[00:00:00] You're listening to Jersey Success, a podcast, taking a behind-the-scenes look at how businesses in New Jersey have emerged as industry leaders in profit, service and culture. If you're looking to hear the secrets to their success, this show is for you. Let's get into the episode.
[00:00:17] Host: Hello and welcome to Jersey Success.
[00:00:21] You are joining us for a really exciting episode. It is the first episode for Jersey Success, and I am thrilled to be with the host of the show, Nicole Lefsky, who is the co-founder of Jersey IT Group and has a wealth of experience in the business world in a variety of different ways. And I can't wait for you to, first of all, meet her and hear more about why and how Jersey Success came to be.
[00:00:46] So without further ado, Nicole Lefsky. Nicole, thank you for joining me today.
[00:00:51] Nicole Lefsky: Thank you.
[00:00:52] Host: I'm excited to get into this because I know this really is a passion project for you. Because I know it wasn't something that was just overnight, you know, hey, let's do this podcast. There was a lot of thought behind it and a lot of reasoning behind should, in a world of so many podcasts, there'll be another podcast. And if so, why? So how did we get here?
[00:01:13] Nicole Lefsky: Well, I appreciate you asking. You know, I've had the pleasure of working with a variety of business leaders and entrepreneurs in New Jersey for many, many years, over 20 years that it's been since, we founded Jersey IT Group and many years before that in some other businesses that I've been involved with. And I really saw an opportunity to share some of the wonderful stories that had been told to me over the years of how some of these business leaders really came to achieve success. And what I found in talking with them over the years was while they each achieved success in some of the typical ways that businesses try to attain success in terms of financial reward, they often had a unique point of view, whether it was that they exceeded expectations of their customers, of their employees, or of the standards in their industry.
[00:02:08] And I really thought that having a podcast called Jersey success would highlight some of their amazing stories and the journeys that they were on up until the point that they felt that they achieved their own individual company success.
[00:02:22] Host: So let's talk about that because Jersey IT Group is your company that we talked about that you co founded with your husband, Adam Lefsky. And you've been working in the company now almost two decades, correct?
[00:02:34] Nicole Lefsky: Yes.
[00:02:35] Host: But before that, you have had, as I mentioned briefly, a variety of different experiences. And I think that lends itself so well to the topic at hand with Jersey Success because you have been in and out of a lot of different fields, a lot of different positions, and you've seen so much in your professional career.
[00:02:54] So how does that kind of shape things with this podcast? Maybe can you give us a little bit of a bio of sorts with what you have done in your professional life?
[00:03:04] Nicole Lefsky: Yeah, I think that, you know, everybody's experience helps them in the next phase of their professional lives. But I, you know, I had the pleasure of working with some very large, corporations that had amazing culture and really learned a lot from them as well as smaller community based nonprofit organizations in an area of marketing development.
[00:03:27] And I was able to see how growth was measured. And success looked different in those different environments. And from, from those experiences, as well as some others, I was able to bring to Jersey IT Group, some creative angles that I think help in a, in a world of very technically-driven and technically-minded people, a way to always talk about impact on business and take a very technical or typically technically-focused topic and make it interesting and fun and relatable.
[00:04:00] So, throughout my journey, so far, I've always enjoyed working with now our clients, but you know, colleagues, business associates, and getting down to the root of how they and how we have measured success over time in these different organizations, because that can look different. And when I, you know, started coming up with the idea of producing Jersey Success, I looked at the different ways that businesses measure success and, you know, success looks different for every organization. It can be, typically it's based on sales or revenue, sometimes growth and profitability. And like for nonprofits, of course, it's more about community impact and looking at executing the mission.
[00:04:43] Often success is measured just financially, but when you peel back some of those layers, you see that there's more to it and the leaders in our community right here in our own backyard in New Jersey have some really unique points of view on really what was underneath the cover, you know, what was or under the hood I guess I should say in terms of how they got there. How did they reach success and how once they reached it, maybe from a financial perspective, did things change so they could maintain success and what did success look like to them?
[00:05:18] Was it about culture? Was it about longevity of their employees? So through the podcast, we're going to really look behind the scenes at some of the stories of business owners and executives and entrepreneurs in our own community about how they're leading now in their industry and we'll uncover how they're doing things differently from others in their space.
[00:05:39] Host: I love how you said success looks different for everybody, right? Depending on what field you're in and even what stage of the game. I want to ask you on somewhat of a personal note, we all know that even if you have achieved a certain degree of success, to get there, you probably saw your fair share of those points that would not be considered to be a success.
[00:06:04] Some might even say failures, although you know, that term can be used in a lot of different ways. You know, we say fail forward and how we, we learn from our mistakes, but can you talk personally about, with regard to what you've seen in your life with different professional successes and maybe pitfalls, the highs and the lows, why it's so important to have something like this podcast to hear the stories of others to know that, you know what, I'm not alone? I'm not the only one dealing with this and maybe to give them encouragement that they can push through and they can get to that next level.
[00:06:40] Nicole Lefsky: You know, regardless of your industry and regardless of perception in a community, as far as your company and where it is in terms of competition and having a competitive edge.
[00:06:51] And are you the leader or are you climbing toward the higher levels of success in your fields? Every executive, every entrepreneur and any person who strives to be successful in however they define that, have bumps in the road.
[00:07:10] And many years ago, I used to have conversations with people when they would want to start a business and they would come to me and say, what do you think? And they'd have some creative ideas and, despite what the topic was, or the industry, my response back to them was, it's like, kind of like you're walking down a path and they're going to be these rocks thrown. And are you the type of person that can figure a way around those rocks or are they going to get in your way?
[00:07:35] And you're going to say, nope, going back. And especially for entrepreneurs, I think that is so true when you're coming up with something more innovative or creative, but for anyone that is in a leadership role, we've all experienced times where we say, you know, how did we get here or how am I going to get through this?
[00:07:55] Or we look to our peers in our industry or those that we respect in business that have kind of already been there and done that and say, you know, what did you do in this situation? And my hope is that I was able to do that. I continue to do that and that the podcast serves as a forum for other leaders to not only share and mentor to a degree, but also pave the way for those that may or may not be new.
[00:08:22] There are people who have had many years experience and still the markets change, industries change, circumstances change that impact their longstanding businesses, and they can learn from another community leader on how they got through that challenge. So through the discussions that we'll have, of course, I'll be happy and always willing to share my own personal experiences while my guests also enlighten the community with some of theirs.
[00:08:47] And I hope it just helps to bring everyone to a higher level of knowledge and give them that extra bit of support as a resource so that they can get through some challenges that they're going to have.
[00:09:01] Host: And I picked up a buzzword, there, support. Because really that at the core is what this podcast is about. It's supporting other professionals, specifically highlighting success stories in New Jersey, but professionals in New Jersey who may be looking for some guidance, maybe a little inspiration. Maybe they even have been through some of the things that they will hear from the guests and just knowing that, you know, they can get through it.
[00:09:27] If those, those rocks or stones are being thrown, as you said, that they might hear one of these podcasts and say, you know, I'm not turning around, I'm going to keep going. So let's get to the good part. What can people expect from this podcast?
[00:09:38] Nicole Lefsky: Well, they can certainly expect to hear how other companies measure success and some of those companies' leadership members, their unique points of view on how they drive that success.
[00:09:51] They'll gain insight on how other business executives have overcome the challenges like we just addressed that are similar to those that they may be facing, the listeners may be facing in their organizations and how to continue to work to reach their goals in spite of them. And listeners will also be able to walk away with new ideas and innovative strategies to help them scale their companies and attain their own level of success, whatever that may be.
[00:10:15] Host: So if people want to share their story of success with some pitfalls, I'm sure probably we've been there as well. Maybe they want to be a guest on the podcast. Where can they go? Who can they reach out to?
[00:10:26] Nicole Lefsky: They can email me at nicole@jerseyitgroup.com or they can connect with me on LinkedIn. And I have to say, I'm really looking forward to connecting with business leaders, business owners, and taking a deep dive into their story and uncovering how they achieved success. I know it'll be a big help to other businesses that are established as well as entrepreneurs that are just at the early stages of building their own companies.
[00:10:54] You've been listening to Jersey success hosted by Nicole Lefsky. Make sure you never miss an episode by subscribing in your favorite podcast player.
[00:11:02] And if you enjoyed this episode, we'd appreciate it if you'd rate and review the show. Thanks for listening.