Damon Pistulka - The Role of Technology in Business Growth

Update: 2024-10-09

Description

BIO: Damon Pistulka, co-founder of Exit Your Way, is known for his hands-on, practical approach to helping business owners maximize value and achieve successful exits.

STORY: Damon explains his journey into understanding technology and its role in business growth.

LEARNING: Stay informed and adapt to changing industry trends. Adapt to changing customer expectations and preferences.

“The simple things we can do with technology today make the customer experience so much better.”

Damon Pistulka

Guest profile

Damon Pistulka, co-founder of Exit Your Way, is known for his hands-on, practical approach to helping business owners maximize value and achieve successful exits. With over 20 years of experience, Damon is dedicated to transforming businesses, enhancing profitability, and helping founders create lasting legacies.

Technology is your business ally

In today’s episode, Damon, who previously appeared on the podcast on episode Ep649: Be Careful of Concentration Risk, discusses the value of technology in running a business. He emphasizes the importance of robotic process automation, CRMs, and AI in modern business operations to accelerate value. In his opinion, technology allows businesses to do simple things that improve customer experience.

Damon highlights a couple of threats businesses face today that could be dealt with by adopting technology.

Rapid innovation is outpacing businesses. Those lagging behind will be overtaken by competitors who have adopted new technologies.
Aging workforce with limited new talent. There’s an aging workforce and limited new talent. As more people retire, businesses increasingly find it hard to replace the retirees with educated and qualified people.
Customers now expect top-tier service levels. Buyers are now demanding businesses provide instant feedback and real-time updates. Businesses that don’t meet customer expectations will not stay competitive.

Using technology to deal with the threats

Damon explains his approach to helping clients develop business growth strategies. He emphasizes the importance of starting with small, manageable changes and gradually scaling up.

Damon cautions entrepreneurs from trying to do it all. Instead, he advises starting with simple, practical changes, often referred to as ‘low-hanging fruits’—these are the tasks or opportunities that are the easiest to achieve and provide the quickest benefits. Gradually, as these are implemented, more complex systems can be adopted.

Seek out experts who can help you advance

Further, Damon advises seeking out experts who can help you advance in the particular area you’re focusing on. Then, work your way up as you get your company, your people, and your supplier base comfortable with these changes.

Get educated before adopting new technology

Damon also underscores the importance of getting educated before adopting new technology. He advises becoming familiar and comfortable enough with it to try it, enabling you to identify potential areas where the technology could help your business.

This approach instills a sense of preparedness and confidence. Then, he suggests hiring an expert to help you implement your new technologies and strategies.

Move fast

Another way to deal with the business threats is to move fast. Damon says that speed sells, and businesses must adopt a speed and innovation culture. This culture is about encouraging and rewarding quick decision-making, rapid implementation of ideas, and a constant drive for improvement. Technology will help you do things in half the time and stay efficient and competitive in your operations, which is a key aspect of this culture.

Just get started

Finally, according to Damon, just get started. Business owners wake up knowing what they have to do every day. By cutting the distractions and focusing on your core strengths and capabilities, you can stay reassured and focused. As Damon says, there’s a lot of time in your day if you throw out the junk.

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