Monte Wyatt is the CEO of Adding ZEROS and Best-Selling Author of “Pulling Profits Out of a Hat.” Monte is among the top executive coaches and facilitators in the realm of organizational development and holds over 25 years of remarkable leadership, business, and personal development experience. Monte’s experience includes time as CEO, an executive leadership coach and facilitator, in marketing management, sales management, sales training and in sales.
AddingZEROS was founded by Monte in 2019. While launching his best-selling (Wall Street Journal and USA Today) book “Pulling Profits Out of a Hat.” AddingZEROS helps mid-market (revenue from $10million to $1billion) companies bring clarity to how they lead and manage their organizations. We guide trainers, coaches, consultants, HR professionals, and executive teams worldwide to drive greater alignment, engagement, culture, and results-oriented outcomes.
In a Conversation with Monte Wyatt, CEO of AddingZEROS
What factors influenced or motivated you to start this venture?
Over the past few years, we have noticed a vast need for team development, organizational discipline, and executive engagement. There certainly is a need for employee engagement; we have seen that there is a gap in executive engagement. We focus on developing the executive team to be the best they can be. When the executive team is working at a high-performance level, they train and motivate their team to function the same.
How do you charge for your services?
Our process helps us be a long-term 10x+ investment for our clients who are in mid-market organizations. Our facilitators work with clients ranging from several months to several years because of our strong relationships and reliable results. I have consistently been following the AddingZEROS process for over 17 years and my average ongoing clients have used my services between 4 and 9 years.
What do you think are the best skills that you bring to your business congruency?
I firmly believe I must do for myself and my business what I teach my clients and facilitators. Often in management it is “do as I say,” instead of “do what I do.” People do what people see. I choose to influence through congruent leadership.
What do you feel are the reasons behind your company’s reputation?
We believe in focusing on Strategic Thinking and Execution Planning. Strategic planning no longer works. In strategic planning you go away for a couple day retreat, play golf, get ideas on the walls, dream a little, and someone types up the notes. Later, the notebook remains on your shelves because you get back to work and focus on what is right in front of you. That’s how strategic planning normally looks.
On the other hand, Strategic Thinking and Execution Planning takes a different approach. We concentrate on the big picture, choosing our direction and priorities, while discussing what needs to be accomplished and how we will get there.
Our process and approach creates alignment, transparent communication, and complete team engagement to ensure implementation and execution of our priorities.
Imagine having your whole executive team clearly aligned and supporting your organization’s long-term success and agreed upon priorities? Everything starts with the executive team, then cascades throughout the entire company.
What’s so different about AddingZEROS’ training and why should someone participate?
The AddingZEROS approach concentrates on two important areas, Organizational Development and Executive Development. This is how we create an impact on the organizations and the executives with whom we work. Organizational Development incorporates Five Disciplines that every organization must possess. Executive Development concentrates on individual and team discipline. We drive a development approach for both organizations and executives that builds discipline for focus and success.
Through this approach, we add zeros in every aspect of an organization, for this reason, our company is named AddingZEROS. We add zeros not just in revenue and profit, but engagement, employee acquisition and retention, customer acquisition and retention, efficiencies and effectiveness, and ultimately community involvement.
How can 5 Disciplines help organizations grow exponentially?
We define a great business as one that is sustainable, predictable, stable, consistent, and has an emotional connection.
To achieve this definition, organizations must also satisfy Five Constituents: 1) the Company, 2) the Customer, 3) the Team, 4) the Stakeholders, and 5) the Communities they do business in.
There are 5 Disciplines that every business must have to be successful while satisfying its constituents. The 5 Disciplines are:
1) Strategy, 2) Business Development, 3) People, 4) Execution, and 5) Mission.
The Strategy Discipline defines how we will win. Every team member should know what our strategy is. If you can’t state the strategy clearly in one sentence, it is not clear enough. Everyone must know their role and expectations to support your organization’s direction. When we have discipline in following and fulfilling our strategy, we build long term stability.
The Business Development Discipline keeps focus on how we attract, gain, and retain our clients. Who are we attracting? What are we promising them? How are we meeting the demands to retain our customers? How are we managing our client relationships for the long term? Each of these questions need to be answered and each of our team members are part of business development, whether they realize it or not. Staying disciplined in business development generates predictability for future success.
The People Discipline aims to strengthen and develop our team members to be the best they can be for their current and future role in our organization. We believe that everyone in an organization can and should be a leader. Each organization must have ongoing leadership development to ensure we are building strong leaders for the future. Developing our people builds stability inside and outside your team.
The Execution Discipline is how we get things done or accomplished. It includes our ways of working, our best practices, and our processes. We must lead people and manage processes. Execution is normally where organizations fall down. When we manage our processes, we build consistency for our clients and team members.
The Mission Discipline is not about a mission statement. It is about why we do what we do and our organizational behaviors. Each organization must intentionally choose and build their culture. Defined behavioral core values should be taught, discussed and lived out on a daily basis. The discipline of mission creates an emotional connection.
What is the USP of your company? What makes AddingZEROS different from its competition?
We have a threefold brand promise –
1) Advance your career
2) Transform your company
3) Achieve incredible results
When your executive team develops and makes progress, your organization grows. It exerts organizational discipline, focus, and ongoing executive development to create a comprehensive long-term business. Our facilitators are experience and trained to fulfil our brand promise and help executives grow in their leadership and management skillsets.
Both Leadership and Management are needed today more than ever before. They are two different actions and behaviors. At AddingZEROS, we define leadership as influence through passion and focus. Our definition of management is creating competent and productive team members. A manager is responsible for ensuring that their team is skilled in their respective function and capable of completing their responsibilities efficiently. Leadership and Management are learnable skills.
We bring awareness, education, implementation, and discipline to our clients to help them be the best leaders and managers they can be.
As a question on sustainability, where do you see your company a couple of years from now?
Our 10-year goal is to influence and have impact on 1,000,000 executives by assisting them in being better leaders and managers. In the next three years, we will focus on training facilitators and executives globally to ensure we have this impact.
What are your messages for budding entrepreneurs/young generation?
I want to say the most important aspect of life is learning. The more you learn, the easier and more prosperous your job gets. The more you learn and execute knowledge in your work, the easier your success and achievement become. Learn how to lead, learn how to think, learn how to handle, conduct, and control yourself, your work approach, and processes. Your future self will appreciate you with a bright smile.