How Bloom Growth™ supports BOS360’s transformative coaching model
Written by
Martha Beach
07 min read
Date
December 6, 2024
Client
Company name:
BOS360
Interviewee name and job title:
Shelby Hacala, co-founder of BOS360
Shelby Hacala, co-founder of BOS360, coaches business leadership teams to improve communication and alignment, execute goals successfully, and build thriving organizations. He recognized the need for a unified platform to help teams organize the information they relied on to collaborate efficiently and achieve desired outcomes.
%
healthier teams
%
engagement with the platform
time savings per team member, weekly
The need for team alignment and clarity
In Shelby Hacala’s coaching practice, BOS360, he often sees leadership teams struggling to work cohesively. “Once you understand what a healthy team dynamic looks like, you can spot dysfunctional areas and guide better communication,” Hacala says. Bloom Growth enables his teams to identify and remove obstacles to create smoother workflows.
Few teams are well-coordinated from the start, and most struggle with disorganization and miscommunication, even with a business operating system in place. Before Bloom Growth, teams Hacala worked with typically had fragmented information dispersed across tools like Excel, Word, and Notion. Each leader had their own approach, making it challenging to get everyone on the same page during meetings. This often led to duplicated work, information stored in various locations, and difficulty finding current documents.
Without a business efficiency tool like Bloom Growth, confusion and frustration were common, and progress was slow. Misalignment during meetings made it hard for teams to see a straight path to executing their goals.
Introducing structure and accountability
Hacala uses Bloom Growth with his own teams in the same way he advises clients to use it, organizing weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annual meetings. “With Bloom, from day one, we start organizing teams with all their data in one place. It keeps them focused, so they can ultimately achieve more. And as a business coach, I can easily track their progress.”
Bloom’s meeting software is user-friendly, making onboarding quick and easy. When Hacala introduces a new client to Bloom Growth,, a Bloom support team member facilitates training for key leaders, with ongoing, unlimited training and support. Each person receives an invitation to join the platform, making for a smooth experience that has them engaging with the system after their first meeting.
Bloom is designed to accommodate any business operating system or growth framework, such as BOS360 and Pinnacle. Its flexibility has empowered Hacala to adapt the software to fit his coaching practice’s model and strategic plan. He has been pleased with Bloom’s responsiveness in tailoring the software according to the tools he and his clients are using. He also appreciates the platform’s continual updates and new features.
Teams using BOS360 begin with execution-focused tools like quarterly goals and KPI scoreboards to track short-term weekly results. The structured annual planning integrates medium- and long-term objectives, summarized in a two-page strategic plan in Bloom Growth’s app. This ensures alignment among business leaders and flows seamlessly into quarterly reviews and weekly meetings to maintain progress and accountability.
“The beautiful thing about Bloom,” says Hacala, “is it breaks goals and objectives into milestones, helping everyone stay focused. Insights are all captured in one place where information is easy to access.” The platform helps business leaders tie their goals back to departmental and individual goals and projects, enabling teams to reach their targets more efficiently.
Hacala sees Bloom’s impact especially when teams lose focus. At the very next meeting, they can review KPIs, targets, and any missed goals, allowing them to quickly get back on track. “The weekly meeting component is one of the platform’s most powerful features, with built-in KPI tracking for rapid results.” After each meeting, everyone knows their responsibilities. Automatic email reminders increase accountability and reduce procrastination.
Another feature Hacala relies on is the quick access to key discussion topics, commonly referred to as issues. Not only can team members refer to that list easily, but they can also add discussion points or to-do items, using Text-an-Issue™ or Text-a-To-Do™ between meetings. “When my teams learn that, they find it really beneficial. You’re never missing anything and never losing any of that on-the-fly information.”
Healthier teams and more efficient meetings
Bloom Growth’s team collaboration tools have been a game-changer for BOS360. Both internally and with clients, Hacala sees individuals achieve more of their professional goals by keeping a closer eye on progress and pivoting as needed. Additionally, enhanced collaboration along with organized, accessible data and documents, improve team health and decision-making skills.
“Over 90% of my teams engage with the platform and they never look back once they start,” Hacala shares. Seeing its value, he now requires all new clients to use the platform.
Annual planning has also greatly benefited from Bloom Growth. Without it, teams might set goals but lose sight of them until the following year. Together, BOS360 and Bloom provide a regular process for reviewing the strategic plan and tracking progress. The organizational chart feature has been particularly valuable for providing structure and accountability.
According to Hacala, 100% of his teams using Bloom Growth become healthier and more collaborative. With goals clearly in view, teams focus on meaningful objectives and consistently meet their targets. “Combining Bloom Growth with the BOS360 framework means teams stay ultra-focused on what’s truly important and have the capacity to get more done,” he notes.
By centralizing information, Bloom Growth saves team members an average of 2 hours per week, equating to 12-16 hours for a typical team. This not only reduces annual costs but also significantly enhances the overall health and growth of the company.
An unexpected benefit has been the platform’s impact on regulatory compliance. Previously, the risk wasn’t fully visible, but with Bloom Growth, Hacala’s teams quickly recognized the importance of archiving meeting details, addressing specific topics, and tracking documents to ensure compliance. Using the platform has significantly reduced business risks.
“Bloom is a solid platform. It works. It does everything I need and they’re continuously working on improving the features.”
What’s next for BOS360
