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D-Players: The Hidden Cost of Culture Killers in Your Organization

Posted on | Author Gary Pica

Not everyone in your organization will be an A-Player. You’re going to have B-Players, C-Players, and, unfortunately, even D-Players. Holding on to these D-Players for too long can have a severe negative impact on your organization.

There are different types of D-Players; one is more dangerous than the other. When most people think of a D-Player, they imagine an underperformer. Fortunately, this type of team member is usually a more straightforward fix. You can address their performance by reviewing their role, ensuring they receive proper training, and giving them a plan to correct their performance within 60 days. With the right tools, you can often help them improve to at least a C-Player or even a B-Player.

More challenging, however, is the D-Player, who’s a high performer but a poor cultural fit. To me, this is the true definition of a D-Player, and it’s much harder to manage. This could be a tech with excellent skills or a salesperson who consistently hits targets but creates issues with team members. No one wants to work with them, and they repeatedly violate your core values.

Many leaders hold on to these individuals for far too long. I’ve been guilty of this myself because high performers are difficult to replace. I call these people “culture killers.” Your entire team sees that you’re allowing their behavior to continue unchecked.

This is a challenging situation, but I’ve seen it in my own business and the experiences of many people I’ve coached over the years. You cannot allow these D-Players to remain on your team. While you can often help a poor performer improve, fixing a bad cultural fit is almost impossible. You might have a conversation with them, and things may improve briefly, but the issues will inevitably resurface.

If you have a D-Player on your team, consider letting them go sooner rather than later. If you’re worried about the additional burden this might place on your team, don’t be. They will step up! With the D-Player gone, the mood will change for the better, and you’ll see your team members transform and pick up the slack until you find someone who’s a better fit.

When you do make this decision, it’s important to apologize to your team for allowing someone who didn’t embody your core values to remain. By doing so, you send a clear message that you value your team and the culture you are all working to build.

Letting people go is never fun or easy. But keeping D-Players longer than you should negatively affects everything in your organization and will eventually impact your customers.

This is a hard lesson to learn but an essential one.

The Small Box Strategy: Setting Clear Roles for Employee Success

Posted on | Author Gary Pica

Only certain people are the right fit for your team. This is something most business owners come to realize early on. Sometimes, the situation gets so challenging that you’d consider replacing certain team members if a better candidate came along. You know exactly what I mean if you chuckled at that!

Many of us have had team members with potential but, for some reason, can’t seem to achieve consistent results. They’re good people with solid skills, but despite their efforts, they’re not where they should be.

The only way to help them improve is to track their results and regularly review their performance. Every quarter, it’s essential to evaluate each team member. You can do this with a scoring system that covers skills, culture, metrics, and other relevant factors, or you might prefer a force-ranking method.

Once you’ve identified those with low scores, it’s time to make a plan. Start by asking, “Is the issue one of performance?” If it’s performance — meaning they just aren’t delivering — ask yourself, “Is it all on them, or is part of it on me?” Although it may be hard to admit, we, as leaders, are sometimes part of the problem.

Have you put them in a position to succeed? Take a closer look at their role — is it well-defined? Do they have clear metrics that show them what success looks like? Is there adequate training and documentation on how to do their job effectively? In other words, have you provided them with the tools and structure they need to thrive? As their leader, it’s your responsibility to do everything you can to set them up for success.

It might not always seem this way, but every employee wants to succeed. Often, success can be a murky concept — and that’s on us. When roles aren’t well-defined, employees may feel like they’re working hard with good intentions, yet we’re still unsatisfied with their performance. For instance, this could apply to a project engineer who meets billable hours targets but faces two escalations a day or to a support desk resource who manages 10-12 open tickets but hasn’t received training on effectively reducing ticket touches. It’s our job to identify the disconnect and see if we can help them bridge it.

While not everyone may be your ideal employee, the truth is that every employee in your company matters. If someone is struggling, give them a well-defined role — a “small box” — with clear expectations for success. If they don’t succeed within that structure, you’ll know you did everything possible to help them thrive.

Lessons in Delegation: What I Wish I Had Known Earlier in My Career

Posted on | Author Gary Pica

I wish I had known as much about building organizations and effective delegation earlier in my career as I do now.

Like most business owners and leaders, I was the rainmaker in my business. While I had a team, I made most of the decisions. However, as my business scaled, I felt that this approach was becoming the limiting factor. Recognizing this, I took it upon myself to learn how to enable effective leaders below me and mentor them in doing the same.

Fast-forward to today, and I’ve learned much more about delegating effectively working with Kaseya. One of the reasons I sold TruMethods to Kaseya was that I had been running operating companies for more than 25 years and didn’t want to do that anymore. It was time for me to move on from that stage of my career.

Kaseya presented me with an opportunity to help more MSPs. I would be in charge of an organization of people across TruMethods Peer, Powered Services Pro, industry events, and the Global Partner Program. While I wanted to use this platform to make a difference in our industry, I didn’t want the day-to-day minutia, so I took business planning, organizational design, and delegation to a new level.

In an organization of 70 people, I have only one direct report. We have meeting rhythms, metrics, and accountability in place at every level. Each level down needs to do the same until every contributor is aligned with our team and goals. Most importantly, everyone in my organization must understand the difference between delegation and abdication.

Most leaders abdicate instead of delegate. They work until they’re overwhelmed, and then they offload things onto someone else. This contrasts with delegation, where you put process, metrics, expectations, and reporting in place so that with very little time, you can manage the area you’ve offloaded and mentor the leader to do the same.

Reflecting on my career, I could have done a much better job delegating in the past; my business, team, and customers would have benefited. We all can do better to empower our people, enjoy our leadership roles more, and achieve results beyond our current expectations.

If Your MRR Isn’t Increasing, You’re Fired!

Posted on | Author Gary Pica

If you’re a CEO, I have a question: Are you consistently adding new logo MRR at a rate appropriate for your scale?

If your answer is no, then you’re fired!

As a CEO, you’re accountable for your company’s go-to-market results, so you’re also fired if you’ve had a goose egg in recent quarters. These outcomes don’t happen to successful CEOs; if you think otherwise, you’re lying to yourself to keep your job.

The truth is, you’re not a CEO. While this may sting, I won’t apologize for telling you the truth. You can only hold the highest executive title in a business if you’re performing the primary function of that role. If you were the CEO or president of a company you didn’t own and failed to deliver, you’d be fired.

Although I may sound harsh, here’s the good news: Everyone in our industry has the potential to be a rainmaker. We’re fortunate to be in a business that doesn’t require a massive go-to-market function or tons of leads — just a few leads that you can actually close. Most MSP leaders make go-to-market far more complicated than it needs to be. But don’t worry; you can easily pivot in a step in the right direction.

If you want to become the CEO you know you can be, it’s time to adjust your job description to reflect what it should be. See yourself as an actual CEO or president whose top responsibility is to grow revenue and profits. Make it your first thought in the morning and your last thought at night. Be one hundred percent accountable for results and decide what you can tolerate.

It all starts with the right mindset.

Ask Yourself as an MSP Leader: What Do You Want?

Posted on | Author Gary Pica

I like to reflect after TruMethods Peer meetings. Analyzing the numbers gives me a deeper insight into what’s really happening and how I can better support MSPs on a larger scale in the future.

After our most recent meeting, I noticed that the group’s average growth and profitability are on the rise, outpacing the industry — this is, of course, something I’m thrilled about! However, I also pay close attention to distribution. It’s encouraging to see the new logo growth percentage increase, but I’m equally concerned with the MSPs that had no new sales for the quarter. To me, this is an even more critical metric.

My approach to coaching, mentoring, and leading peer groups has evolved over the years, in line with how my views on business, success, leadership, and life have also shifted. In recent years, as the weight of owning businesses for over two decades has been lifted, I see the effects of that weight differently in people. Some people rise above it, while others get stuck.

The most important thing is having a clear vision of what you want. What do you want your life to look like in five years? More importantly, what if it looked the same as it does today, in terms of your business, your finances, and your day-to-day work? Many people assume the future will be better, despite their current results not supporting that expectation. This is why we ask our peer members to focus on developing life AND business plans, not just a business plan.

With that in mind, I’d like to pose a few questions for you to consider:

  1. What do you really want? (Take some time on this one!)
  2. What are you willing to do to get there? Are you prepared to change your priorities and be more accountable for those changes? Are you willing to set limits on what you will tolerate in terms of results? This willingness to change and set boundaries is a key differentiating factor in people’s progress.

Having a clear goal and understanding where you want to be, along with what you’re willing to do—and most importantly, sacrifice — are key factors differentiating those who succeed from those who don’t.

If It Was Easy

Posted on | Author Gary Pica

Recently, I did something I don’t usually do. I scrolled Reddit for posts about TruMethods. Eventually, I stumbled upon a post by FisherMBA2024 that made me laugh.

Here is what they said about TruMethods:

“Watch 20 minutes of YouTube videos; you’ll get most of it.”

While I appreciate this user’s utmost confidence in my ability to simplify complex business issues, I can’t pack decades of experience into a tiny space. I’m not a genie with a magic lamp.

But I have always tried to view any business I’ve been involved with through a simple lens or framework. This approach, which I’ve employed for many years, has helped train my brain to simplify complex issues.

For example, this approach led me to the MSP framework you now know as Picanomics. From my experience, the more complex the business, the more critical it is to simplify things.

If you need help simplifying your business, here’s what you should consider doing. Always step back and try to simplify things when looking at a problem.

Ask yourself these questions:

• What are the key outcomes you’re looking for?
• What are the variables?
• What are the highest-level levers that you can control?

Then, work down one level at a time until you find the intersection of what you can control and influence and the result you want.

Simplifying complex business issues takes practice. The more you do it, the better you’ll get at it. And that’s something watching 20 minutes of YouTube videos can’t help you with.

Why Every Company Needs a Business Impact Analysis

Posted on | Author Gary Pica

When discussing business disruption among MSPs, business impact analysis (BIA) doesn’t receive enough attention. By focusing on BIA, MSPs can better prepare for and mitigate the effects of potential disruptions.

BIA is a process that helps organizations predict and prepare for the potential consequences of a business disruption. The goal of the BIA is to ensure operational resilience and continuity during and after a disruption. At its core, it’s a way for you and your team to understand how each customer views the relative importance of assets such as apps, data, and resources. I consider it a first step.

You can’t have a disaster (DR) recovery plan without a BIA. I spoke to a friend who’s in the incident response (IR) world, and he said that in most cases, when they get involved (and it’s always “Right of Boom”), the company and the IT team or MSP are trying to figure things out in real-time, and every function thinks their asset should be prioritized.

I often discuss helping customers with software utilization, but I think BIAs are the first step. Our customers’ technical landscape is changing, and we have to change with it. Having a deeper understanding of their assets, business priorities, and the outcomes they expect is more critical than ever.

Take a look at your customer base. How many of them do you have a regular BIA process for? If it’s not part of your process, you will not have a usable disaster recovery plan and will be unable to manage your customers’ expectations.

But most importantly, you’re not a strategic resource for your customers the way you could or should be, and that’s the most significant risk an MSP can have today.

Self-Discipline is Not Unlimited

Posted on | Author Gary Pica

During my keynote at Schnizzfest earlier this year, I discussed the goal-setting process and self-image. I’ve frequently shared my thoughts on both throughout my career. 

While goals hold us accountable, we need self-discipline to take action. Over the years, I’ve learned and observed that we all have a finite amount of self-discipline. Everyone’s limit is different. You can increase your capacity when you have goals you are passionate about, but that doesn’t necessarily mean your self-discipline becomes unlimited. You need to choose your priorities wisely.

People often say, “I’m going to exercise more this year,” and “I’m going to improve my golf game.” But my response is often, “No, you’re not. If you had the self-discipline to do all those things at once, you would have done them already.”

Write down your priorities and arrange them in order of importance. Then, hold yourself accountable by creating aggressive but realistic expectations for your goals. 

Have you met people who have unlimited self-discipline? I have found they typically fall into two categories:

  1. Those who appear disciplined but have hidden issues that impact their lives. 
  2. More efficient people, such as business owners, who delegate and have command, so they can carve out an hour to work out and leave at a planned time each day. 

You need to recognize that self-discipline is limited. Set priorities, then use goals to expand your capacity and be more efficient with your time to get more mileage from your self-discipline capacity.

Misaligning Priorities with Aspirations

Posted on | Author Gary Pica

One of the main reasons MSPs don’t grow is that they mistake aspirations for priorities.

Most MSP leaders want to grow their businesses, and they aspire to have new MRR at the right price. However, many do not achieve this. In our TruMethods Peer groups, we see MSP leaders who have been in business for many years and have gone entire quarters without a new customer. This is a symptom of something bigger.

If this scenario sounds familiar, then sales and marketing are not a priority to you. You aspire to have more MRR, but your priorities probably lie elsewhere. Think of it this way: if you’ve been in business for five, seven, or ten years and you’re stuck at a certain revenue level, it means that the things you prioritize are not getting you unstuck. Your days are filled with tasks that, in your mind, make the business better, but the months and years go by without fulfilling your potential.

Your priorities do not match your goals and aspirations!

Growing a business is like anything else. You have to put the right priorities in place and have enough accountability to execute them. Get a better understanding of your sales plan and track your activities for a few weeks to shine a light on what your priorities really are.

I know this is not easy. Habits are hard to break. The first step is to be honest with yourself: Are sales and marketing a priority or just an aspiration?

The Difference Between Skill and Logic

Posted on | Author Gary Pica

I want to discuss the power of logic. I was recently working on a big project. It was complex and involved a team of people, and it reminded me of many of the complex IT projects we faced when I operated my MSPs.

Many times, people would simply dive in and get to work. These were smart, well-intended people with extensive domain knowledge, but they missed planning and logic. This would slow down what we were doing and cause unwanted client problems.

I’d see this with problem-solving as well. For instance, I remember working with our technical team when I owned my MSPs. When working on technical issues, sometimes, the team would get stuck. I’m not a technical person, but I would ask questions, apply logic, and end up with a troubleshooting plan that achieved the right results. Many times, logic is more important than technical knowledge.

It’s crucial to ask yourself: Am I teaching my leaders and team members to prioritize logic, planning, and then action? Don’t assume that people understand this. It’s not instinctive; it’s a skill you teach.

Rather than providing solutions outright, teach them the logic so that they can develop that skill.