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Monthly Archives: November 2011
5 Strategy development tips
Go to where the work is done. Too many businesses treat strategy development as an exercise to be completed in isolation, assembling lots of data and PowerPoint slides. There is no substitute for going to where the work is done … Continue reading
Posted in Management, Strategy
Tagged Leadership, Management, performance assessment, Strategy
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Lists a’plenty
The internet is choked with lists, 10 ways to do this, 5 best ways to handle that, bloggers put them in because a list is a proven driver of blog traffic. People seem to want the core of an idea … Continue reading
Posted in Change, Collaboration, Communication, Marketing, Social Media
Tagged communication, Marketing, Social Media, Strategy
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Volume is not the measure of value.
The digital world has taken over, but the emergence of social media tools that host a lot of pretty low grade stuff sometimes overshadows the huge impact the tools of the web can have, sometimes life-changing and even saving, impacts. … Continue reading
Posted in Communication, Leadership, Personal Rant, Social Media
Tagged communication, Personal Rant, Social Media, web stuff
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What are we assuming?
Assumptions are the backbone of all strategic initiatives, indeed, most day to day activity. Often these assumptions are implicit, they make sense, we do not even question the assumption, by default they become as good as a fact. Really good … Continue reading
Common sense it often not common.
The case for employing intelligent people, and letting them get on with their jobs exercising common sense has been made again and again. In this lovely example of the hubris of rules, Safeway in Honolulu ensured they stuffed up by … Continue reading
Rent or buy media.
Since I was a kid in this industry, the standard terminology has been to “buy media” meaning stick an ad somewhere, and hope somebody you want to reach sees it, and takes action as a result. However, the reality is … Continue reading
Posted in Communication, Marketing, Social Media
Tagged communication, customer, Marketing
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The parallels of Europe and Billy Bloggs & Co.
The chaos in the European monetary system, and the appearance of a lack of the required backbone to address the issues has parallels in every commercial change situation I have ever seen, irrespective of the size of the oranisation: It … Continue reading
Posted in Change, Leadership, Management, Strategy
Tagged Change, change management, Leadership, Management, Politics
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Setting the marketing budget
This process has many forms, I have probably seen most of them over the years. Percentage of sales, opposition activity, what the P&L can bear, what was spent last year, what seems like a nice round number, what the new … Continue reading
Collaboration created by the price of participation.
Scientific collaboration is a challenging proposition, most scientists would agree that collaboration is a key component in problem solving, but few practice it beyond their immediate research group, as their careers are dependent on publishing. As a result, they hoard … Continue reading
What next for the Woolies/Coles stoush.
Woolworths and Coles price and promotion strategies are often shaped by what happens in the UK, as there is a history of successful imitation in Australia. The resurgence of Coles has taken the initiative from Woolworths, and the short term … Continue reading
Posted in Marketing, Small business, Strategy
Tagged customer, Management, Marketing, retailer, Strategy, supply chain
1 Comment
“Unlearning”
Most acknowledge that the future will be different from the past, so why is it that we seem determined to manage our way to the future by repeating the recipes of success from the past. Future success relies on doing … Continue reading
Posted in Innovation, Leadership, Marketing
Tagged category management, Innovation, Leadership
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Meeting conduct.
The conduct of meetings, whether they be the AGM of a major company, or the committee of the local raffle group should run by the same basic set of rules, worked out over a long period to ensure that a … Continue reading
Business planning rethought
Writing a business plan is usually a priority in business, some do it well, some do it poorly, but what most do not do is write a business plan that evolves. Effective business planning considers the long term context in … Continue reading
Posted in Management, Operations
Tagged change management, Management, performance assessment
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Innovation, does yours make it?
Every product manager I have ever seen sees his/her pack change, flavor extension, or new size as an innovation, and every marketing manager who lets this mediocre stuff take up valuable time, the only resource that is really irreplaceable, is … Continue reading
Posted in Customers, Innovation, Marketing
Tagged category management, Innovation, Marketing
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Electronic double edged sword.
The electronic revolution in all its guises is a paradox, and a huge challenge to any management group, and individual who seeks to make a mark. On one hand, the advances in the capacity to process, store and transmit data … Continue reading
Posted in Management, Strategy
Tagged Change, change management, Management, Strategy
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Error recovery, not error avoidance
The core skill of a successful innovator is their ability to recover from disappointment and failure, to learn from it, and go again, to embrace and recover fom error, not avoid it. As Steve Jobs Pixar’s founder said, “The people … Continue reading
Posted in Collaboration, Communication, Leadership
Tagged collaboration, communication, Leadership
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Avoid Brand Depreciation
A consumers relationship with a brand is a bit like a friendship, if it is strong, you will be prepared to put up with a bit of nonsense and still be friends, if it is weak, you may not be. … Continue reading
Posted in Branding, Communication, Marketing, Strategy
Tagged communication, customer, Marketing, Strategy
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Profit, purpose, and motivation.
It seems that the carrot and stick approach will work less in the future than it has in the past. Science is demonstrating that for tasks that require even a modest amount of cogitative skill, paying more for the task … Continue reading
Posted in Change, Leadership, Strategy
Tagged Change, change management, collaboration, Innovation, Leadership, performance assessment
1 Comment
Why is Qantas different?
Yesterday’s question time, a childish brawl over who knew what and when about the Qantas decision to ground its aircraft, lock out staff, and leave customers around the world stranded, got me thinking. Not just about the pointless squabbling amongst the … Continue reading
Posted in Management, Operations, Strategy
Tagged change management, Management, negotiation, Operations, Politics
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Disruptive view of the future
Gary Hamel is one of the leading management thinkers around. Every time he speaks, he is worth listening to, and whilst you may not always agree, there is always depth to his views. In this post he proposes that management … Continue reading
Posted in Change, Leadership, Management, Strategy
Tagged Change, change management, Leadership, Management, performance assessment, Strategy
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StrategyAudit 