|
|
by Rick Baker
On Aug 26, 2010
Recently, I created a picture to help me explain some of my thoughts about marketing & sales. A copy of The Marketing & Sales Picture is shown below.
In summary, the picture contains 5 pieces:
- Marketing & Sales Entrepreneurship
- Marketing & Sales Management
- Marketing Action
- Sales Action
- A cross-hatched section where Marketing & Sales activity overlap
My intent was to provide a simple [as in Seeking Simple] picture that would serve several purposes.
The key messages behind the picture are:
- We need a Picture to remind us business development work requires:
- Planning
- Integration and Coordination
- Marketing & Sales demand entrepreneurship. I have used the word ‘entrepreneur’ instead of the word ‘leader’ [I learned that from following Michael Gerber, the author of E-Myth, etc]. I define entrepreneurship as: having a vision for change and having the drive to keep pressing ahead with action aimed at that change.
- Marketing & Sales Entrepreneurship leads Marketing & Sales Management. Simply stated, there is a hierarchy and entrepreneurship wins over management.
- Marketing & Sales Management guides and controls Marketing Action and Sales Action.There are 2 major points:
- Marketing Action and Sales Action should not be done in isolation
- Marketing Action and Sales Action overlap
- Action: Action is so critical we should spell it out at least twice.
by Rick Baker
On Aug 24, 2010
Craig James is a former Hewlett-Packard employee. Craig describes how his unit of H-P achieved noteworthy success using a project-management approach to recruiting. They treated recruiting like a project. They used a project-team approach, with a team leader. They used the same interview process for each candidate. They worked to perform the recruiting under a short time frame…i.e., they worked to reduce the variables so each candidate was treated in a very similar way.
The H-P interview process steps can be summarized as:
- Host: greet candidate, give tour, explain interview process [20-30 minutes]
- Technical interview #1: tough, detailed, technical grilling [60 minutes]
- Project manager interview: the hiring manager, non-technical interview with focus on the job [45-60 minutes]
- Lunch: with the project manager and one other project team member...informal
- Human Resources interview: details about benefits and the company...reference checks [30 minutes]
- Technical interview #2: like technical interview #1 but less intense...explore candidates prior work…dig into the candidate’s explanations of his/her successes and failures [60 minutes]
- Host (reprise):...follow up questions and discussions of the next step...thank candidate [15-20 minutes]
Ultimately, the H-P team would reach a decision. Regularly the team members reached similar decisions so when the met as a team to discuss the candidates, consensus was, in general, easy to achieve.
As usual Kawasaki provides lots of good ideas, including many more helpful pieces of advice provided by Craig James.
More on the art of recruiting in future blogs…
by Rick Baker
On Aug 19, 2010
My friend Terry De Witte says that. I mean, he says “strategic first, creative when necessary, and always specific”.
The last time he said it, I said I planned to write a blog about it.
Now, the challenge is – I didn’t ask Terry to explain what he means when he says “strategic first, creative when necessary, and always specific”.
I intentionally didn’t ask him to explain what he meant because some thoughts came to mind quickly and I wanted to test if the initial thoughts I received were similar to or different from the message he was trying to deliver.
So, Terry will have the right to veto everything to follow.
“Strategic first, creative when necessary, and always specific”
- Strategic first: This resonated because the first time I read them I borrowed Napoleon Hill’s words ‘Plan Your Work and Work Your Plan’. While the thoughts have more texture than a simple sequence that starts with planning and follows with working, the guidance of plan first then work later is solid. And strategic planning is the elite business function…it envelopes the other business functions. It is tough to argue with the wisdom of doing at least a little strategic planning ahead. It would be unwise to ignore advice such as this, which comes in so many forms [and I will spare you from those forms and clichés…except for mentioning ‘Measure twice and Cut once’].
- Creative when necessary: My immediate thoughts were ‘don’t make change for the sake of change’ and ‘don’t fear change’. Also, Seek Simple….Seeking Simple is one of my philosophies. Sometimes very simple solutions are unhidden yet unseen right before our eyes. We don’t see them because we are seeking the complex. Sometimes we are seeking the complex because we feel a need to create…we place a high value on creativity. And, sometimes the perception of that high value clouds our ability to Seek Simple. Putting it another way, often creativity is overkill. However, we better be creative when necessary. We must take a balanced approach to creativity.
- and always specific: Again, my immediate thought was a lesson learned from Napoleon Hill. Napoleon Hill taught 11 Major Attributes of Leadership. Attribute 9 is “MASTERY OF DETAIL. Successful leadership calls for mastery of details of the leader’s position.” Carrying that to another level, most achievements of significance require mastery of details. We are more efficient and more effective when we master the specifics: examples include specifics of process, specifics about people, specifics of communication, and, of course, specificsabout ourselves.
OK Terry – how did I do?
References:
by Rick Baker
On Aug 12, 2010
This blog contains an argument in support of doing strategic planning in the following sequence:
- Vision Statement
- Mission Statement
- Culture Statements
- Market-Sector Statement
- Market Niche[s] Statements
- Target Markets,
- Value Propositions for each Target Market,
- Differential Advantage/Unique Selling Proposition
- Goal Statements
- Etc
***
Placing a personal or business Vision in writing is tough thought-work.
Placing a personal or business Mission in writing is tough thought-work.
To believe one can understand one's Clients’ needs and desires or one's Clients' Clients' needs and desires when one can not express one's own needs and desires in writing is flawed logic. Starting from flawed logic neuters one's ability to succeed…or, at the very least, makes the next tasks a game of chance. So, we need to start with our own needs and desires: our Vision, our Mission, etc.
Perhaps the best example of proof is the fact the vast majority of people can not write out a Unique Selling Proposition (Differential Advantage) for their business. To make sure my point is clear: a USP/DA is a concise statement that answers the Clients’ question: Why should I buy this from these folks rather than (1) buy something from someone else or (2) do nothing? Many people may be able to state something, place it in writing, and call it a USP/DA but after a bit of scrutiny it doesn't pass the test.
We can consider the USP/DA as the teeter-totter fulcrum that balances one's needs and desires against the needs and desires of one's Clients. Put another way....if there's a meeting of the minds between us and our Clients then the USP/DA is how that meeting of minds is described in simple and clear words. The USP/DA addresses my needs and desires. The USP/DA addresses my Clients’ needs and desires. Things are in balance.
As a general rule, it is a challenge to understand others.
As a general rule, it is challenging enough to understand oneself. And, if we do not understand ourselves (to the point we can describe our needs and desires in writing) then we are deluding ourselves if we conclude/presume/assume we can understand other people's needs and desires.
I suppose we could start our strategic exercises at the USP/DA [ie, at the teeter-totter fulcrum]. We could then quickly determine whether or not the 'us' side and the 'Client' side are in balance,
But, that will rarely work. So, we should start with our needs and desires: our Vision, our Mission, etc.
I'm saying, something like 99 out of 100 people can not or will not write out USPs/DAs. So, starting there is pretty much doomed. And, the 1 time out of 100 it will work the person will ask why we aren't starting with the Vision statement.
by Rick Baker
On Jul 22, 2010
The disciplines of mathematics taught us ‘first principles’.
Like first principles, statements of business premises provide a grounded starting point for business planning.
Business Premises Statements = statements of perceived truths…the major facts, as we see them, about the marketplace environment we are choosing to work in.
Before setting annual goals, we need to make clear statements of our business premises.
Business Premises statements describe only our most-important views about our chosen market niche.
5 statements, one for each of 5 Business Premises works well.
Business Premises statements must be more than descriptions of our business environment. They must explain our perception of the reasons our business makes sense.
If you practice Jim Collins’ Hedgehog Concept* then your business premises statements describe why your Hedgehog makes sense. If you practice SWOT analyses then your business premises statements show why your strengths are strengths, why your weaknesses are weaknesses, etc.
If you are starting a new business venture then your business premises statements must provide logic supporting your entrepreneurship.
If you are working to bring about major change at your business then your business premises statements must support the need for such change.
Regardless, do not rely solely on your own perceptions or those of your people. Before you finalize statements of your business premises have them reviewed by people capable of providing sound opinions about big-picture items…and only seek help from people who you know possess that big-picture capability.
If you are interested in seeing sample statements of Business Premises then let me know…
by Rick Baker
On Jul 21, 2010
While listening to Stephen M.R. Covey’s CD-book ‘The Speed of Trust’, I was thinking – if we could build trust at our workplaces then that would help pave the path for more passion at our workplaces.
I have been keeping my eyes and ears open for ways to build passion at our workplaces ever since a friend asked me – “How would we do that?”.
How can we build trust at our workplace?
According to Stephen M.R. Covey:
- Trust impacts the ‘economics’ for your business. Trust is not just the warm and fuzzy right thing to do. A workplace with trust is much more efficient than one without trust. And, the economics of improved trust can be measured.
- Trust is the #1 responsibility of leadership.
- Trust can be learned.
There are 5 Waves of Trust:
- Self-trust (give them a leader)...credibility upon which to build trust
- Relationship Trust...behaviour
- Organizational trust...alignment trust
- Marketplace trust...your brand, your reputation trust
- Societal Trust...contribution trust
How to Build Trust at your workplace:
- Make trust an explicit goal…corporate and for employees
- Explain its value in economic terms
- Measure it
- Implement it: train and apply
For well over 10 years I have told folks 3 things are sacred to me in business. One of those 3 things was and is – Don’t Lie To Me. I have spent some time explaining exactly what I mean. From now on I will not have to do that. I will either simply use the word “Trust” or I will recommend reading/listening to ‘The Speed of Trust’.
PS: This Covey book strikes several other chords for me: the father-son ‘chat’ illustrates an example of family business at its best, the trust message encourages us to aim for a better business future, the statement ‘trust can be measured’ is compelling…and more.
|
|