"New hires can shadow, connect, and collaborate with colleagues in person, fostering idea-sharing and growth"
Welcome to an exclusive feature in ValiantCEO magazine, where we delve into the remarkable journey of Ari Leeds, a trailblazing entrepreneur at the helm of LeedsSource, and his relentless pursuit of success in the dynamic world of online business.
In an era defined by unprecedented technological advancements and rapid digital transformation, Ari Leeds has emerged as a visionary leader, harnessing the power of innovation to reshape the business landscape.
With a deep understanding of the evolving needs and expectations of clients, LeedsSource has become synonymous with excellence and forward-thinking strategies.
In this insightful article, we delve into Ari Leeds’ remarkable insights, experiences, and strategies, as he navigates the ever-changing digital frontier.
Discover how he leverages cutting-edge technologies, embraces remote work models, and utilizes virtual platforms to connect with clients on a global scale. Uncover his astute ability to adapt to shifting market dynamics and his unwavering commitment to delivering exceptional client outcomes.
Join us as we explore the remarkable story of Ari Leeds and LeedsSource, uncovering the secrets to their enduring success and how they continue to shape the future of online business. Prepare to be inspired by their innovative approach, unwavering determination, and relentless pursuit of excellence.
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Table of Contents
We are thrilled to have you join us today, welcome to ValiantCEO Magazine’s exclusive interview! Let’s start off with a little introduction. Tell our readers a bit about yourself and your company.
Ari Leeds: I’m Ari Leeds, Founder & CEO of LeedsSource, a Salesforce consulting firm that specializes in solving business problems with technical solutions.
As a consummate problem-solver myself, I will often analyze something and try to improve it or find ways to make it better, which led to founding my company, LeedsSource.
Our priority is to solve problems that help customers save time and money – identifying our customers’ pain points in order to produce the best-fit solution to meet their long term goals.
Solutions-driven from the 30,000 foot business view, LeedsSource provides expertise in all domains, spanning daily administration to operations to complex system architecture.
I’ve personally worked in Salesforce for over a decade and know the value its tools and the platform holds, which is why our mission is to be an invaluable partner to our clients by solving all of their Salesforce needs, enabling them to stay focused on their business and customers.
If you were in an elevator with Warren Buffet, how would you describe your company, your services or products? What makes your company different from others? What is your company’s biggest strength?
Ari Leeds: LeedsSource is a full service Salesforce Consultancy offering our clients more than just our expertise in the technology side, but a personable approach to truly understand their greater goals as a company.
We are an external partner that functions like an internal team – with double the value.
We put the people before the technology, and their business before the technology. So while Salesforce is our canvas, it’s not our first dab of paint. Many consulting firms operate as technology experts that implement business needs, but LeedsSource takes a top-down approach.
We determine what’s needed from a business perspective, and build on that with our technical skills. We genuinely take interest in how our clients’ companies really work – what are their pain points and what problems are they looking to solve?
Quiet quitting, The Great Resignation, are an ongoing trend causing many businesses to struggle to keep talent engaged and motivated. Most are leaving because of their boss or their company culture. 82% of people feel unheard, undervalued, and misunderstood in the workplace. In your experience, what keeps employees happy? And how are you adapting to the current shift we see?
Ari Leeds: I’ve found that employees are happiest when they have a mission and feel connected to not only their peers, but the greater company’s vision and goals.
Employees also feel more committed to their work if they have a home base and people to collaborate with in-person. While there has been a trend over the last couple of years – ever since the pandemic really – to work remotely, I find that employees do their best work in the office.
There is of course a mixed bag here – working some days in the office, and some at home to allow for more fluidity and work/life balance – however I’ve found that the days in the office are more productive, collaborative, and generally happier!
Working in the office builds company culture. New hires can shadow other employees, make small talk at the coffee station or lunch table, and work together in person to share ideas.
LeedsSource has adapted by supporting their employees in what works best for their home and personal schedule, while also including a few in-office days together.
Online business keeps on surging higher than ever, B2B, B2C, online shopping, virtual meetings, remote work, Zoom medical consultations, what are your expectations for the year to come and how are you capitalizing on the tidal wave?
Ari Leeds: Online work and business is certainly on the rise. With our line of work and how we use and value online applications, we are taking advantage of the ability to connect with more clients in a shorter time.
By being able to jump from one call to another within minutes, as opposed to a full travel day, we are able to offer our customers more time and attention than before.
Tools like Slack and Zoom allow us to be more reachable as well. So, while creativity doesn’t come flowing through as well over a video call, it does add value to our customers and creates new channels for clients to engage with us on.
LeedsSource operates on a mix of in office and remote work as we get the best results for our business with a blend of the two. In the office is when we have our best client outcomes due to more spontaneous mindshare and employee collaboration.
Business is all about overcoming obstacles and creating opportunities for growth. What do you see as THE real challenge right now?
Ari Leeds: As a business owner, the biggest challenge I see right now is understanding where the economy is and making the proper adjustment to it.
This past year has been challenging because budgets are being cut, although businesses are still doing well. They’re cutting spending on the big initiatives, but they’re still keeping the engines running.
The state of the economy has made businesses rethink how they can, and should, spend their money. Specifically, how do you take your business offering and change it in a way that suits where companies are at now, that’s geared more towards helping them run their business on a daily basis, allowing them to focus internally on the next big thing.
With bigger projects being cut, it forces businesses to get more creative and squeeze more value out of their current investments and re-assess their infrastructure.
The challenge is finding that sweet spot. How do you cut progressive types of spending while still investing in operations? In general, everyone seems to be airing on the side of caution, staying conservative with their budgets yet forging ahead.
In your experience, what tends to be the most underestimated part of running a company? Can you share an example?
Ari Leeds: The most underestimated part is hands down all of the hidden things that you have to do to operate as a business, that don’t relate to anything in which your business provides.
This ranges from hiring employees and managing their salary, to insurance, accounting and legal, and the list goes on. You also want to constantly do what’s best for your employees to treat them fairly and keep them happy, while balancing the finances and end goals for the company.
I do my best to stay on top of this with constant checks and balances as well as having my employees keep me honest. I want them to come to me with anything I may have missed or an area of improvement they may see, whether it’s with payroll, insurance, or processes.
I also have many business mentors that I don’t shy away from contacting for best practices or advice to ensure I’m running the best business I can – for myself and my employees.
What does “success” in 2023 mean to you? It could be on a personal or business level, please share your vision.
Ari Leeds: My vision for 2023 is taking lessons learned from last year and smoothing those out in the year to come. 2023 will be a reset year.
LeedsSource is always hyper focused on providing hands-on service to our customers, but this year we’ll especially be focused on providing our clients with the utilities and support they need to meet their end-goal, which may have changed given the state of the economy. This, coupled with growth for LeedsSource will be our focus this year.
I’d like to start having predictable growth and to see some of our personal investments come to fruition; as well as continue feeding the stable growth path when it comes to our client base.
Overall I envision, and am hopeful, for a successful year ahead and growth overall for LeedsSource, but also the rest of the economy in general.
Jed Morley, VIP Contributor to ValiantCEO and the host of this interview would like to thank Ari Leeds for taking the time to do this interview and share his knowledge and experience with our readers.
If you would like to get in touch with Ari Leeds or his company, you can do it through his – Linkedin Page
Disclaimer: The ValiantCEO Community welcomes voices from many spheres on our open platform. We publish pieces as written by outside contributors with a wide range of opinions, which don’t necessarily reflect our own. Community stories are not commissioned by our editorial team and must meet our guidelines prior to being published.
