This is where I'd build an engine. What would it take to build a system that could be managed by another team or department to allow a partner-level person to focus on their highest and best value to the organization?

IN SPITE OF PEOPLE

Engines should be built IN SPITE OF PEOPLE so that people (and their imperfections, tendencies, or shortcomings) don’t allow effective and important processes to be ignored or stopped.

Example: At the partner level, individuals are faced with numerous responsibilities. Selling, producing, billing, developing people, etc.

Without engines, it's possible that one (or multiple) of those balls can get dropped due to limited capacity, ability, or energy. But what if each of those things is important to the firm's strategy?

That's why things like sales engines are built to facilitate automatic outreach on a partner's behalf. No matter if the partner inputs their effort into selling or not, some form of outreach is happening on a systematic basis.

Now, their personalized input is a bonus instead of the whole system depending on it.

How to start building effective engines

Let's go back to this example — the leader I've challenged to build a growth strategy without hiring anyone else. Here's how they could design an engine for growth:

Step 1: Talk about it.

You can’t fix what people won’t talk about.

Start naming what’s broken—or at least what’s insufficient. If growth isn’t where it should be, say it. If sales depend on a handful of rainmakers, say it. If there's a base of people who need to produce more, call it out.

Normalize the idea that “what got us here won’t get us there.”

The goal here is to make the invisible visible. Because until you do, no one’s going to take action.

Step 2: Align on the gap.

Once the current reality is on the table, the next step is to get agreement that it’s not good enough. This can be the hardest part—especially with seasoned professionals who’ve been rewarded for playing a certain way. But leadership means challenging comfort zones.

You’ve got to ask: Are we okay with the current state? Is it delivering the results we want—or just the ones we’ve learned to accept?

In this example, that means aligning on the fact that the strategy we've been using isn't leading to the results we're seeking. A new one is needed. If you can't get people to align on the need for something different, it won't work.

Step 3: Co-create the path forward.

Next, we've got to define what great actually looks like. Not aspiration fluff, but measurable, observable performance. If this firm needs to grow without hiring more people, a sales engine could be the thing that enables the current team to achieve more.

What would great look like? Define it clearly.
Where are we currently at, and what will it take to close the gap? (without defaulting to the "easy" or recurring answer, like hiring more people)
How do we make it repeatable and predictable?
What's the potential ROI?

This is your chance to start with a blank whiteboard and co-create a solution. When leaders feel like they have input and ownership, it enables greater speed. Then it's time to get to work building and implementing what you've designed.

Engines take organizations to the next level

In most firms, it's talented people who enable an organization's first stage of growth. For the organization to mature and start to build scale, engines are needed to do things FOR, WITH, and IN SPITE OF people.

As engines start to get designed, built, and implemented (and intentionally tied together with other engines), that's where meaningful and sustainable growth happens.

Here's a thought exercise for this week...

Where are you relying on manual input to drive progress toward critical goals?

What would an engine look like that would enable the results you are looking for in a more systematic and predictable way?

That's your outline for an engine you need to build.

This is the type of conversation I facilitate for my advisory clients and for firms that have brought me in for their Partner retreats or executive leadership meetings. I use my experience and success to challenge leaders and leadership teams to think differently about their growth and scaling journey to enable differentiated results.

If you'd like to chat about how I might assist in your firm's growth journey, you can book a 30-minute call on my calendar here.

With intention,
Alan D Whitman