Every company’s goal is to encourage Brand U’s to ‘wow’ external customers. Suppliers are encouraged to work closely with manufacturers. Instead of looking to Marketing or Sales as the focus of all customer activities and opportunities, there are now multiple points of customer contact and support. In one company, production people communicate directly with customers …
There have been lots of mergers in the last year in telecommunications, auto, banking, and healthcare industries. What are the signals for a merger or rapid change? Well there is the ‘top three’ rule. In competitive, mature markets, the rule says there is room for only three major players along with several niche players.” Some …
Forward leaning companies believe in ‘creative destruction.’ Peter Drucker, the dean of management gurus, calls it ‘organized abandonment.’ It’s a tough process. “The change leader puts every product, every service, every process, every market, every distribution channel, every customer and every end use on trial for its life,” says Drucker. [i] If we agree that …
Changing competitive environment Deregulation Low internal and external customer satisfaction Low profit margins Poor quality, cost, or product development performance Slow or very fast company growth Mergers, acquisitions, reengineering, or other organizational transformations New external management Resistance to change No top level management commitment Inflexible organization Strong departmental silos Poor intra and inter organization communications …
Brand U’s working in organizations have to anticipate and manage change around them. So, the first question is when do organizations change? Traditional, senior managers believe that change happens when the status quo becomes more painful than making the change. If a company is truly at a crossroads, in a high-risk situation, and with multiple …
When The Fear of The Status Quo Becomes Too Painful: Change Happens Read More »
Is it better to be a leader or a manager? This is a burning question as leader/managers try to find the right balance. Some practice situational leadership/management which involves assuming different roles as the situation or context requires. Some practice one role predominantly, such as participatory or directive management. Pursuing and sharing leadership with others …
Andy Grove of Intel and Bill Gates of Microsoft are the major voices of high-tech values and success. Both believe that fear of complacency and stagnation is good for business and good for people. Fear provides the mechanisms for overcoming inertia and for stimulating forward movement. Grove’s ideas are heresy in the politically charged world, …
Peter Drucker, the preeminent management guru, says Taylorism has been: “the most lasting contribution America has made to Western thought since The Federalist Papers.”[i] Frederick W. Taylor launched his Principles of Scientific Management in 1911, which forever changed how work is done. Taylor’s principles from work specialization, project/task orientation to bonus/incentive plans are part of …
The need to continue pleasing and exciting customers is now a conventional wisdom. But, is it really true? As much as customer focus is important, too many companies are still managed by priorities and politics that don’t matter to the customer or that generate income. The Boston Consulting Group surveyed businesses and concluded that 95 …
So you’re a technical wizard in accounting, finance, or engineering. Only one problem! You don’t have much people skills. Get them or they’ll kill you. Nearly one-quarter of the executives in high-tech jobs are in deep trouble due to poor people skills. In information intensive companies, people are promoted based on technical skills. But, an …