About Doug Phares

Managing Partner, Silverwind Enterprises & E&P Columnist

Doug Phares is passionate about finding ways for businesses to get past the hurdles that everyone stumbles on. From small-scale work like examining product bundling to helping decision-makers develop 3-year plans, Phares has seen it all over the course of his career.

Phares was most recently the CEO of the Sandusky Newspaper Group (SNG), a media holding company operating in Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee. Phares joined SNG as publisher of its namesake, the Sandusky (Ohio) Register, and made such an impact in change management than he took over leadership of the entire group a short time later.

While Phares’ most recent position was focused on local media, he maintains that the rules of business are universal: Simplify your processes, keep clear lines of communication, and keep everyone engaged in meeting goals.This approach has met with many successes, and Phares now has a pool of professional contacts who are available for all Silverwind clients who may need industry-specific insight or any other form of highly targeted assistance.

More than anything, Phares understands the power of setting goals and sticking to them. Beyond ever-changing “hot tips” or new industry-generated buzzwords, Phares identifies problems and sets people on clear paths to progress. Phares will never claim to have secret shortcuts to success or any other hollow promises, but he does have the experience to help clients identify their pain points and stay on the path to fixing them.

Outside of his professional life, Phares serves on the board of directors for the local chapter of Rotary International. In the past, he's held various board positions with United Way, and has also served as President of chambers of commerce and other non-profit groups in several cities.

A University of Illinois graduate, Phares spends what free time is left sailing, scuba diving, and playing with cameras. He fails to understand the allure of Twitter but will sometimes engage in frustrated dalliances with it. Additionally, he regularly contributes to a column in Editor & Publisher.

Latest Columns from "The Corner Office"

The trend is the trend is the trend. Using momentum to gauge your business' performance.

Business momentum tends to be a more significant factor in gauging a business’ performance than many people think. Some of what is happening to you may be of your own making, but it’s important to remember that you're surrounded by outside forces that could change your trajectory.

Strategy or tactics. Is that the North Star or a train heading toward you?

We’re well into the new year, and by now, you certainly have some sense of what you want to accomplish in 2023. I know because it seems like everyone has been forced to identify some goal, direction or thought for the year. But setting up a goal, or “strategic objective,”  is not the same thing as executing one.

Stop already!

I’ll give you some business advice you probably don’t get a lot: Stop. Stop already! Your business is trying to do too much at once; you’re trying to do too much. Stopping is often viewed as a failure or, at the very least, a lack of success. But “not winning right this second” and “losing” are very different things. But how do you tell what’s worth your time?
More Corner Office
Just a couple of months ago, everyone was talking about the Great Resignation or the Big Quit. Whatever industry you were in, whether you were hiring a barista or a senior sales executive, suddenly everyone was desperate and hiring much more generously. Better salaries, better benefits, better everything. And hopefully, you got yourself into a stable position, because we’re entering a new era on the job market — the Big Regret.
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It's important for managers to take stock of what percentage of their time they spend leading versus doing. By leading, this means managerial tasks like project management and enabling your team to do the work. By doing, it means completing the vital functions that keep revenue flowing.
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If you’re reading this and your organization is still standing — congratulations! The worst of the pandemic, physically speaking, is behind you, and you’ve managed to navigate an unforeseeable global crisis for over two years. And your reward is an oncoming recession.
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The timeless pursuit of contracting experts to give new insights is a fairly standard practice in the business world. And whether it’s a consultant, a subject matter expert or anyone else, it’s vital in these situations to think of why you brought someone in to look at the situation and give their assessment. And, once you have someone you’re confident can help you, you have to listen to them!
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When sharing your financials with your team, try to not give people more information they need to perform their jobs. Isolate the things that are high-impact and they can control. For example, instead of issuing that 47-line sheet, offer routine updates with three items that they have the most control over on the revenue side and four items that they have the most control over on the expense side.
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Businesses used to pay newspapers obscene amounts of money to run help-wanted ads; then, job seekers paid for access to where the employers were. But monopolies rarely last forever, and like with every other facet of life, the internet came in and disrupted the traditional dynamic. So, what’s the alternative to a dating app culture becoming the way we hire people?
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Sales can get a bad rap, but there are fundamental elements of selling that can be useful at any level in an organization. In fact, I'd argue that many of the core tenets of sales are really just good management skills. And the higher up the corporate ladder you are, the more essential sales skills could be for you.
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If you’ve received any business advice in the past, say, 50 years, I’m willing to bet that it came with the assumption that you wanted to expand. We hear that advice all the time — make it bigger and better, scale this area, try these new strategies for growth and similar ideas. But should growing always be the ultimate goal of every business venture?
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Here are a few ideas of ways you can work on yourself and, by extension, your organization in 2022.
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There is something to be said for one particular philosophy from 1991’s “City Slickers.” The grizzled old ranch hand, Curly, relays the secret to life — to focus on “one thing. Just one thing.” As you're starting 2022, pick one single thing to focus on. If you can't pick one big thing, try to find four things you can give your attention to in 2022. Then, rank them in order of when you think you could reasonably roll them out during the year.
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Managing is a constant juggling act, where you’re trying to get your organization, your team and yourself to the place you want them to be. And as you work on getting to that place, you’ll often find that that goal you’ve been working toward isn’t actually what you want.
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We’re well past the halfway point for the year, and in many ways, it’s starting to feel like the new normal is setting in. It’s not quite what most of us were used to, but as new buying habits, new patterns, new products, and new services have changed everyone’s lives, we’re starting to see groves form as the baseline for “normal” shifts.
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When was the last time you called your own phone system? If you don’t remember, now is the time to make that call. Literally, stop reading right now and call your own main number—not somebody’s office, call the one that rings to your auto attendant.
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While managing different companies over the years, I learned a few tricks with onboarding new employees. One of my favorites could help a lot of people in the coming months.
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It may seem impossible after dealing with the pandemic for so long, but we are finally on the cusp of the world reopening. There’s some variance depending on where you are, your vaccination rates, and other important factors, but the overall trend is that we're certainly inching closer to a post-pandemic world.
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After more than 12 months of getting by in a pandemic, I think it’s fair to say that we’ve all learned a lot. We’ve all but made it through one of the biggest business disruptions in contemporary history, and that has required a lot of adaptation and flexibility from all of us.
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I recently had lunch with a friend of mine who’s an architect, and in our conversation about our lives, he told me that before he shows a client a first draft of his work, he gives them a disclaimer: “This is not the house you need. It’s the house you thought you wanted.”
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Congratulations. You’ve started your year and the 2021 budget is officially in full swing. Bet it’s going just how you planned it, right? You put time and research into crafting your budget, you make educated assumptions, and you put in the work to get ready for the new year.
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Collaboration is a buzzword that we hear a lot. To some extent, we all know why it’s important: More eyes on a project can lead to more ideas, better troubleshooting, etc. And while collaboration is all well and good, it’s important to consider the real, operational costs of bringing everyone together.
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It would be a drastic understatement to say that we’re living in a time of change. In the past eight months, we have seen core improvements to the way we approach long-distance communication. So, what does that mean for the traditional office meeting?
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As we all keep going and the pandemic drags on, there’s a temptation to just “hang in there” until normal comes back around. But as many people are realizing, normal isn’t …
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"Leopards don’t change their spots, they just learn to hide them."
The phrase “unprecedented times” has become a platitude at this point, and while this situation is unique, I believe that we can draw from past experiences to help navigate these new …
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E&P Exclusives
Dave Stevens is the only legless player in sports history to have played NCAA football and minor league baseball. The seven-time Emmy-winning sports journalist is now a motivational speaker and television host as he nears 40 years in broadcasting. While he says the media industry has come a long way in terms of inclusivity, he adds: "we still have a long way to go in this and other aspects of society."
As philanthropic support of news organizations has increased substantially, Journalism Funding Partners was founded to bring more funding sources and news organizations together to support and report on the issues impacting local communities. JFP disbursed $2.2 million in funds in 2022 and has provided more than $1 million during the first quarter of 2023 to news organizations.
Getting onsite click-to-cancel right is imperative for the coming generation of news media and will require techniques built on highly valuable content, efficient user experiences and transparency. Any applicable future adaptations needed in your onsite cancellation and retention experiences should not be viewed as obstacles but as opportunities to reassess and refine your product strategy and communication flows.
In newsrooms across the country, editors bear heavy responsibilities — leading the newsroom, determining what stories should be told and who is best positioned to tell them, challenging assertions, developing talent, elevating journalism — all while maintaining an unwavering commitment to the public’s interest. Their names may not always be as familiar as bylined reporters or celebrated columnists, but their insight, experience and leadership are indispensable. We hope you enjoy meeting this exemplary group of E&P’s 2023 Editors Extraordinaire.
Newspapers save lives. Many newspapers are recognized as vital local institutions in their communities, but how many can literally say they have saved a life? The Somers Record (one of six local newspapers owned by Halston Media) helped a critical local patient find a needed kidney.
#NewsMedia Industry News
The Israel Defense Forces has apologized for the death of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh, a year to the day after she was killed by a bullet to the back of the head while covering an Israeli military operation in Jenin in the occupied West Bank.
The Inter American Press Association condemned the intensification of repression in Nicaragua, which has left detained three journalists since the beginning of April. The organization urged the international community to swiftly denounce the regime's persecution of freedom of expression and press freedom.
The board overseeing Puerto Rico’s finances convinced the high court to prevent a media organization from gaining access to government documents.
Thoughts, aloud. “Matter of Opinion” features lively conversations from Opinion’s Michelle Cottle, Ross Douthat, Carlos Lozada and Lydia Polgreen. The first episode premiered May 11.
The multi-year collaboration aims to provide value to sports fans and access to major sports moments.
#NewsMedia News People
Effective September 2023, Matea Gold will oversee several major newsroom departments.
Hank Stuever has been named deputy features editor of The Washington Post. He will focus on the Style section and the politics, media, fashion, entertainment and breaking news desks within Features, leading the daily report and working on the online Style relaunch.
Beginning this week, Mick Mulvaney will offer commentary and analysis across the network’s daytime and primetime programming, including the new political ensemble program, “The Hill,” and special election and political coverage. Mulvaney’s first appearance was May 9 on “The Hill” at 5 p.m. ET.
The Financial Times has appointed Soumaya Keynes as an economics podcast host and columnist. Keynes is currently Britain economics editor at The Economist and will join the FT in the summer.
Since December, eight top-ranking editors and executives at Gannett and flagship paper USA TODAY have left.
Industry Partner News
Email newsletters continue to be one of the most powerful newsroom tools, regularly connecting publications with their audiences and encouraging readers to develop a habit and establish loyalty toward a news organization. Looking to spruce up a newsletter or planning a new launch? Here are some tried and true strategies for optimizing newsletters that publishers can put into place today.
The challenges are many when launching a new local, nonprofit news outlet, especially in the current newspaper industry climate. Deciding to be a digital-only news source with a hard registration wall meant the Springfield (Missouri) Daily Citizen had to rely heavily on various technologies to manage email registration and subscriptions. BlueLena's intimate knowledge of subscription best practices allowed the paper to rapidly evolve its products toward launch.
Each year Editor & Publisher Magazine (E&P) and the Local Media Consortium (LMC) recognize companies that have done the impossible through successful innovation, implementing cost savings or developing new programs that have generated considerable increases in revenue or audience.
We need your help in recognizing the next generation of news publishing leaders,. We’re talking about people who are young, bright, and capable of tackling whatever the changing news media climate throws at them. Please help us by nominating a news publishing up-and-comer (or yourself) for our “25 Under 35” feature story that will appear in our February 2023 issue.