As the above Roy Ash quotation says, every organization is trying to define the best structure to stay competitive. Also what works one day may change the next. And, that’s been the basic lesson of the Internet. It has forced all organizations to ask ‘what’s the best way to do business?’ Functional hierarchies, fragmentation of …
Reengineering is here to stay All operational systems and processes must be viewed as integrated systems Fundamental questioning of everything in business is here to stay Current management skills have to be updated Employees will be making more day-to-day decisions Middle managers are an endangered species Learning marketable skills is the only measure of …
A ‘world class’ company may have several core competencies or areas of excellence involving core processes, projectized work, low costs, state-of-the-art research and development, critical management abilities, specialized equipment, team effectiveness, competitive culture, technology/know-how, or distribution strengths. Some ‘world class’ companies are well known for one exceptional core capability or process. For example, Daimler-Chrysler develops …
What are your organization’s or customer’s core processes? What are your core competencies – or what do you do best? Are you using your skills or core competencies in your work now? Are you a Brand U core process worker or do you support them (think of Handy/Hutchins model)? Are your core competencies aligned with …
Again, information and knowledge change the rules. A function, title, or position was once the source of authority and power. But, is this the case when an organization is flatter and may be virtual. What’s the source of authority and power? Is it the team leader, facilitator, or coach? Does authority rotate among Brand U’s …
Mark Albion’s Tips for ‘Making a Life: Making a Living’[i] Who are you? Find your passion: Make happiness a habit Keep your walking costs low Take your place at the table of life What do you want? Establish purpose: Know how you measure success Bring your values to work Build a domain of love What …
Organizational transformations also have changed how we’re trained to work. We were trained, nurtured and rewarded for pursuing a narrow functional career such as accounting or engineering. We’re evolving into Brand U specialized generalists as more work is structured along horizontal process lines. Love risk. Risks are going to be higher for everyone. Chaos is …
We’ve been hearing for the last couple of years of new Web models and processes. A company can become humungous developing a new business process. However, there’s no sure Web bet. Companies even within same industries are developing different business models. A key question for all Brand U’s is: ”What’s the best model and which …
Amazon.com has forever redefined the book selling and publishing business. Amazon.com started as an online bookseller. Well it’s morphing its core business, which started as selling books, but now includes collecting customer information and moving into new markets. Amazon is now profiling customers’ desires and bundling products and services that appeal to these customers. Over …
In the last ten years, the prevailing business model was to acquire, merge and diversify to increase profits. The model said that size matters because ‘economies of scale’ would result in lower costs. The result was huge companies that became global conglomerates with many unrelated core processes and products. There are many examples. Westinghouse went …