Have you got a Jiminy Cricket?
It has been a fascinating few weeks on the UK economic front; concerns about Brexit, growing unrest resulting in a series of worker strikes, the government announcing that the end of austerity is in sight, a faltering stock market, a dramatic fall in new car sales and then one of the more generous Budgets in recent years.
Fascinating, but what is the potential impact of these and the many other wider technical, social and political changes affecting your operating environment? All too often, I see these getting a light-touch, or restricted to the annual strategic plan; developments in the wider environment outweighed by the here & now pressures of an organisation’s and its operating environment.
Arguably, the challenge facing business leaders today is too little time, too much choice. Put your head above the parapet to look at the wider operat- ing environment and very quickly it is clear that there is an ever-growing range of media and opinions. With an already busy diary, many people simply default to headline insights, often taking on a narrow view of what is impacting them and their business today. It is a risky approach.
Either on the payroll or externally, businesses need a ‘Jiminy Cricket’ a conscience who is looking out and around to see what is going on and what could
come in from left field to impact them. As just one example this year, GDPR was well sign-posted yet, many businesses still misjudged its impact.
Less obvious is the almost natural rise and fall of businesses; often because they failed to adapt. A few months ago, this saw GE, for whom I once worked, fall out of the Dow Jones Industrial Aver- age, the last of the founding 12 companies, they have installed a new CEO to re-ignite their spark. I wish him well; it will be a large ‘tanker’ to turn around.
For GE, see any number of established businesses failing to grasp the digital challenge/opportunity. Another major world player, Volkswagen have announced bold plans to adapt their model.
In essence, it will see them going direct to their buyers. It is a bold move and one whose impact will be wide and deep. It is also a move that sees Volkswagen taking a best practice from the fast-growing digital sector, working to monetise the power of customers data.
Whether you did or did not know these two exam- ples, there are countless others of varying scales. Nobody will see them all, but in your busy world find time to look out to see what is happening elsewhere; be your own Jiminy Cricket, or at the very least find one you trust to help you.