Growing with EOS Traction: The State of the Company Address

Reposted from OFH CEO Marc Schwartzberg's Linkedin.

In my forty years of working within the office furniture industry, I spent a lot of that time making decisions based on gut instinct. I acquired OFH in 2014, determined to grow the company using my industry experience and passion for design. I knew making business decisions based on gut would not be the long-term path to success. In 2020, OFH made the leap toward the Entrepreneurial Operating System EOS to get us to the next level. It has been an outstanding success.  

Now, it is two years since we first began using EOS (Gino Wickman’s Entrepreneurial Operating System) and Traction. Traction is Wickman’s highly structured system for setting, prioritizing, and achieving business goals. With some initial challenges, Traction has had resounding success with members of our team. Each department has its own Level 10 Meeting to assure clear communication, as well as EOS Rocks to hold everyone accountable for their quarterly goals. 

OFH has made its name in New York City, with our tens of thousands of satisfied clients, based on our passion and commitment to customer service. Our business success relies on uncompromising attention to detail, focus, and like all businesses attention to profit margins. We work alongside our clients, providing them with full-service project management and design, and we also sell office furniture. We need to run our company efficiently to be successful in delivering to our clients the best quality service. Traction has enabled us to have a vision of where we want to go in the next 10 years. 

What is the “State of the Company”? 

Not to be mistaken with the U.S. Presidential address to Congress, the State of the Company is a speech given annually by our CEO, updating the team on where we’ve been, where we are now, and where we are going. It is a critical part of demonstrating the company’s vision and plan “shared by all” and presenting a plan to get it done, as well as an opportunity for the team to ask questions. 

As visionary, the update I gave our team began optimistically. I started with our annual plan and how we have been progressing towards the goals we made at the beginning of the year. Despite Covid-19 and its impact on businesses throughout New York City, OFH has weathered the challenges and began the year with record bookings and sales. This was an outstanding achievement that we should take pride in as a team. We have done so while staying true to our core focus: to help people and companies thrive.   

In my State of the Company address, I also reported that we were able to round out our leadership, operations, and design departments with several key hires, in addition to entering a successful strategic partnership that brought in new revenue and sales. We are headed towards an expansion of our design and sales departments and are riding the wave of new bookings as we continue furnishing beautiful spaces to our high standards. The new projects and changes we have underway and within the pipeline are thrilling and inspiring.   

For us, the State of the Company provided profound insight that the direction we were going is a positive one and the big picture was universally understood by all members of our team. 

What is the Impact? 

In the commercial furniture industry, we face new challenges daily. Finding the right people in the right seats, and whose work will fulfill their unique abilities plays a critical part in the success in the cohesiveness of a team. In 2022, our main investment has been in members of our team, who can work together using the EOS system of accountability to do the best for our clients, while growing the company in a sustainable and structured way. 

The transition to EOS Traction has been, in many ways, a challenging but enriching experience for everyone on the team. Moreover, in a world beset by greater challenges, including Covid-19, supply chain concerns, and inflation, the structure and accountability we have established within every department enable us to tackle an issue the moment it appears. Through Traction, we are best equipped to help people and companies thrive and continue to design and furnish beautiful offices.