From BookJive
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| Edition: | William Morrow (Hardcover) |
| Author: | Peter Sheahan |
| Published: | April 2008 |
| Pages: | 320 |
| ISBN 10: | 0061558958 |
| New: | $1.94 (20) |
| Used: | $0.04 (24) |
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Introduction: Getting Flipped
Flip: A shift in mind-set and thinking; often a counterintuitive approach that reflects the hard reality of the business landscape as it is today, and not as it used to be.
Today’s competitive businesses must think AND not OR when it comes to pleasing the customer. Forget conventional wisdom and learn how to frequently ‘flip’ your view and attitudes to meet the challenges of a fast-paced, ever-changing market. Tomorrow’s leaders are those who are intellectually flexible, open to change, and willing to take action in the face of uncertainty.
The Four Forces of Change
These inevitable forces can be seen as the enemy or the ally.
1. Increasing compression of time and space--Technology is allowing for faster and faster delivery, and people’s expectations are keeping pace. Globalization has raised expectations for both international and local businesses. 2. Increasing complexity--Disruptive technology, a market saturated in seemingly identical products and increasingly sophisticated systems is making the marketplace more complex and difficult to navigate. 3. Increasing transparency and accountability--Digital communication, legislation and grassroots movements are all forcing businesses to be more transparent and accountable about how they do business and how it will impact the customer as well as the environment. 4. Rising expectations--What used to be luxuries are now considered necessities. Likewise, things that are considered luxuries today won’t be considered luxuries tomorrow.
Action Creates Clarity
Plans don’t make a person great, action does. That doesn’t mean that planning doesn’t have its place, but with all of the complex variables in today’s world, the only way to really know if something is going to work or not, is to actually do it. Taking action has it’s own way of illuminating what needs to happen next. If you don’t act on a good idea, someone else will.
Strategy on the Go!
Rather than having no strategy, have a strategy that works in motion and allows for flexibility and quick decisions when necessary. Forget having a 5, 10, or twenty-year plan. Instead have a broad vision or “trajectory” of where you are going. Narrow plans make it difficult to absorb rapid market changes and new technology. Broad plans keep things more flexible. You can work out the kinks as you go, rather than trying to adhere to a fixed master plan. Don’t be afraid to step in the unknown and embrace new forms of media and marketing even if they are new and “messy”.
Decision Making On the Move
Back when we were hunter-gatherers we honed the human ability to make quick, difficult decision. Change has always been a part of the human condition. However, many organizations are based on “command and control” rather than on the much more effective “change and adapt” culture. In spite of the arrogance of many who presume to know the future, there is no way anyone can know what changes are ahead. The industrial age lent itself well to “systemizing and efficiency”, but in the current “creative age”, which can also be called the “relationship age”—we are more successful when we think on our feet. Studies show that intuition is useful, and can be just as effective as slow, logical analysis, so don’t be afraid to use yours!
Build a Bridge and Get Over It
Uncertainties and fear of the unknown can cause inaction. For example, some traditional photography suppliers and stores resisted digital photography rather than embracing it until it was too late, or until they had already lost out on a tremendous amount of profit. Everyone is afraid of failure, but it is those who go out and do something anyway that end up being the most successful. If you see a change coming, don’t run from it; run towards it!
Avoiding Regret
Don’t collect a pile of “if onlys”. Contrary to what most people believe, studies show that you are more likely to regret not doing something smart, than you will regret doing something stupid. Common regrets include, not going to college, not jumping on profitable business opportunities, and not spending enough time with family and friends. Successful people don’t let ambiguity and confusing markets keep them from taking action. Customers are loyal to companies that make bold, timely choices, like those that phase out popular styles before they reach their peak (Nike) or those who offer the marketplace a smart alternative in the face of uncertainty (Toyota’s Prius Hybrid). “Risk happy” people attract brighter employees. Action-oriented companies are much more enticing to the kind of high-energy, brilliant employees that companies need in order to thrive (Google).
Confusion Management
The world of business will become more confusing rather than less. Manage this with day-to-day action and experimentation. Companies that give their employees time to spend on projects of their own interest end up harvesting the fruit of their employees’ creativity and unique abilities (3M, Google). Ask yourself if you could be implementing this concept in your own business. If you work for a company that won’t allow this, then do it anyway on the down-low and recruit other “closet flipstars” to your cause. Then make sure your idea will actually work, and get it up and running. Otherwise, move onto something else. Bright ideas aren’t enough—they have to actually work!
You won’t find your dream job, breakthrough idea, or innovative product by staring at your belly button—you’ll find it by doing something, by taking action. If you know what your general “trajectory” is—without over-planning it—then you’ll have left some room for serendipity in your life. It’s okay to know where you are heading, without knowing exactly how you are going to get there.
Decide on a Trajectory
Dream Big! Intelligent, capable people are attracted to those who think big, and they will in turn help you turn your dreams into reality. Don’t rely on past accomplishments; keep moving on to bigger and better things. But don’t forget about the fundamentals, like good customer service. If you always keep in mind what will make things better for the customer (from the customer’s perspective), then you’ll stay on course. Action creates clarity by generating feedback. You’ll usually know rather quickly when you need to rethink something due to the natural feedback and/or results that you achieve. The best way to find out if something will work is to do it! The more you learn to trust yourself and act in spite of the risk of failure, the greater confidence you will cultivate.
Change and Adapt
No matter how much you have invested in the way things were, you are better off accepting the way things are. Strategizing is just another word for educated guessing. If you guess wrong, don’t keep beating your head against the proverbial brick wall, just move on to something else. Some people spend days, months and even years doing something that is never going to work because they are focused on what they want, and now on what the consumer wants.
Fast, Good, Cheap: Pick Three—Then Add Something Extra
The day of being a master over just 1 or 2 of the three essentials is over. Today you have to be Fast, Good, Cheap AND do something else well besides—that’s the new price of entry. Don’t let yourself be fooled into thinking that you have something the competition doesn’t. Competitive advantages will quickly turn into competitive necessities. Customer satisfaction isn’t enough, or you’ll lose your competitive edge to companies that go beyond satisfaction by pre-fulfilling wants.
Great Yesterday, Good Today, Bad Tomorrow
Global competition and growing expectations means that your product and service has to continually measure up by increasingly high standards. Just because it’s great service by today’s standard, doesn’t mean it will be good enough for tomorrow. Don’t be blind or complacent when it comes to the competition and customer wants, or you’ll be left behind.
Fast is Not Fast Enough
Growing “time pressure” means that everyone wants thing now, not later. Technology is speeding up the world and customers expect you to keep pace. Trends, and fashions are changing constantly, and successful companies cut the lag time between conception and production as much as possible.
Good is Not Good Enough
Don’t think in terms of meeting standards; think in terms of exceeding them. If you don’t, you’ll lose out to the competition that does.
Cheap is Not Cheap Enough'
“Cheap” is relative to the value customers feel they are getting. A customer will gladly pay $500 for a gadget that makes them feel cool, and still feel like they got a good deal. Think add-ons, extras and added value. Cheap isn’t good enough if the value of the product and service doesn’t measure up in the customer’s perception, especially if competitors offer superior service and options.
Fast, Good, Cheap, and More
The price of entry is already fast, good, and cheap, so if you want to keep an edge on the competition you have to add something more. To find out what that “something more” is, get your brightest people together in a room and ask “what are two quality improvements that would leave the competition in the dust”? Then figure out how to do it.
Absolutely, Positively Sweat the Small Stuff
“Flipstars” (people who capitalize on change & innovation) know that you have to pay attention to the seemingly unimportant details, because in an oversupplied market it’s the little things that make a big difference. Ordinary companies do what they have to; extraordinary companies go beyond “good enough”. The X-factor can be anything that makes people feel good, like being environmentally friendly/sustainable, fashionable/ultra hip (iPhone), or socially responsible (fair-trade). Make things easier for the customer and they’ll reward you with more business. Add a special touch and they’ll reward you with word of mouth marketing, and long-term loyalty.
Fast, Good, Cheap + Green
When even Walmart is trying to position itself as green, you know it’s time to meet customer’s demands that your product/service is as Earth-friendly as possible. People care about “green” and that trend will only likely grow. Getting on the wagon sooner rather than later, gives you an edge on the competition. Interestingly, companies that have gone green as a “defensive strategy” have actually found that it actually saves them a lot of money AND makes them look good.
Fast, Good, Cheap + Responsible
Consumers prefer companies they perceive as socially conscious and responsible. Having “values” is a highly marketable attribute for successful companies. The old way of looking at only the “bottom line” is being displaced by a more successful and forward-looking trend of looking at how a company can serve it’s communities, and offer more ethical treatment of both people and animals. All things being equal, people would rather buy products from a company with fair labor practices, both at home and abroad, over one with foreign sweatshops. People are also willing to pay more for products they perceive as offering a better quality of life for animals as well, such as “cage free” chicken eggs etc.
Fast, Good, Cheap + Beautiful
Fashion and design matter in today’s world more than ever. People will pay much more for a product that looks sleek and appealing (think Apple, Samsung) even if it’s actual features are comparable with other brands. How a product looks and makes people feel is every bit as important as function.
Fast, Good, Cheap + Easy
Today’s consumers want convenience. The successful company makes their products and/or services more convenient than the competition. Make things easier for the customer and they’ll choose you over the competition. For example, Lexus picks up and delivers cars that need servicing, leaves an upgraded replacement car for use in between, and returns the serviced car with a detailed cleaning job and Lindt chocolates in the front seat. No wonder people are increasingly choosing Lexus over other brands that have traditionally made the customer jump through hoops to get their needs met. Bottom line: consumers prefer companies that make their lives easier, and make them feel special.
Fast, Good, Cheap + Fun
If cost structure prevents you from being more affordable than the competition then think fun, humor and a “cheeky” experience. People want to laugh and enjoy their service (think Virgin Blue airlines). Fun alone won’t suffice, but when it is in addition to everything else, it’s an edge on the competition. If people correlate your brand/experience to be more fun than the competition, with everything else comparable, they’ll choose you.
Fast, Good, Cheap + Healthy
More than ever before, people are concerned about personal health, and their wallets back them up. Organic food has just a small portion of the market (2%) but its experiencing phenomenal growth (20%) annually over conventional food sales (2-3%). The future is clear: More and more people are starting to think about their health and how their product purchases will impact their health. Fitness clubs, natural cleaning products and healthier snacks have all seen a huge rise in popularity. If anything, the people of tomorrow will care more, not less, about their health than they do today.
The Total Ownership Experience
Play to people’s 5 senses, and you’ll have happy customers as explained in the book The Experience Economy: Work Is Theatre & Every Business a Stage. However, this goes beyond having a colorful showroom and offering clients fresh-brewed coffee. People care about charm, about sensory experiences and they are willing to pay for it. Starbucks, for example, is now regretting and attempting to reverse some of the concessions they made in an effort to streamline their shops. In effect they started to lose their “neighborhood” appeal by over streamlining at the expense of being intimate and soulful. As your business expands, don’t lose hold of what makes you YOU. Build the total ownership experience like a pyramid with “the story” at the base, then “functionality”, and then “form”, with “service” at the tip.
The Story
What you buy says something about you, and people purposefully (if not consciously) create their own personal story through their purchases. They want their choices to reflect that they are cool, hip, intelligent or whatever it is that they value. Detail, characters, and language create a brand’s story. Detail is the specific references to why your product is better, such as statistics, surveys, history of the company, and the manufacturing process. Characterization brings the story to life with human attributes. Whether a celebrity endorsement, a charismatic company leader/founder (who is either dead or alive), or some other human element that people can be inspired by and relate to, is a powerful way to tell a story about what the product will do for them personally. Language can be so powerful that a brand name actually becomes a noun or verb, such as Kleenex, or “I’ll just Google it”. Words matter. The first man to create a steam coffee machine also coined the word espresso, but he didn’t trademark it. When his grandson tried to trademark it later (a good idea) he was told it was too late.
Function
Of course, besides looking good, things have to perform the function that they were originally created for. The most effective way to market a product is to build a good one to start with. No matter how pretty it is, consumers also want something that does what it was intended to do, and does it well.
Form
Looking good can be it’s own function. Technical function matters, but for many customers it does not matter more than appearance, and may matter even less. Don’t underestimate the power of appearance. In many cases—especially among the affluent—people will pay thousands more for something solely because it will look more beautiful in their home (Bang & Olufsen). This helps the consumer advance their personal story that they are a hip/smart/affluent person, and they’re willing to pay for it.
Service
While service is usually considered the most important aspect of the customer experience, in some instances it actually doesn’t matter too much as long as the form and function of the product is exactly want the client wants (like a gorgeous Italian sofa they had to wait weeks for). In other cases, service is paramount (like at the Four Season Hotel). Consider what it is that you offer and how important service is to your particular clients.
Designing the Total Ownership Experience
You want your product to tell to right story. Apple did this brilliantly with the iPod with the tagline “a thousand songs in your pocket”. It’s simple and people believe they look cool when they walk around wearing one. Target has defined itself by being on the cutting edge with in-house designers and better customer service than other discount-store brands.
Every Decision You Make Must Build the Story
Toyota has faced the fact that other car-makers are producing cars of similar quality, and have kept their edge by selling a story with cars like the Prius Hybrid, which says “I’m green” or the Scion, which says “I’m hip”. With all things considered equal, you have to look at it from the customer’s perspective of what story they are getting along with their purchase.
What’s Your Story?
The products/services we love become a part of our life experience. What will you do to give your customers more? Make a list of your potential “X-Factors”. Using detail, characterization and language, develop the “story” that your brand offers from the customer’s perspective. Do an “easy audit” on yourself to see how good the purchasing and service experience to determine if everything you do is designed around the customer.
Business is Personal
From the Information Age to the Relationship Age
Don’t assume things aren’t personal in business. To a customer who has multiple choices, everything you do is personal. In spite of technological advances, people want to know more than ever that they are doing business with people they know and trust. With all of the choices out there, people gravitate towards business that they know are trustworthy. Capitalism itself is built on trust. You trust that people will pay their bills, and that your supplier is giving you the quality products that you asked for, etc. People will often pay twice as much, or more, for products and services from people they trust vs. a company/person who they feel has nothing on the line.
Staff and Customers: Co-Number Ones
Don’t think you can get away with treating your employees with less consideration and respect than you would give your customers, or it will eventually hurt your business in one way or another. Ironically, many firms spend more energy on recruiting than they do on retention with disastrous results. You want your company to be a place where people are happy to go to work, which will end up improving your bottom line. These days if you want to attract the best and the brightest you have to woo them like you would a new client, and then appreciate them once they’re on board.
Getting Hit in the Head With a Bric, Or, Getting Outsourcing Right
BRIC economies (Brazil, Russia, India, and China) are posed to become bigger than the G6 nations (US, UK, Japan, Germany, France and Italy). China is expected to surpass the US within the next few decades as the world’s largest economy. People in G6 nations are worried. After all, a firm can pay an engineer only $12,000 a year in India or pay 5 times that in the US, for example. But the numbers aren’t as bad as they sound. Relationships are the difference. Skills can be commoditized, but relationships cannot.
Many things should be outsourced to stay competitive, but many other things aren’t right for outsourcing. Outsourcing the wrong things can be disastrous for a business. High-net worth clients don’t want to talk to someone overseas, and you never know which of your low-net worth clients will take their business elsewhere prior to becoming high-net worth clients.
Many companies have also found that they lose more money in terms of lost clients when they outsource customer service then they make back by having cheap labor. All over the developed world, companies are having to spend their money to bring their customer service back home to avoid losing more customers.
High-Tech Can Be Highly Personal: Mining the Potential of New Communications Technologies
Social networking sites are used to form and maintain genuine relationships, especially for Generation Y. Online gaming and virtual worlds have no geographical boundaries and bring people together in ways that, for the individual at least, feel real and meaningful. Youtube is creating overnight sensations with a single funny video clip (like the Chicago band OK GO). Companies, educators, organizations and government are all setting up virtual offices online in Second Life (an online virtual world) complete with buildings and avatars to hold meetings, teach lessons, and deliver speeches. Linden dollars (the currency in second life) can be converted into real dollars, and people make 6 figure incomes selling digital commodities! According to Pew Research Center 87% of US teens are regular Internet users, and over half are daily Internet users. Whether you like it or not, the Internet and social networking sites are more than just a fad. People increasingly prefer to manage their banking, credit card and other accounts online. The point isn’t to get obsessive about technology, it’s to get obsessive about creating a connection with customers, and in some situations technology can facillitate that.
The Rebirth of the Middleman
The Internet may have replaced some of the individual middlemen, but has generated “middleman companies” that still do the sorting and sifting for you, such as Amazon and eBay. In other cases, as “direct” choices grow, so does the popularity of the middleman. Once example of this is mortgage brokers, which are now more popular than ever precisely because customers have so many choices and therefore feel uncertain that they will be able to find the “right” choice. Every market has become so oversupplied, that being the “trusted advisor” is actually a more valuable position than ever before.
Talent Wants to Be “Personally” Connected to the Companies They Work For and the People They Work With
Great people make for a great business, and great people care about what they’re doing, and the relationship they have with the company. All things being equal, talented people will accept and stay at jobs if they a) like the work, and b) like the people they work with, including you. This is one of the biggest issues that companies will need to deal with in the coming years.
Relationships are Simple, but Not Easy
Here are five keys to creating business that is personal:
1. Shift your mind-set: Studies show that happy relationships occur when people see others as valuable and worth investing in. Choose to see your relationships that way. 2. Ensure competence: People like others who know what they’re doing and do it well. 3. Deliver on what you promise: Don’t over-promise, and then do what you say you will. 4. Build Trust: By doing the previous 3 keys, you’ll be on your way to building solid trust. 5. Have good manners: If you can’t be courteous to others, then you shouldn’t be in business.
Five Things to Do Now
1. Ask some key customers and suppliers if your company goes out of its way to build quality relationships with them. 2. Run an employee focus group on whether you are a staff-focused organization. Be prepared for the answers. 3. List 3 new technologies you will try out to keep in touch with staff and clients such as; text messaging, bogs, podcasts, or social networking profiles. 4. Initiate something to reconnect with customer’s you’ve lost touch with. 5. Do an audit of your systems and process to evaluate how it affects your relationship with customers. 6. Mass-Market Success: Find It On the Fringe
Don’t be afraid to go your own way. It worked for Cirque du Soleil, Apple, Burton Snowboards, and countless other “quirky” and incredibly profitable businesses. If you try to do what everyone else is doing, you’ll be just another small fish in a big pond. The crowd will eventually sniff out the best innovations.
From the Fringe to the Center
“Flipping” can feel uncomfortable at first, but with a little practice you can become a true “Flipstar” where you are setting trends rather than merely trying to keep up with them. Companies that took risks with new products are often the companies that end up being wildly successful (Apple, Toyota, Wii). Out on a Limb
The more you are willing to try new things, the more the odds are stacked in your favor. You need to find ways to differentiate yourself from the crowd as better and easier than the competition. Don’t be afraid to do something different, but don’t forget your overall brand image either. If you’re all about hip and edgy, then don’t confuse your customers by trying to cater to a whole different demographic all at the same time. That doesn’t mean you can’t try to please everyone, but just realize that it usually doesn’t work. Don’t be afraid to diverge drastically from the competition’s message, if you think your message is right for your brand and will appeal to the customers you want.
Keep Exploring
Don’t just go out on a limb once. Go out on a limb regularly. New ideas form on the fringe. Most of them will fizzle, but not all. The ones that grow represent the biggest opportunities. In 1962, for example, a University of Oregon track and field coach, Bill Bowerman, visited a fellow coach in New Zealand and found that people there did this weird thing called “jogging”. Back home in the states he didn’t know of anyone who ran for fun. When he returned home he wrote a book titled “Jogging” that sold a million copies. He then teamed up with an athlete he used to coach and Nike was born.
Unique
Find it on the fringe and then bring it to the center by being unique and identifiable. Tell a story and stand for something. Don’t get lost in the crowd. In a market of “me toos” a unique company stands out. Ten things to do when you finish this chapter
1. Start an “innovators’ club with your high performers that meets once a month to explore fringe trends and new market opportunities. 2. Keep a journal of “fringe stuff” and cool new innovations you see in terms of product and service. 3. At least four times a year, do random stuff that doesn’t relate to your job like take a new course, visit a museum, etc. 4. Surf the net with an eye out for what’s “hot” because it will always be talked about on the Internet first. 5. Check out how and what teenagers are wearing and talking about. 6. Take time annually to ask yourself what you’d do if you were building your company from the ground up at this point. 7. Hire someone who is a bit wacky or who doesn’t have a traditional degree for the job they want if your company is big enough to take the risk. 8. Attend a different industry conference this year other than your own, or go to both. 9. Demand that 20% of your revenue in three years comes from products/services you don’t have yet. 10. Don’t be a wimp and do something that’s never been done before!
To Get Control, Give it Up
You don’t own your staff or customers. Today we have less control over others, which is actually an opportunity to step it up and bring greater value to both staff and clients. Don’t resist change; go with it. Connect with others so you can benefit from their expertise. Fight the tendency to be territorial and possessive, and look for opportunities to make money with suppliers and even with your competitors. Empower your staff to do what you hired them to do.
Winning Through Losing
It took Bill Gates awhile before he realized the importance of the Internet, but as soon as he got it, Microsoft swung into action. However, with Linux offering virtually the same thing for free, Microsoft may not want to aggressively pursue copyright infringements, especially in China. That move may sound like losing, but in reality it could very likely turn into a win if it gets more people using their platform—people who will then pay for add-ons and extras, or as Bill Gates says, “As long as they’re going to steal it, we want them to steal ours. They’ll get addicted and then we’ll somehow figure out how to collect sometime in the next decade.”
Free Music Anyone?
The music industry has lost a lot of money by refusing to accept reality that people don’t want to buy entire albums anymore—they only want to pay for the songs they like. With fruitless litigation and shady practices (like when Sony implanted 2 viruses into their CDs to ensure that people couldn’t play the CD on multiple computers) the music industry has been fighting a losing battle instead of figuring out to how to capitalize on giving the customers what they want. Perhaps counter-intuitively, authors and musicians who offer free downloads tend to see an increase in sales as well. Digital music sales are rising, and will continue to rise, as the process is made faster and easier. People want to control their own experience from TV to the Internet.
People want to decide what they listen to and watch, on their own time and on their own terms. This doesn’t mean the end of TV and Record companies; it means the end of those companies as we know them. They will either need to adapt or be left behind.
Profits Through Participation and Personalization
Your brand actually belongs to the marketplace, which will redefine it time and time again. Word of mouth and the Internet are now the two major ways to attract business. It used to be that a happy customer, or disappointed customer, could praise or complain about your business to a few close friends. Now they can tell hundreds, thousands or even millions of people all at once what they think about your brand.
You can’t fight it, so you may as well embrace it. When you see negative feedback, “suck it up” and figure out if there’s truth to it. Use it as a platform for improvement. Web 3.0 will only make things more transparent as the “Semantic Web” enables computers to actually interpret information autonomously. People expect more than ever before in terms of convenience, but they also want to be a part of the experience. Even TV is becoming more interactive with “voting” shows like American Idol.
Customers Want What They Want
Customers don’t always know exactly what they want, but they want it anyway. Flipstars give them what they want before they even know it exists, such as was the case with digital watches, MP3 players, and countless other modern conveniences. That’s why “maverick innovators” will always be valuable. Customers also like being able to “personalize” their purchases with add-ons and options that let them feel like they are expressing who they are. They want products that help them tell their own story about who they are.
The True Wisdom of Crowds
Unfortunately, not all of the brightest people in the world work for you. However, you can still get a piece of their creativity. Brands like Threadless, Jones Soda, Linux, and Lego let their customers design the products, which creates a sense of community and often creates phenomenally popular offerings.
Some Things Are Still Worth Paying For
Contests and challenges are another way to promote open-source, lead-user product development. Companies are doing this with great success, as they have been doing for centuries. In the eighteenth century the British government offered the enormous sum (at the time) of twenty thousand pounds to anyone who could find a way to identify accurate longitude on the open sea. It wasn’t a nautical or astronomy genius that found the answer; it was a clockmaker by the name of John Harrison. After a few tries he built a longitudinal chronometer that was exceptionally accurate. In more recent times, scientists, as well “ordinary” people have developed incredible solutions in response to challenges and competitions that offer rewards and prizes.
Invisible Profits: Success Through Co-Opetition and Partnership
Increasingly, it is the companies that are moving toward win-win relationships that are becoming the most successful. The old win-lose model doesn’t work well in today’s crowded market. Toyota has already set up technology sharing agreements with Nissan and Ford who are using Toyota’s expertise to sell their own hybrid cars. It’s win-win for everyone. If you have a great idea but don’t know how to make it work, there’s no reason to keep it hidden; collaborate instead.
The Ultimate Power Trip: Leveraging Power By Sharing It
Nothing is more frustrating to bright employees as when their companies don’t utilize their skills, or give them the freedom to make things happen.
Technology can help
Technology has given more power to consumers, but it can also give you more power to collaborate and exchange knowledge among your own workforce. Geek Squad is a prime example of information sharing with their useful and up-to-date in-house wikis that can be accessed and edited by any of their 12 thousand or so employees nationwide. IBM’s employee wide online InnovationJam brought together over one hundred thousand employees to brainstorm new innovation ideas! It was so successful that they are committing $100 million to develop the most promising ideas generated. Toyota lets even its lowest level employees stop assembly lines any time they want if they suspect a quality control issue, and yet they get their cars done faster than any other manufacturer in the world. Trust your employees. By empowering all of your employees to contribute you will be well on your way to becoming a “Flipstar” company.
Don’t try to control your employees by banning Youtube and cell phones, or having stricter than necessary guidelines about dress. Let them have more control if it isn’t having a negative impact on overall performance. Focus on creating a more exciting and energizing atmosphere at work, and then trust your staff to do their job—chances are they will respond positively. Bottom line is that no one wants to be controlled, forced or micromanaged into do a job that they would have done gladly given the space and freedom. If employees aren’t doing their job, you either hired the wrong people or your workplace is boring.
Five Things To Know
1. Ask yourself if your business model will be under threat as technology develops rapidly, and how you could exploit potential changes. 2. Consider 10 ways you could tap into a broader population to stimulate new ideas for your company. 3. Start a program that regularly brings your brightest people together to problem solve and innovate. 4. Consider 5 ways you could collaborate with existing competitors to create a win-win. 5. Consider if you business has IP that is not generating its full value because you are holding onto it too tightly? How can you exploit this better?
Conclusion: Get Moving!
You know now how to be a Flipstar, but others you meet won’t always have the same vision. Don’t reject these people or feel superior, because you’ll need their cooperation later. For now focus on generating real and impressive results with what you have responsibility over. Use finesse to win people over before you scare them away with your “wild ideas”. Let them know that you have their interests in mind too. Now get off your butt and do something!
