Leading the Charge: Rich Bursek Discusses National Expansion and Elite Professional Recruitment

National expansion is a common way for business professionals to ensure their company’s long-term success and sustainability. However, according to President of Certuity Rich Bursek, there are certain strategies that all business leaders should be aware of before embarking on such a plan.

“Expansion can be one of the most effective ways to accelerate business growth,” says Bursek. “But it can also lead to a company’s demise if you don’t know what you’re doing.” 

For that reason, implementing proven national expansion strategies is imperative. And it all starts with having a focus on elite professional recruitment.

Find the Right People

“Any national expansion plan should start with ensuring you have the right people in place to lead the charge,” says Bursek. “And it’s possible these people are already on your team.” 

More often than not, though, a major expansion push requires the expertise of talented professionals who have already “been there and done that.” So, as you go about creating your national expansion plan, you should always have people in mind who can head up different aspects of the expansion. You can identify these people by pinpointing your company’s expansion goals and the responsibilities and roles of the people who will also lead the push.

Once you do that, you’ll find target candidates you’d like to hire. You can either partner with a professional recruitment firm to help in your search or go about the process alone by using your personal network and online channels.

“What’s most important,” says Bursek, “is that you’re identifying skilled workers who can succeed within your company’s environment. Are they good learners? Are they flexible and adaptable? Are they go-getters? Do they have key experience in your line of work? Those are the keys.” 

Find New and Untapped Markets

The simplest way to expand nationally is to find new and untapped markets and then launch your current offerings there. Instead of reinventing the wheel from a product or service standpoint, you will simply take your current business model and open a new location.

“It sounds overly simple, but the truth is that successful multinational corporations do it all the time. They put in the proper time and effort when it comes to research. Just look at McDonald’s,” Bursek says. 

In addition to constantly researching new and untapped markets in which to locate new restaurants, McDonald’s also researches untapped demographics.

For instance, McDonald’s initiated a strong push into the Hispanic market by creating a marketing campaign targeting Latino customers. The company’s branding team went above and beyond when it came to researching their demographic, incorporating the new slogan “Me Encanta” (which means “I Love It” in Spanish) into their new line.

Find New Offerings

Bursek, who has established a reputation for organizational transformation over the past 25 years while shaping and positioning various financial firms and Fortune 500 companies, always recommends searching for new offerings. 

“After your company has expanded and grown in more locations, you’ll want to find offerings that can attract new customer segments. Time and time again, it’s a vital aspect of expansion strategies,” he says. 

This process involves creating new products or services that you can offer customers who, to this point, may not have been interested in your business. According to Bursek, consumer companies such as Coca-Cola do this on a consistent basis. The company currently has more than 500 different brands, some of which are alternative versions of well-selling products — like Diet Coke or Coke Zero Sugar — while others are entirely unique.

Regardless of the national expansion strategy one opts for, Bursek reminds both young and established business leaders that everything starts and ends with people. 

“From the ground up, the people you have in place are what will decide whether your expansion strategy is successful or not,” he says. “Without establishing a great culture and finding the right people to fill those roles, you’ll end up a notch behind your competitors.” 

About Rich Bursek

As President, Partner, and member of the Board of Managers of Certuity, Rich Bursek brings empowering leadership to a team that offers distinctive services for high-net-worth clients. Throughout his career, Mr. Bursek has received multiple awards, led large wealth management firms, and co-founded and shaped several industry startups.

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