This is a special edition of the Tuesday TuneUp. Our team has talked with hundreds of CEOs about their issues and their plans. Here is what we learned in 2021 and our take on the big ideas for 2022. Enjoy.
Graham: Employee / Employer Relationships The pandemic will become endemic and we will increasingly realize that we are not going back to our old normal. This is particularly true for employee / employer relationships. The pandemic exposed issues that have been bubbling under the surface for years. We are now well and truly into a new paradigm - the Age of the Employee. People - as employees - are re-evaluating what is important in life. We are seeing 'the Great Resignation' as people take themselves out of the workforce - driving down unemployment numbers but also driving up unfilled positions. Those remaining in the workforce are seeking more than just a job and a salary - they want purpose, a sense of fulfilment, respect, connection and work flexibility. This trend is only just starting. Employers must create flexible working conditions where people can work from home as well as on-site, where they feel they are connected with a sense of belonging, equally seen, recognized and rewarded for their contribution. This will require new leadership and soft management skills, and provision of better enabling technologies. All our clients are experiencing this. The best employees will leave the laggards and migrate to those employers who embrace the new paradigm. Are you ready?
Jelena: Selling with Empathy In the last two years control shifted to the hands of the buyer. You are not in the world of selling any more. Supply chain issues stimulated many companies to sell direct to end users (D2C). Companies that embraced this shift and adjusted their business models pushed through and succeeded. So, who are those people that buy from you? What do those people believe in? What do they want? How do you make their life better when they engage with you? Always keep these answers top of mind and make it purposefully flow through everything you do. Your customer can replace you with couple of clicks. Empathy is what will move your customer relationships from being merely transactional towards a mutually fulfilling value exchange. How well do you know the journey your customer is on?
Andrew: Planning for Exponentiality The earth has held steady on Grodon Moore’s trajectory for roughly 50 years. The technology available today is 67,000,000 times as powerful as that which helped man land on the moon in 1969. Next year it will be double that. (You may want to think your five-year plan…). Exponential change is hard for humans to grasp but it is roaring through every facet of business – thousands of miniscule effects that add up to a tsunami of change. We see it in all our markets. I challenge you to take a blank sheet into your next planning session and explore this idea with your team. To predict the future is a mugs game - but practicing thinking about and being nimble are essential. What does your tsunami look like?
What we did this yearOver the last year we have been pleased to have worked with clients on four continents (North America, Europe, South America and Africa). We completed a record number of projects for companies involved in: the on-line tutoring industry, SAAS, building sciences, property development, appliance manufacturing, IT services, mining engineering, power systems engineering, agricultural implement manufacturing, steel fabrication systems, health care products, greenhouse systems, carbon sequestering systems, optical scanning systems, smart cities, smart buildings, cannabis production machinery, solar systems, alternate fuel systems, industrial tools manufacturing, as well as a number of pro-bono activities including speaking at events in Ontario as well as in the UK and Latvia. We were also invited to join the prestigious Manufacturing Masters organization. As many of you have discovered, technology has allowed us to increase our effectiveness and to project our services around the world.
As Kingsford starts its 25th year in business, we wish each and every one of you a very happy holidays and a fantastic 2022.
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