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Will You Add? - Business Growth Tips: A Roadmap to Business Growth & A Prosperous Future
INTRODUCTION TO HOW TRADITION STALLS IMPROVEMENTSIf It Ain't Broke, Don't Fix ItA motorist asks a farmer for a glass of water. The farmer obliges, using a hand pump to draw water from a well. The pump handle turns close to a board, and the farmer curses as he scrapes his knuckles against it.Motorist: Why not move that board? It serves no purpose.Farmer: It's been there since my father's time. If it was good enough for him, it is good enough for me.Aping Human BeingsImagine a cage containing five apes. In the cage, hang a banana on a string over some stairs. Before long, as the story goes, an ape will decide to go up the stairs to grab the banana. As soon as that ape touches the stairs, spray all the apes with icy water. After a
- For existing products, do the product plans line up with corporate objectives?
- What are the skills and background of the people in product manager roles?
Like many companies, he found AHT only addressed these issues intermittently, meaning he received many answers he did not want to hear. In discussions with the vice presidents at the next staff meeting, JR and his executive management team agreed they needed to personally apply more consistent attention and focus.
Discovering Niches and Segments
Next, JR dug into the product plan for AHT’s product with the largest growth objective. He found the sales target, marketing communications plan, and the planned product enhancements. But the assessment of competitors was weak. Worse, the description of target customers and applications was mis
How long will your office space be filled with noise, dust, confusion and distractions? No matter how long it is too long.You can escape all the remodeling hassles by renting commercial office space for a week, month or however long you need it. And often the expense is more than justified by keeping your business productivity high.Commercial office space doesn’t refer to retail facilities. It is a concept originally developed to answer the need for temporary office space. It makes moving from a remodeling war zone simple and easy. Here are just a few of the reasons why commercial office space is a convenient way to escape remodeling distractions. There is no long-term lease involved. The day the remodeling starts you move out.
Or are they?
With business growth rates well below the market, AHT is losing customers and hence market share. At a minimum, this means lost opportunities.
Competitors are gaining enough critical mass to develop the next product faster or better. AHT’s biggest competitor has won three bids with “leading edge” requirements, leaving JR worried about his next generation product.
If you were JR and his board, where would you look to escape this predicament? My experience suggests the answer is in marketing strategy, not in technology.
To increase your company’s business growth, your new thinking and priorities should focus on:
- Finding hidden opportunities – Your potential business growth solutions are buried inside your current approach to product enhancement and development.
- Applying product discipline – You need to find and apply the right balance of technical and business factors for proactive product management.
- Discovering customer niches -- You need to find specific customers with unique needs that you can serve better than others could.
Six months ago, JR started down this road. Here is his path to business growth success:
Finding the hidden portfolio gold & fixing your R&D investment black hole
AHT had a large “portfolio” of products and product enhancements in development. Like many companies I’ve seen, AHT’s pipeline had many small, incremental projects and very few truly innovative ones.
To fix his R&D problem, JR decided that he needed to divide the projects into 3 categories:
1. Major new products: Greater than 10 percent of firm revenue within three years.
2. Significant product enhancements: defined as substantial new customer functionality.
3. All other.
JR knew there were only four new products underway, counting two in the very early stages. He was surprised to find only seven significant enhancements, and even more surprised to find 73 “all other” projects.
Next, JR needed to understand the resources assigned to each category. Because there had been no central resource tracking, this step was hard for JR’s staff. They had to visit each product group and each functional organization several times before obtaining the necessary information. Everyone was surprised to discover only 20 percent of the resources assigned to major new products and another 15 percent on enhancements—with the remaining 65 percent working on “all other.”
The solution was obvious. Take resources from “all other” and add them to new product development or product enhancements. Not only did this improve confidence in launch dates, it opened a floodgate of possibilities for new products.
Applying Product Discipline
While looking at the AHT product development projects, JR first drew them out on a calendar showing launch dates. Then he asked his engineers and product managers some questions. They included:
- When are intermediate reviews scheduled and who is participating?
- Can you show me the specific customer needs that preceded the technical work?
- For existing products, do the product plans line up with corporate objectives?
- What are the skills and background of the people in product manager roles?
Like many companies, he found AHT only addressed these issues intermittently, meaning he received many answers he did not want to hear. In discussions with the vice presidents at the next staff meeting, JR and his executive management team agreed they needed to personally apply more consistent attention and focus.
Discovering Niches and Segments
Next, JR dug into the product plan for AHT’s product with the largest growth objective. He found the sales target, marketing communications plan, and the planned product enhancements. But the assessment of competitors was weak. Worse, the description of target customers and applications was miss
Put many different people together in one place, day after day after day, and conflicts are bound to happen. Most people work them out on their own, but what happens when the conflict doesn't go away and threatens the productivity of your entire staff or team?We've all seen it – Mary isn't speaking to Susan; Ted and Tom can't be put on the same project; Bill goes behind Karen's back and "forgets" to include her in project discussions. Some days, it's like working in a kindergarten. As the manager, what is your role in resolving workplace conflicts?The knee-jerk response of most managers is to overlook the conflict, in the hopes that it will go away. After all, we think, these people are adults; I shouldn't have to tell them how to behave.Unfortunat
To increase your company’s business growth, your new thinking and priorities should focus on:
- Finding hidden opportunities – Your potential business growth solutions are buried inside your current approach to product enhancement and development.
- Applying product discipline – You need to find and apply the right balance of technical and business factors for proactive product management.
- Discovering customer niches -- You need to find specific customers with unique needs that you can serve better than others could.
Six months ago, JR started down this road. Here is his path to business growth success:
Finding the hidden portfolio gold & fixing your R&D investment black hole
AHT had a large “portfolio” of products and product enhancements in development. Like many companies I’ve seen, AHT’s pipeline had many small, incremental projects and very few truly innovative ones.
To fix his R&D problem, JR decided that he needed to divide the projects into 3 categories:
1. Major new products: Greater than 10 percent of firm revenue within three years.
2. Significant product enhancements: defined as substantial new customer functionality.
3. All other.
JR knew there were only four new products underway, counting two in the very early stages. He was surprised to find only seven significant enhancements, and even more surprised to find 73 “all other” projects.
Next, JR needed to understand the resources assigned to each category. Because there had been no central resource tracking, this step was hard for JR’s staff. They had to visit each product group and each functional organization several times before obtaining the necessary information. Everyone was surprised to discover only 20 percent of the resources assigned to major new products and another 15 percent on enhancements—with the remaining 65 percent working on “all other.”
The solution was obvious. Take resources from “all other” and add them to new product development or product enhancements. Not only did this improve confidence in launch dates, it opened a floodgate of possibilities for new products.
Applying Product Discipline
While looking at the AHT product development projects, JR first drew them out on a calendar showing launch dates. Then he asked his engineers and product managers some questions. They included:
- When are intermediate reviews scheduled and who is participating?
- Can you show me the specific customer needs that preceded the technical work?
- For existing products, do the product plans line up with corporate objectives?
- What are the skills and background of the people in product manager roles?
Like many companies, he found AHT only addressed these issues intermittently, meaning he received many answers he did not want to hear. In discussions with the vice presidents at the next staff meeting, JR and his executive management team agreed they needed to personally apply more consistent attention and focus.
Discovering Niches and Segments
Next, JR dug into the product plan for AHT’s product with the largest growth objective. He found the sales target, marketing communications plan, and the planned product enhancements. But the assessment of competitors was weak. Worse, the description of target customers and applications was mis
The foundation for success…A common challenge for all businesses is how to pay for the equipment needed to perform their services. Even among experts and professionals, opinions will often vary. The one thing you must recognize is that each business is unique and there are no standards that work for everyone. Only you know what your capital reserves are and what type of reserves your business will require from month-to-month. While some businesses are more sophisticated than others, only you have access to the full spectrum of your financial position today and the forecast of what responsibilities there are to come. It is not only essential that you prepare yourself adequately; it’s crucial.In the beginning, one of the first professionals you should
To fix his R&D problem, JR decided that he needed to divide the projects into 3 categories:
1. Major new products: Greater than 10 percent of firm revenue within three years.
2. Significant product enhancements: defined as substantial new customer functionality.
3. All other.
JR knew there were only four new products underway, counting two in the very early stages. He was surprised to find only seven significant enhancements, and even more surprised to find 73 “all other” projects.
Next, JR needed to understand the resources assigned to each category. Because there had been no central resource tracking, this step was hard for JR’s staff. They had to visit each product group and each functional organization several times before obtaining the necessary information. Everyone was surprised to discover only 20 percent of the resources assigned to major new products and another 15 percent on enhancements—with the remaining 65 percent working on “all other.”
The solution was obvious. Take resources from “all other” and add them to new product development or product enhancements. Not only did this improve confidence in launch dates, it opened a floodgate of possibilities for new products.
Applying Product Discipline
While looking at the AHT product development projects, JR first drew them out on a calendar showing launch dates. Then he asked his engineers and product managers some questions. They included:
- When are intermediate reviews scheduled and who is participating?
- Can you show me the specific customer needs that preceded the technical work?
- For existing products, do the product plans line up with corporate objectives?
- What are the skills and background of the people in product manager roles?
Like many companies, he found AHT only addressed these issues intermittently, meaning he received many answers he did not want to hear. In discussions with the vice presidents at the next staff meeting, JR and his executive management team agreed they needed to personally apply more consistent attention and focus.
Discovering Niches and Segments
Next, JR dug into the product plan for AHT’s product with the largest growth objective. He found the sales target, marketing communications plan, and the planned product enhancements. But the assessment of competitors was weak. Worse, the description of target customers and applications was mis
It's absolutely essential that you find a way to differentiate your business in a meaningful way. I know I talk about this all the time, but it's that important.What if you interviewed a handful of clients and asked them this question: "What's the ONE word you would use that best describes what we do well?" Is it fast, attentive, welcoming, creative, cheap, cool, techie, smart, caring? One word is tough, but you need to get there. One simple word that sums up how you are different. If you can do that, and it's a word that means a lot to a lot, your marketing job will be significantly easier.Can't think of a word? If your business was a car, what type would it be? Why? What are the qualities you admire in people? What color is your business? What kind of m
The solution was obvious. Take resources from “all other” and add them to new product development or product enhancements. Not only did this improve confidence in launch dates, it opened a floodgate of possibilities for new products.
Applying Product Discipline
While looking at the AHT product development projects, JR first drew them out on a calendar showing launch dates. Then he asked his engineers and product managers some questions. They included:
- When are intermediate reviews scheduled and who is participating?
- Can you show me the specific customer needs that preceded the technical work?
- For existing products, do the product plans line up with corporate objectives?
- What are the skills and background of the people in product manager roles?
Like many companies, he found AHT only addressed these issues intermittently, meaning he received many answers he did not want to hear. In discussions with the vice presidents at the next staff meeting, JR and his executive management team agreed they needed to personally apply more consistent attention and focus.
Discovering Niches and Segments
Next, JR dug into the product plan for AHT’s product with the largest growth objective. He found the sales target, marketing communications plan, and the planned product enhancements. But the assessment of competitors was weak. Worse, the description of target customers and applications was mis
Links are one of the most convenient features of the internet. The ability to go from website to website and land exactly at the information you are looking for is like opening a book and getting the page you need every time.If you can anticipate the information that your event participants need and point them directly to it, when they need it, you will get more registrations and make registering and attending your event more enjoyable and beneficial.Before we get to a list of links that you may want to use, keep in mind that you can over do it. Try to keep your registration form uncluttered by only adding links that will help during the actual registration process. The rest of the links should go in the confirmation email or on the event website where th
- For existing products, do the product plans line up with corporate objectives?
- What are the skills and background of the people in product manager roles?
Like many companies, he found AHT only addressed these issues intermittently, meaning he received many answers he did not want to hear. In discussions with the vice presidents at the next staff meeting, JR and his executive management team agreed they needed to personally apply more consistent attention and focus.
Discovering Niches and Segments
Next, JR dug into the product plan for AHT’s product with the largest growth objective. He found the sales target, marketing communications plan, and the planned product enhancements. But the assessment of competitors was weak. Worse, the description of target customers and applications was missing. In other words, no description of why a customer would buy AHT’s product or which customers should be interested.
I’ve seen this pattern at many companies. The value proposition is missing or too broad, without real and specific customer benefits. Crafting a great value proposition includes becoming very specific about benefits in terms that affect the customer’s bottom line.
JR quickly realized that the most productive place to look for revenue growth was in incremental uses and new customers for AHT’s three key existing products. He asked his marketing, sales, engineering and customer service leaders to carefully understand and document each benefit received by current customers, then identify other similar customers.
Business Growth’s Bottom Line
After six months of focus, JR and his board are feeling better. Revenue growth for the last quarter was 17 percent and the most recent product launch was on time. The whole company now has a positive outlook and people are buzzing with energy. It took two new product managers and a lot of executive attention, but the customer niche/value proposition concept has really taken hold. The VP of sales even became a believer when he landed an elusive key account after a presentation of AHT key product benefits (rather than their technical capabilities).
The product launch schedule has six new products and fifteen enhancements in the pipeline, all with strong executive support and no more “black hole.”
I sincerely hope your company isn’t facing the problems faced by JR and his board at AHT. But if you are, try JR’s roadmap for business growth. Find the hidden opportunities, apply product discipline, and discover your customer niches.
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