Great Business, Great Life
Rachael Dalton-Taggart
President/CEO
Strategic Reach PR
TAB member since 2007
On working with Blair Koch: Dalton-Taggart says Koch is expert at pointing out both strengths and areas for improvement. "It's a lot like being with your shrink, but with a business context," laughs Dalton-Taggart. "She insists that you will take an hour out of your busy day to talk to her. She's very firm,
incredibly professional, and at the same time has really become an advisor, counselor, and friend."
The Client: Rachael Dalton-Taggart is the President and CEO of Strategic Reach PR, a Denver-based marketing and public relations firm. The six-year-old company focuses on high tech,engineering, and manufacturing clients and has five employees.
The business challenge: Dalton-Taggart faced a problem common to many small business owners: she wanted to grow her firm which required time and attention on her part, but she was so busy working "in" the business that she had little energy to work "on" the business. "I needed more sales and I couldn't find the time," she says. Dalton-Taggart also wanted more balance in her life. "For my own sanity, I needed more personal and family time, and I wasn't getting it."
On considering TAB: Dalton-Taggart received an invitation in the mail to attend a free introductory TAB luncheon and became more intrigued when she received a follow-up phone call from Blair Koch. "I liked what they said because they talked directly to a number of needs that I hadn't had the chance – or the guts – to address," says Dalton-Taggart. "The presentation was interesting; I remember being engaged. They spoke an awful lot of sense." Another thing that attracted Dalton-Taggart to TAB was the fact that the program recognizes the value of work/life balance. "We all aspire to retire in ten years time," says Dalton-Taggart. "TAB focuses on how you are going to get there"
The TAB experience: "It took me a couple of meetings to get comfortable," says Dalton-Taggart. "But once I did . . . I believe I've become one of the more outspoken ones." Dalton-Taggart finds it refreshing and helpful to hear about challenges other business owners are experiencing. "You find out some of your
problems are not so unique," she says. Dalton-Taggart values not only the wise advice and ideas she receives from her fellow board members,but also the camaraderie within her group of six. "The last meeting we had, we covered so much. And it was also funny . . . one person was cracking a joke. What I learned is that running a business should be fun," she says. Dalton-Taggart also appreciates the resources other people bring to the table, noting that another board member recently gave her the name of someone who could collect a bad debt from a client on her behalf.
The results: Dalton-Taggart saw her company revenues climbing after being in TAB for only six months. "I believe that's due to the ideas we've discussed," says Dalton-Taggart. She is now analyzing her business on the basis of what activities and clients are profitable versus unprofitable, focusing more attention on the profitable side of the equation, and working on how to convert less profitable clients into more profitable ones – all things Dalton-Taggart had never done before. She is also doing more in
the way of formal budgeting which makes the firm's CFO (who also happens to be her husband) very happy. In addition, Dalton-Taggart has learned the value of delegating and is much more apt now to focus her attention on big picture tasks. "We're developing a plan and I know exactly what the target is, exactly what I've got to achieve," she says.
On the personal side, Dalton-Taggart has decided where she wants to be ten years from now: living on a ten acre farm and having a horse. "Why am I earning this money?" she says she asked herself. Dalton-Taggart also enjoys more balance in her life now. "Blair Koch and TAB have empowered me to bring more balance into my life. Now it's all right not work on an evening," she says. "Now I'm saying, ‘I've done all the stuff that's urgent and I can take my kid to the skate park.' It's a different frame of mind." The result, Dalton-Taggart says, is having a life and having a great business.
