Sarah E. Brown - Lead Upwards

10 PART V: PROVING, SUSTAINING, AND EXPANDING YOUR IMPACT AS A LEADER CHAPTER EIGHTEEN: Measuring Success: How to Know If Things Are Working WHO CARES ABOUT LEADING AND LAGGING INDICATORS? UNDERSTANDING THE METRICS THAT SET UP YOUR DEPARTMENT FOR SUCCESS FOCUS ON MEASURES THAT SHOW OUTCOMES VS. ACTIVITY GETTING COMFORTABLE WITH QUANTITATIVE MEASUREMENT TOOLS HOW THE BOARD THINKS ABOUT YOUR INDICATORS MEASURE WHAT COUNTS AT A REGULAR CADENCE OTHER “SUCCESS” MEASURES LETTING LEADING INDICATORS GUIDE YOUR EARLY‐STAGE STARTUP GROWTH RAND FISHKIN'S ADVICE FOR METRICS: KEEP IT SIMPLE HOW TO WORK WITH YOUR CEO ON MEASURING YOUR PERFORMANCE BUILDING ACCOUNTABILITY INTO YOUR TEAM REPORTING CHAPTER NINETEEN: Communicating Your Results to Your CFO, CEO, Company, and Board WHY BOARD MEETINGS EXIST (AND NO, THEY'RE NOT JUST TO TORTURE STARTUP FOUNDERS AND EXECUTIVES!) COMMUNICATING AT THE BOARD LEVEL COMMUNICATING AT THE “ALTITUDE” OF THE BOARD HOW IS YOUR BUSINESS PERFORMING WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF THE GREATER MARKET (OR THE VC'S PORTFOLIO?) DO YOUR HOMEWORK BUILD RELATIONSHIPS WITH THE BOARD PRIOR TO YOUR FIRST MEETING TAKING A STORYTELLING APPROACH TO BOARD PRESENTATIONS COMMUNICATE WITH YOUR DEPARTMENT TEAM TO GET WHAT YOU NEED FROM THEM CREATING YOUR BOARD SLIDES: THINK AT A HIGH ALTITUDE HOW TO CREATE YOUR BOARD SLIDES EXAMPLE DEPARTMENT OKR SNAPSHOT SLIDE REPORTING RESULTS WITH R/Y/G OTHER TYPES OF SLIDES TO INCLUDE IN YOUR BOARD DECK THE PURPOSE OF YOUR APPENDIX AND/OR PRE‐READ MATERIAL TIP: ENSURE EVERY SLIDE HAS A NARRATIVE‐DRIVEN TITLE PRESENTATION TIPS: BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER THE BOARD MEETING CHAPTER TWENTY: Mentorship: How to Further Grow Your Career by Networking and Giving Back MENTORSHIP POWERS THE STARTUP ECOSYSTEM MENTORSHIP'S ROLE IN SUPPORTING DEVELOPING LEADERS MENTORSHIP IS ABOUT KNOWLEDGE AND CHEMISTRY MENTORS DON'T HAVE TO KNOW ALL OF THE ANSWERS ENLISTING YOUR OWN MENTORS: DEVELOPING A GROUP OF PERSONAL ADVISORS MENTORS CARE ABOUT YOU PERSONALLY AND CAN KEEP YOUR PRIORITIES STRAIGHT SEEK MENTORSHIP THAT PROMOTES EQUALITY SIGN UP TO MENTOR AT AN ACCELERATOR MENTOR THROUGH AN OFFICIAL ORGANIZATION FIND COMMUNITY AND SHARE MUTUAL SUPPORT AS A “PEER MENTOR” AFFINITY ORGANIZATIONS OTHER TYPES OF SUPPORT: SPONSORSHIP AND COACHING DON'T DISCOUNT INFORMAL MENTORSHIP TAKE MENTORSHIP TO THE NEXT LEVEL: SCALE YOUR IMPACT

11 AFTERWORD

12 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

13 ABOUT THE AUTHOR

14 INDEX

15 End User License Agreement

1 Cover Page

2 Title Page SARAH E. BROWN

3 Copyright Copyright © 2022 by Sarah E. Brown. All rights reserved. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey. Published simultaneously in Canada. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as permitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per‐copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750‐8400, fax (978) 750‐4470, or on the web at www.copyright.com . Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, (201) 748‐6011, fax (201) 748‐6008, or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permission . Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: While the publisher and author have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales representatives or written sales materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult with a professional where appropriate. Further, readers should be aware that websites listed in this work may have changed or disappeared between when this work was written and when it is read. Neither the publisher nor authors shall be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damages, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential, or other damages. For general information on our other products and services or for technical support, please contact our Customer Care Department within the United States at (800) 762‐2974, outside the United States at (317) 572‐3993 or fax (317) 572‐4002. Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic formats. For more information about Wiley products, visit our web site at www.wiley.com . Library of Congress Cataloging‐in‐Publication Data is Available: ISBN 9781119833352 (Hardback) ISBN 9781119833376 (ePDF) ISBN 9781119833369 (ePub) Cover Design: PAUL MCCARTHY

4 Dedication Dedicated to Erin Rand, Colleen Blake, and Matt Harada, whose tremendous leadership examples, support, and friendship have profoundly impacted my career trajectory. Also, in memory of my late grandmother Zelda Lipman, who taught me the power of lifelong learning and unconditionally believing in people, including oneself .

5 Introduction: Why Startup Leadership Matters at Every Level

6 Table of Contents

7 Begin Reading

8 AFTERWORD

9 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

10 ABOUT THE AUTHOR

11 INDEX

12 WILEY END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT

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