Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Mac Heebner. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Mac, thanks for joining us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

Our corporate mission started as a personal mantra when I left my prior employer – a small boutique consulting firm. I was faced with figuring out what I wanted to do next. After some focused self-reflection and leaning on the input of close friends and family, I landed on simply wanting to work on challenging projects with smart people for great clients. As it turns out, as we enter our 10th year in business, I’m not the only one with that desire. Our company size has ranged from just me at the beginning to a high point of 38. Our size ebbs and flows based on how much work there is and how hard our pool of teammates wants to work at any given point in time. To some extent that is the nature of consulting. But this variation also can be attributed to the flexibility we allow for all team members.

We have zero growth aspirations which frees us from the pressure of sales and resource utilization. Our business model is simply “do good work and keep in touch”. If we do both of those things consistently well, the phone continues to ring with opportunities.

So our mission is relatively simple with a personal origin and has resulted in a thriving small business.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I am a consultant, executive coach and small business owner who has the great fortune of leading an amazing We are a professional services organization that provides management consulting and executive coaching services. We help client organizations – large and small – effectively address operational challenges they are facing or undertaking. These challenges can range from driving complex intiatives such as a large scale transformational change, a post-merger integration, or a response to evolving compliance requirements to operational strategy development like evaluating and enhancing existing operational processes and structures to better meet the needs of the organization.

Our approach in all cases is very human centered. We approach our consulting assignments much like we approach executive coaching. We listen, we don’t assume we know more than the client, we ask questions, and we process what we’ve heard. Then we roll our sleeves up and partner with client stakeholders to develop a solution that draws upon our experience and objectivity, accounts for the client culture and maturity, and effectively meets the need.

We do not approach our work or our clients with a brand, a model, and a preconceived notion of what will work. We don’t produce and then leave our clients with a bunch of slides and a fancy solution that will ultimately sit on the shelf and collect dust. Our most successful assignments are those done behind the scenes in partnership with key client resources and a look of surprise by all at the end when, as we depart, they realize we were consultants in the first place.

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

There is so much here. I’m standing on the advice, counsel, insight and input of many mentors, advisors, friends, former bosses and clients.

First bit of advice, identify a personal board of advisors that are willing to give you an honest assessment and feedback on your questions, concerns, performance and vision. Make sure this group is willing to share the bad and ugly along with the good.

Second, listen intently to your team. Consider what you hear. Acknowledge and appreciate the input. Be clear about your next steps and/or decision.

Third – most important – be transparent in all things. Relationships, whether social, romantic or professional, are built on trust. Trust is the foundation from which all of the contributors to high morale and successful management are born.

Fourth – a close second most important – have the hard conversation. Time, money, energy and relationships all suffer from avoiding or an unwillingness to be open, honest and direct. We usually over-estimate the discomfort and under-estimate the appreciation of a direct, objective and unemotional conversation.

How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?

While a small handful of us maintain a relatively active social media presence (LinkedIn, etc…) and we’ve invested as a company in some electronic collateral, the primary methods we use to keep in touch are direct and personal. Our sales pitch and driver of brand loyalty is the quality and value of our work. Keeping in touch is what keeps us top of mind over time and is biased toward building a long-term, personal relationships with our clients. Keeping in touch for us is about the long game. Here is an excerpt from an email I sent to our team that has since been memorialized and is part of our on-boarding packet for new hires (note – it was written in the early COVID years hence some of the wording):

“… Many of us seem to get hung up on keeping in touch and what that should look like. The simple answer is that it should look like whatever you’re comfortable with. It can be a text, a call, a socially responsible, in-person cocktail, a video session. It can be formally scheduled or ad hoc. It can be social or professional. …or some combination of the above. You can ask about their family, talk about the weather, ask about how work is going, ask about their health, or <insert something you’re curious about here>. Regardless of your method, your mode or your topic of conversation, the objective is the same. It is not to peddle our services. It is to make and maintain contact so that when they or their colleague has a need, their positive experience with you is top-of-mind and you’re an easy call to make. …”

Result: my phone keeps ringing with client requests on the other end.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.TruSourceGroup.com
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/trusource-consulting-group/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@trusourceconsultinggroup2404

Image Credits
Jeff Burke