Golden Rules From The Kitchen For Leadership: 'Details Matter'

Forbes

24-04-2025

Jacob Orrin is COO and co-founder of Merit, transforming government programs with digital identity solutions and driving rapid growth.
In the first lesson of this series, I discussed the French culinary term "mise en place"—"putting in place"—and how it applies to corporate leadership. This time, we're getting more into the weeds, whether you're in the kitchen or business: Details matter.
When I first started cooking, my sous chef handed me a challenge to make a set of soufflés. At first, it seemed impossible. But he gave me simple, albeit slightly snarky, lasting advice: 'It's not that hard if you just follow the instructions.'
Every detail mattered, from how I whisked the eggs to sifting the flour. Focusing on each step taught me that success wasn't out of reach—I just had to be meticulous, one soufflé at a time; 150 later, I had it down and learned the lesson.
When I transitioned from the kitchen to the corporate world, the saying, 'the devil is in the details' followed me. Whether preparing a dish or leading a multichannel sales initiative, success often depends on paying close attention to the small things.
For example, we take the time to map out the details of our sales funnel clearly. This is a lot of work up front, but it helps us better manage our pipeline. One key step in our funnel is RFP responses. When my team submits RFPs, we follow the same principle I learned sweating in the kitchen. It sounds simple, but you would be surprised how many people skip this step: 'Follow the instructions.'
Just as gathering ingredients is the first step in cooking, our RFP process starts with an internal kickoff and a detailed event brief. We cover everything, from addressing outlier questions to understanding the incumbent's past performance and reviewing previous winning RFP responses.
Every detail matters to us, from key political figures influencing the subject to blog updates and speaking notes from agency heads' recent posts and events. In business—especially when working with experienced stakeholders—missing details are easy to spot. Even something as small as getting a name wrong can ruin a proposal.
Today, tools like AI can generate materials in minutes. However, as someone who reviews many AI-generated presentations and pitches, I can easily spot when something is not right. The standout materials are those where someone has taken the time to personalize, verify and polish the content.
It might take extra effort to double-check numbers or review images, but that attention to detail separates a winning proposal from one that falls flat.
Here's how to leverage details for success:
• Follow a process: Like a recipe, create a structured approach for your go-to-market strategies. Break down your sales process into the necessary steps, and focus on each one.
• Double-check everything: Whether it's you or someone on the team, make sure to review numbers, names, imagery, technical content, etc. Create accountability so the time is invested in reviewing every detail. By being thorough upfront, you can avoid costly mistakes later.
• Stand out through personalization: In a world filled with templated materials, the extra care you put into personalizing and refining your work will help you stand out. People notice when you go that extra mile.
• Refine your processes: At the end of each cycle of whatever process you follow, relook at it. Did it serve your needs? Where should steps be added or removed? What learnings should you check for next time? If you are not continually improving the process or at least asking if it needs improvement, you could be setting yourself up for long-term failure.
Remember, success in business—like in the kitchen—is all in the details. Whether preparing a soufflé or closing a multi-million dollar deal, focusing on each step can set you up for long-term success.
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