Basic to Brilliant:
The Definitive Guide to Transforming Your People Practices
A Playbook for the Small to Mid-size Enterprise
by Doris Bentley

About the Book

Basic to Brilliant helps small to mid-size companies transform into more productive and viable businesses that retain top talent. Addressing the perennial urgent need to remove barriers to business growth by attracting, hiring, developing and rewarding great people, this is a one-of-a kind playbook for business owners, entrepreneurs, and leaders everywhere.
 
It charts the path to brilliance through which leaders can realize their vision of an organization that serves the business well, attracts and hires the right people, and inspires and supports them to perform at their best. It offers:

  • Real-world solutions to help leaders be more innovative with talent in the context of high performance in an age of burnout and overwork.  
  • Tips, strategies and how-to’s that include state-of-the-art hiring and on boarding practices, performance feedback, talent development, better role clarification, and total rewards that can be readily applied to each reader’s unique circumstances.  
  • A focus on realistic transformation with checklists for assessing the basics and accelerating to brilliance.  
  • Case studies from BC-based businesses, confirming ideas with examples and context.
  • Advice accumulated over the author’s 20+ years' experience advising and consulting with hundreds of business owners and leaders.  

Praise for Basic to Brilliant

​“A conscientious review and analysis of what it takes to build a strong and loyal workforce. This is a must read for business leaders working to develop world class corporate culture and establishing highly successful recruitment strategies, which in turn leads to optimal employee retention." 
Bob Sinclair ICD.D, Chair, TEC Canada (The Executive Committee)
“Like all businesses we have struggled with people issues at times. Basic to Brilliant is a straight forward practical guide to developing the best structure, culture and processes to turn talent into your competitive advantage. If you are an SME and want your business to grow and thrive, then this is a must read.”   
Rob Mitchell, President & CEO, Vista Railing Systems Inc.
“Having been involved with a number of high-growth small and medium-sized organizations throughout my career, I'm quite familiar with the inherent chaos created by high-growth and how it impacts the people-side of the business. The simple, straightforward approach captured in Basic to Brilliant does an excellent job of providing a logical framework upon which to build best-practices for attracting, retaining and growing talent – and great people are the cornerstone of a great business. Now having moved into a larger organization, I recognize these issues as more fundamental to business regardless of size and the truths captured in Basic to Brilliant continue to demonstrate value more universally in their application.” 
James Tweedy, Executive Director, Marketing & Communications, Trinity Western University 
“This is a ‘must read’ for all owners and management of small to mid-sized enterprises.  The structure of the ‘basic to brilliant’ sections towards the end of each chapter along with the case studies makes for a practical handbook. Although it’s all worthwhile from start to finish, it’s easy to jump in at any chapter and get started.” 
Ross Bailey, President and CEO, GreenLight Innovation 
​“As a merger and acquisitions advisor, I have seen, almost without fail, the success of a transaction comes down to people. While all organizations could benefit from Basic to Brilliant, there is tremendous advice in this book—in preventing founder’s syndrome for example—that could be particularly invaluable to companies positioning for a future sale.”  
Mike Kuiack, Partner, BK Capital, Growth Advisors to Mid-Market Companies
Basic to Brilliant is timely, relevant, and easy to digest. It offers a great counterpoint between the conflicting priorities of the old and new guard, and touches on the typically avoided subject of knowing how to manage “up”. It’s refreshing to see a book stress the importance and subtle power of the intangible rewards versus the traditional conventions used in most “basic” approaches.
Clinton Connell, Branch Manager, Eagle West Crane & Rigging

Bookstore

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About the Author

Doris Bentley, CPHR

​Doris is the founder and principal of CENTREPOINT, a talent management consultancy based in Vancouver, BC. As a consultant and business advisor, she has enjoyed long-term success working with hundreds of owners and leaders of small to mid-market enterprises, developing talent strategies that drive business sustainability and long-term growth. She is a frequent presenter to various CEO and executive forum groups, bringing a uniquely informed view of the challenges they face engaging the people essential to their journey. As a writer and educator, she has authored many articles, blog posts, white papers, and management tool kits to advance workplace innovation and contemporary people practices.

​For more information, visit www.centrepointcareer.com
Specifications
​
​204 pages

Black & White
​
6 x 9 inches
​ISBNs
​
Paperback
978-1-5255-2303-8

Hardcover
978-1-5255-2302-1
​
eBook
978-1-5255-2304-5
BISAC/Categories

BUSINESS & ECONOMICS​
BUS071000
 Leadership

BUS103000
Organizational Development

BUS097000
Workplace Culture
Keywords

Business innovation
Talent management
Human resources
Sustainable growth
Business transitions
Small business
Company performance

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