Lunch with Lucy

Maximize Profits by Investing in Your People

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Pub Date 10 Mar 2020 | Archive Date 13 Mar 2020
Greenleaf Book Group | An Inc. Original

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Description

Transformational Leadership Through Empathy

When entrepreneur Sherry Deutschmann first decided to start a business, she knew she wanted to build something totally different. In her first book, Lunch with Lucy, Sherry tells the story of the creation of that company, LetterLogic, and how she turned it into a $40-million company by putting employees first—even ahead of customers and shareholders.

Putting her people first took many forms, with an extremely generous profit sharing plan and fair living wages among them. But the centerpiece and heart of LetterLogic’s culture was the employee-centric practice Sherry designed called “Lunch with Lucy”—a practice that removed the hierarchical dynamics found in most organizations.

On any given Wednesday, any employee could invite “Lucy” (Sherry’s midday moniker) out to lunch, at a place of their choice, with the bill picked up by Sherry. At these events, Sherry wasn’t the CEO. She was “Lucy,” a co-worker. By making herself 100% available, “Lucy” created a judgment-free environment where she could learn about a team member’s dreams, ambitions, and challenges—and gain their insight into what she was doing right or wrong as a leader. She credits this approach with the success of her company.

 Lunch with Lucy’s interior, refreshingly laid out like courses on a menu, invites us to see how a leader’s choices directly impact employee morale, engagement, and commitment—and in this author’s case, ultimately led to a healthy and hearty bottom line. Sherry’s voice is new, and her honesty, humor, and humility shine through this story of a woman building a successful business through empathetic leadership and uncommon, commonsense business practices, one lunch at a time.

Sit down at the table and learn about a business model that is truly transformational.

Transformational Leadership Through Empathy

When entrepreneur Sherry Deutschmann first decided to start a business, she knew she wanted to build something totally different. In her first book, Lunch...


Advance Praise

“What Sherry Deutschmann has done in institutionalizing and sharing her employee-first philosophy shows that valuing workers first as people makes extraordinary business sense. By placing empathy and equal opportunity at the center of the business, you engage everyone in serving the customer. By paying a living wage and sharing profits equally, you unshackle workers from the tyranny of overtime and multiple jobs so they can focus on work and tend to their families. And by making yourself, as the leader, accessible to everyone, you gain important insight on your operations and your people. Lunch with Lucy is a refreshing must-read for leaders of companies of all sizes and levels of maturity. "
–Beth Brooke-Marciniak, Board Director eHealth and SHEEX, Former Global Vice Chair, Public Policy, EY, and Diversity and Inclusiveness Sponsor, EY

Lunch with Lucy is a beautiful reflection of the author—an authentic leader whose empathy for those she led and for her customers helped propel her business to remarkable success. Sherry’s practical insights are food for every aspiring leader and CEO looking to make a difference. Lunch with Lucy is a full buffet of wisdom.”
– Dr. Michael Burcham, Shore Capital Partners

“I was hooked from page one. Such a compelling story told in a way that seems so not only doable, but the right thing to do. If we had more leaders like Sherry, corporations would be better people. She helps you envision a world full of compassion, understanding, and kindness. This is an underdog story that leaves you feeling inspired, uplifted, and full of admiration for the grit and determination this woman has. More of this, please!”
—Fran Dunaway, CEO/Cofounder, TomboyX.com, Seattle, WA

“I hate most books about company culture—in fact, I can’t even read them. We all know culture is important. But too often these books treat it as if it’s the ultimate goal—not the means to an end—focusing on silly perks that trivialize the conversation. But as a senior editor with Inc., Forbes, and The New York Times, I’ve been following Sherry Deutschmann for years. I know she’s different, both as a business owner and as an author. She actually connects the dots between treating employees well and maximizing profits. Wondering how to get employees to care about the business as if they were owners? This book is the blueprint. It’s also a fun read.”
—Loren Feldman, Chief Content Officer, 21 Hats

“Wow! An inspiring, touching, funny story that helps you build a better business, strengthen your own character, and even save capitalism from itself. Sherry is a genius at solving problems, and she tells you all her secrets! This is a must-read, can’t-miss, save-your-life, save-your-company book.”
—U.S. Congressman Jim Cooper, Tennessee’s 5th Congressional District

“Our obsession with maximizing profits at the expense of everything else on the planet has caused immeasurable harm. We need a new model of doing business, and with perfect timing, along comes Sherry Deutschmann with a model we can follow to maximize profits and take care of people. Read this book, follow it, and spread it widely. There is another way—and Sherry has proven it.”
—Vicki Saunders, CEO, SheEO, Toronto, Canada

“Working at LetterLogic was one of the greatest experiences in my life. Sherry showed how one person can really make life better for so many. Just imagine if more businesses operated like hers. Think of how far a living wage would go towards eradicating poverty . . . ”
–Patrick Johnson, President, ProGraphic South, Nashville, TN

“I have known Sherry for 25+ years—back before she started her own business and was working as a sales rep and crushing it! Sherry’s fierce approach to life translated throughout her entrepreneurial journey as she grew her business, her people, and herself. In Lunch with Lucy Sherry weaves a powerful message through her storytelling. If you truly listen, it will show you a path less traveled and one that will reveal greater fulfillment for both you and your teams.”
—Andy Bailey, CEO, Founder, and Head Coach, Petra Coach

“Every successful business owner I’ve met, either male or female, has usually built effective teams. How well they did that was based on their treatment of their employees and executives. Deutschmann’s approach of putting her people first ultimately led to a healthy bottom line, but it also invested in the company’s success. This is an important book for all business owners.”
–Marsha Firestone, PhD. President and Founder, Women Presidents’ Organization and Women Presidents’ Educational Organization

“Sherry is a shining example of a CEO who fully embodies authentic leadership. Decades ago, using her business as a vehicle for change, Sherry blazed a trail for many of us by defining a corporate culture that placed employees first. Lunch with Lucy is an inspiring story and a gift to any entrepreneur who wants to make a difference with and in their business.”
—Pamela Chaloult, CEO, Practical Feet Advisors, and Social Impact Leader

"Sherry's voice, ultimately, is unapologetic. It’s a voice that business owners must learn to cultivate to accelerate toward the realization of their greatest ideas and contributions to the marketplace and our world."
—Carla Harris, Vice Chairman, Wealth Management, Morgan Stanley

"Wittingly, Sherry uses lunch as the framework through which we might transform our relationship to traditional workplace hierarchies. Perhaps, we—as workaholic Americans—should start eating lunch together again?!"
—Esther Morales, Consultant and Former Executive Director, National Women's Business Council (NWBC)

“Sherry Stewart Deutschmann is the boss every employee wants to work for and every entrepreneur should want to be. Lunch With Lucy is a smart, honest, funny, touching, and inspiring story about a woman who succeeded in business because of her own deeply held values—especially her commitment to her people. Whether you’re an experienced leader or just starting out in business, you will find many practical and inspiring lessons in Lunch With Lucy. I’ve been a non-profit CEO for 30 years, and I lost count of the times I thought, 'Damn! I wish I’d thought of that.'”
–Marsha Bailey, Founder and CEO, WEV (Women’s Economic Ventures)

“Sherry’s proven track record making the Inc. 5000 list 10 years in a row clearly demonstrates the powerful and profitable force of marrying heart-driven intention with thought-inspired action. Sherry made an immediate impact on EarthKind after I heard her story, and a lasting impact on me as a female entrepreneur who’s out to change how pests are controlled—and ultimately how business is done. If more business functioned this way, we may no longer see 85% of workers hating their jobs, 38 million households living in poverty, or another 96 million close behind.”
—Kari Warberg Block, Founder and CEO, EarthKind

“I have worked with literally hundreds of highly talented executives, but I have never met anyone who understands the transformative power of a simple conversation the way Sherry does. If you spend any time at all with Sherry, you come away changed—more motivated, more hopeful, and feeling like a better version of yourself. Her generosity of spirit just glows.”
—Mary Sobon, Executive Coach, m2 Consulting

“Sherry is one of the smartest and most caring entrepreneurs I’ve ever met. She started and grew an uber-successful company, not only in size but in the impact she had on everyone who worked for her. She was a pioneer in what is known today as “conscious capitalism” and was playing the “Infinite Game” as Simon Sinek coined it in his latest book. Sherry treated everyone who worked for her—and every stakeholder in her company’s ecosystem—as true partners and peers. She is a walking example of a servant leader, and her company’s success is living proof of how treating your people like they should be treated can take a company to heights you never expected.”
—Ryan Tansom, Cofounder, Arkona

“Sherry’s story is compelling and captivating. In my nearly 20 years teaching at Vanderbilt, she is the single most impactful and inspiring speaker—both for my students and myself—that I have hosted. Her grit, determination, and business savvy are only surpassed by her care and commitment to her people and community. The world would be a better place if we would all read and implement her leadership characteristics. Lunch with Lucy is a must-read!”
–Kristen Tompkins, HOD Lecturer and Director of Capstone, Vanderbilt University

"Creating a healthy culture within an organization is not only good for retention, but it's good for business. Sherry Deutschmann's employee-first leadership style created brand advocates that propelled LetterLogic forward. This book is a fascinating story of how she did that, but it is also an actionable field guide for entrepreneurs looking to follow in her footsteps. So pull up a chair and dig in."
–Jacqueline Hayes, MBA, NAWBO Board Member, Chief Marketing Strategist + Principal, Crayons & Marketers

"Sherry Deutschmann pioneered past complacent competition to drive a culture of empathy that not only engaged her employees’ hands and hearts, but she set up a winning recipe for a successful exit. A must-read for any entrepreneur looking to maximize their impact!"
—Eric S. Deems, HealthTech Entrepreneur and Real Estate Investor

“What Sherry Deutschmann has done in institutionalizing and sharing her employee-first philosophy shows that valuing workers first as people makes extraordinary business sense. By placing empathy and...


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ISBN 9781733478106
PRICE $23.95 (USD)

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Featured Reviews

The description pulled me in but Sherry’s story telling is what got me hooked on this book. The simple steps she has taken to run her business as a CEO can easily translate to any individual working in any business. Loved the book and will be referencing it for many years to come.

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The description for this book was interesting and I wanted to learn more about the employee first culture that the author describes. The premise of the book is pretty simple and the author illustrates her points using the experiences she had running her company LetterLogic. The anecdotes are engaging and the author makes the point that these are universally applicable in principle if not exactly as policies. The author is clearly connected to her team and her care shows, though it would have also been useful to get more context around the business arc of the company itself and changes that happened over time chronologically to see what policies emerged over time and what impact they had on the organization as a whole.

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Sherry Deutschmann is the real deal. Her writing style is thoroughly authentic and immediately relatable. She shares her successes and her stumbles with an equal measure of humility and truth. She puts the spotlight on her company's most vital driving engine and beating heart: the people who worked there. Through empathetic leadership and by actually caring about her staff, Sherry built a hugely profitable company off the back of her washing machine. Her unwavering commitment to creating a people-first culture, paying a real fair living wage, and incentivizing everyone equally through a unique profit-sharing plan are just a few reasons why Sherry was named a White House Champion of Change by President Obama. We need more thought leaders like her. Lunch with Lucy is an inspiring blueprint for current and future leaders in any industry; leaders who are interested in flipping the script and building companies where people actually want to work.

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In this charming narrative about her experiences building her own successful printing company, Sherry supports her argument that putting employees first will result in higher profits. She created a unique culture that included an egalitarian profit-sharing plan, generous benefits, and a new way to calculate a living wage, and even an unconventional organizational chart. The takeaways from this book are surprisingly specific and profound.

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If you are starting an entrepreneurship journey or looking to be a better leader in your company, Lunch with Lucy is a phenomenal place to start.

Lunch with Lucy is about the kind of leaders employees crave and how to become one. It is written in accessible, non CEO language. It is about more than leadership. There are basic human people skills built in that many people need to work on. There are business building blocks in there too.

I love this book. I cannot say enough good things about this book. It's easy to read, engaging, and lays the groundwork for leaders to choose their employees first.

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This book was a interesting read even for someone who is not a business owner or entrepreneur. The book is structured like a three course menu with dessert at the finish. At the beginning of each chapter you have a list of ingredients or talking points or actions and at the end of the chapter with words of wisdom in takeout boxes.

This follows the authors struggles to find sufficient jobs to take care of herself and her daughter she is raising as a single parent. Most of her jobs revolve around sales which leader to sales for a printing services which eventually leads to her developing a vary successful medical billing facility. The business is based on the actions that as a worker bee most everyone would wish for in their work environment. The author can relate as she faced many of the same struggles. She accomplishes the success in her company by having meals with her people getting to know them and developing a culture that is practices through out the company. I received an ARC from NetGalley for a fair and honest review

In my opinion this is one of the better self-help business books out there. Invest a couple of hours and get some great return on your time investment it will be well worth it

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Given that I am not an entrepreneur, I was suspicious if this book was for me, but as it turns out I couldn’t be more wrong. My favorite chapter is the one on the Power of Saying No, the other ones were close calls as well.

The standout from the book is it’s conversational / storytelling style, honest and openness about the mistakes and the key takeaways. And off course it’s a balanced book in the sense it is transparent as it recommends the leadership methods and techniques whilst advising when they work and when they don’t.

So I will definitely recommend this book for all budding leaders / entrepreneurs, and off course it goes into my Must have Leadership books.

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I'm on a culture kick right now, devouring books on organizational culture, so getting the opportunity to review "Lunch With Lucy," by Sherry Deutschmann, was a real treat. Sherry's entire book is written in the tone of a friendly mentor sharing her trade secrets with her reader. Not surprisingly, Sherry's recipe for success can be distilled down into five words: take care of your people. The surprising part for me is just how much opposition she's faced in trying to implement this principle throughout her career.

Sherry gives some background for the moment she decided "enough is enough" and struck out on her own as an entrepreneur: dissatisfaction with lack of response from leadership at her previous employer, an urgent need to provide for her daughter as a single mom, and the perennial challenge of being a woman in a man's work world. She started her own company, LetterLogic, on a shoestring budget, then sold the company for 7x it's EBIDTA in 2016.

The title comes from her practice of empathetic listening. The CEO alter-ego she adopted, "Lucy", took her employees to lunch every week, sometimes in groups, sometimes one-on-one, and get to know them personally. Some of it was mentorship, some of it was friendship, but all of it was investing in her people and making them feel heard. There are many other elements of the culture she built at LetterLogic - like 10% profit sharing with employees - that contributed to the company's success - but at the heart of it all is Sherry's heart and passion for people.

If you're drowning in a toxic culture or are building a business and want to see what success truly looks like, check out Lunch With Lucy!

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