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You should expect two things from us:
1)
The experience to help you avoid
unintended consequences,
and
2)
Advice and perspective from someone with
no agenda other
than yours
Unintended consequences – scary stuff! You
do something in order to accomplish an objective. Sure enough, it
works, you accomplish your objective….and you also accomplish some
things you weren’t looking to accomplish – those “unintended
consequences”. After working for lots of companies, gaining too many
years of experience, and having an outside perspective – we can help you
avoid some of those unintended consequences – you’ll be glad.
Agendas. You should probably avoid meetings
that don’t have agendas prepared in advance – you don’t need folks
wasting your time. People with agendas are an entirely different
issue! To avoid people with hidden agendas you would no doubt have to
climb a tall mountain and find a convenient cave – in the real world you
are surrounded by folks with agendas, and they are anxious to provide
you with partial information so you will make decisions that benefit
them. There’s you, and there’s all of them. You need someone on your
side, someone with no agenda other than yours. Sure it sounds a bit
cynical….but before you dismiss it, think about it. See, you know it’s
true.
Sound Bites and
Easy Answers – you’ve
already put up with enough of that. I wish we could make this fast and
easy to read – but shortcuts are a big part of so many business problems
already….we just can’t justify making things easy at the expense of
making things right. Some folks disagree. Our clients eat those folks
for lunch.
Why You Probably Need An Accountability
Consultant
You are responsible for results. That means you
need to know you can count on your team – for results – not excuses.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of influences encouraging you to not take
things so seriously, not to be so demanding, to be realistic and
understand that some folks have a difficult time delivering on schedule
– in short, not to hold people accountable.
So, who are we talking about, who is it that needs
to be held accountable? Well, for starters:
1)
You! Yes, it is tough trying to manage others, but it is even more
difficult trying to manage yourself – so you should get some outside
help. We can help you set realistic goals for yourself, and then help
you accomplish those goals – and give you the Dickens when you drop the
ball!
2)
Outside Professional Resources. As companies try to adapt to
competitive pressures, comply with regulations, and enter new markets,
they find themselves retaining outside experts to help them get the job
done. Since the experts are, well, the experts, it can be difficult to
make sure they promised you what you needed, and even trickier making
sure they delivered what they promised….we can help you when you craft
your contract with them, and then help you ensure they give you what you
paid for!
3)
Your
Managers. They have so many things to do. They didn’t refuse to do
what you asked, but there was something else they did instead –
something important….without checking with you to see if you wanted that
new mission to replace their original assignment. In so many ways, you
have gotten used to your managers not delivering the right things at the
right time….but it doesn’t have to be that way….
4)
Suppliers, distributors, government agencies – accountability is
important to you because you need to know you can count on people. How
you establish accountability can be tricky – we can help.
Consider Context Creation and Maintenance
You know, between your formal education, years of
experience, and reading a million magazine articles and shelves of books
on business management – you know a lot. Most of what you know is
true. That small part that you know, the part that isn’t true….it’s
costly. We can help you sort out which things that you know that are
true – put them in one pile – and put the things that you know that
aren’t true in the round can.
For example, you have heard of “Corporate Culture”
– usually you hear about it from some “touchy-feely” sort who wants to
help you somehow transform your company into a “nicer place to work”.
Context is bigger than that, and it is all about making companies more
effective and more easily managed. If you don’t read any other article
on this topic, be sure to read “No Cussing In Church” – it’ll give you
something to think about.
People do not operate in a vacuum – they interpret
events and make decisions within a “context”. We can help you manage
that context – which will help you manage the decisions your team makes
– something that will result in a more productive organization….and we
won’t ask you to hug anyone in the process!
Entering New Markets/Alternative Distribution
Strategies
You may want to enter new markets in order to
expand, or you may need to enter new markets because your old markets
are drying up. Another reason to enter new markets that a lot of
companies fail to think about is to get a chance to break some rules.
Break some rules? You bet. You have a respected
product line and a distribution network that is well established. You
are an active member in your market’s trade associations. You would
love to sell your product direct to the end users, but if you did that,
your dealers would lynch you. Of course, if you were to venture into a
new market where your financial clout, design expertise, and
manufacturing prowess could be used effectively, you could sell direct
to THAT MARKET’S end users, because you don’t have any dealers in that
market, and you aren’t a part of those trade associations. You are just
there to sell a great product efficiently and make some money. Darn,
you have to admit, that sounds like a lot of fun!!
Of course, if you had some help from someone who
has done it before, you may be able to make your distribution channels
in your existing market more effective too. Don’t reject the
possibility before you have given it fair consideration – it works more
often than you might imagine!
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