We’ve helped hundreds of companies take new products into new markets and when I say new products, I don’t mean a slightly better ‘me too’ product, but ones that completely change the way things have been done up till then. This includes tomato bio-char, de-pyrolysis of used tires, smart home grids, GPS farming, and many
Read MoreWhen I hear the expression “Best in World” I typically think of sports – F1, Olympics, Football and so on. The recent World Cup in which Lionel Messi scored two goals to lead Argentina to victory is a shining example of being “Best in World’! The road to victory is long. Argentina had to be one of the 32 qualifiers from amongst 3,900 FIFA...
Read MoreIt is difficult to understand how much the world of business has changed in the last 4 or 5 years. We have seen an earth-shaking amount of technological change, the adoption of which has been accelerated by fundamental changes in the way we work and communicate with each other. We now live in a world where distance is irrelevant, knowledge is...
Read MoreI have worked with senior managers and executive teams who wouldn't recognise strategy if it bit them on the proverbial; conversely, I have worked with great strategic thinkers in the most unexpected places with much less responsibility. The ability to think strategically has nothing to do with your role or seniority, although one hopes that execu...
Read MoreWe often have a strategy for this and a strategy for that - and we have strategic plans etc. Having quantized approaches to achieving goals can work well, especially when you know where you are and you well understand the nature of the system around you. However, when we are running businesses, with bigger, fuzzier and further out goals and much m...
Read MoreAnyone remember VUCA? It’s an acronym that stands for Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity. I’ve used VUCA as a strategic planning tool when trying to understand what was going on around me and so increase the chances of coming to an optimal course of action. As a concept, it was first described by the leadership guru Warren Bennis in...
Read MoreMost people think outward from themselves through their sales channels on then on out to their end users. That approach is wrong. It leads to a channel centric sales approach. Instead think about the ideal customer for each product or service you are selling and then think about the best way to connect with them. The channel is in fact a bridge bet...
Read MoreI spent most of last week with about 500 people at the North American MGB convention. Between us, there were about 250 cars - most of which were made before 1980. People came from all over the continent in a spirit of friendship and friendly competition. The highlight of the show was Wednesday’s “Car Show”.
Read MoreOne of the most useful things in business is to know where to play and how to win. It would be great if you could stake your claim and then settle in for a lifetime of success. Unfortunately, someone, somewhere is trying to steal your business. So, what to do? I typically ask four questions when I meet a new company:
Read MoreA recent UK employee study paints a rather troubling picture of company life. It found that: The study went on to identify that roughly half the people would leave a negative on-line review about their company, and that nearly 50% wouldn't even apply to a company that had negative online reviews. At a time when so many companies are struggling to...
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