Assessment of the situation to devise a game plan for things to come to fruition.
At this year’s strategic planning meeting, the CEO of a small automotive parts supplier was feeling optimistic. “We’re on a path to double revenues within five years,” said Jane. “Finally, we’ll have the resources to do things right.” She and the team had been struggling to keep their demanding customers satisfied on a shoestring budget. […]
What’s the Bad News About Growth? (The answer(s) may surprise you…) Read More »
Managing risk is a major element of the “chemistry of strategy.” You must understand strategic risks — what they are, how to identify them, and how to assess and manage them from a strategic perspective. Financial risk is embedded in all risks, since the impact of all risks is ultimately financial. There are five major
How to Manage the Five Sources of Strategic Risk (Part Two) Read More »
Fred J. Conforti, Author, Beyond Goals…Beyond LEAN In the previous article we talked about needing a vision for the future. We also outlined the typical shortcomings keeping any company from being the best it can be. Now let’s look at one of the most common shortcomings keeping companies from reaching their vision– no Plan. Not
After the Vision what’s the Plan? Read More »
Rick Norris My uncle Wayne raced Indian motorcycles in the 1930s. One of his projects was refurbishing a 1936 Indian Scout, though his sons Wayne and Bart ultimately completed the project. To do so, they had to take inventory of the bike and plan the tasks of obtaining the parts and executing the labor. The
No, no, not a business plan, a strategic plan! Read More »
Jerry W. Thomas, CEO, Decision Analyst Inc. You are not feeling well, so you visit your friendly family doctor. He puts you in a new, electronic scanner and generates 28 trillion measurements of your temperature all over the surface of your body. He then saves all of these big-data measurements and, using advanced statistical algorithms and
Johnny Manziel, the 22nd pick in this year’s draft, went where no college player has gone before. Not in 78 years. The NFL draft started in 1936. Let’s do the Math. Well, math is not really my thing so let’s do the estimating thing. Roughly 12,000 football players have played in the NFL. And no
Johnny Football Used Social Media And You Can Too Read More »
You have seen them in nearly every professional setting: those not-so-subtle posters that display visually stimulating photographs complemented by inspiring quotes. As motivational spins on subliminal messaging, these photos – and a host of other similarly designed gadgets – are meant to encourage perseverance, leadership, teamwork, customer service, and other productive behaviors. The logic suggests
Motivated Before You Know Why Read More »
Study after study puts the failure rate of mergers and acquisitions between 70% and 90%. Even when they don’t fail outright, they too often fail to delight. What steps can leaders take to make sure they don’t join the ranks of disappointing statistics? It all starts with communication—before, during, and after the deal: 1. Communicate
The Urge to Merge: Successful M & A Communication Strategies Read More »
Todd C. Williams, Founder & President, eCameron, Inc. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) implementations fail at an alarming rate. In fact, your implementation probably will not meet your goals either. I have heard of few that actually do meet their goals. Unfortunately, the primary reason is not software difficulties. Regardless of what Salesforce and Microsoft tell you,
Why Your CRM Implementation Will Fail Read More »
Greg Matter, Vice President, JLL At this year’s South by Southwest (SXSW) Interactive festival, the shortening of product life-cycles, funding and recruitment were identified as some of the top challenges facing tech firms and start-ups. Although the terminology may differ, these challenges are universal across industries: developing a constant stream of innovative products that provide a competitive advantage;
The Workplace is Key in Quest for Top Talent Read More »
