How an Influencer Uses Rally to Connect and Grow

Coffee with Erik

I recently had a chance to sit down with one of our advisors and early Rally users named Erik Birkfeld. Erik is a well-respected tech leader and CTO here in San Diego, and we were extremely fortunate to have him on our team in those early days.

In his role as an influencer, he writes guest blog posts, speaks at conferences, and shares his wisdom on various tech podcasts. When I asked him how Rally has helped him, he gave me the following examples.

"Gathering honest and actionable feedback and data is critical in any business as it is the fodder of direction and growth. The same goes for our individual improvement, and if you can get honest and specific feedback about your methods and outcomes as a teacher, leader, mentor, or manager, then you are in a position to make transformational changes that will enable you to be at the top of your game."

He explained how The Rally Platform allowed him to ask and capture this feedback in a frictionless and confidential way. Gone are the days of having someone leave constructive but potentially ego-bruising feedback in a public place like LinkedIn or Medium.

For example, by texting BIRKY to the number 24365, he can now quickly see what people think, where he can "amp up the signal and reduce the noise".

Actionable Feedback and a Growing List of Fans

He went on to say, "For example, I tend to get very passionate about the topics that I am discussing. When I give a presentation, that passion can sometimes lead me to speak quickly and tangentially, which can lose parts of my audience. I was thankfully alerted to this by someone that had attended a presentation I made earlier this year.

Feedback received! I was able to apply this new knowledge immediately to my delivery, and I am now actively conscious of my tempo and focus when presenting.

Similarly, I can use this tool to ask engaging questions of my team, audience, or community. I can even reward those who take my surveys with links and attachments such as slide decks, e-books, and PDFs.

I genuinely feel that if you are not growing somewhere, then you are not going anywhere and how Rally helps me on my journey to be continuously growing."

Conclusion

Rally gives him a tremendous opportunity to build a list of people he can later "activate" when he wants to engage with them. Given his growth mindset and his continual learning and development, it's no wonder why people turn to him for advice and leadership. I know we do.

Thanks, Erik. We are grateful for our continued friendship!

‍If you'd like to learn more about how Rally can help you on your path to excellence, join a demo call with our team. We'll gladly set you up with a keyword of your own.