To identify what your customers will need in the future, ask them. You can also involve your employees in identifying these future needs and in transforming your business into a future-focused organization.
When Everything Around You Is Changing
Unless you have been living the life of a hermit for the past decade, you have experienced dramatic changes in the way you do your work. As we have heard so often, as a developed society we are currently experiencing more changes at a greater rate than atBuilding Block
Globalization is one major trend that is triggering changes in our lives. Today, money has no bound- aries. It can be moved from one country to another and then to a third as quickly as commands can be entered into a computer. As a result, investors can place their funds wherever the return will be the greatest, regardless of where they, their money, or the investment opportunity is located.Entrepreneur Beware
Don’t try to reject globalization and hide from change. The changes will become obstacles and draw your attention and energy away from the challenge of striving to achieve your goals. If you prefer not to have to deal with changes, perhaps it is time for you to start planning to get out of your business. Many people have chosen this as their best response to change. If you think it might be the right approach for you, go to Chapter 28 to learn about planning your exit.any other point in history. No area of our lives is immune to change. In our personal and family lives, we have felt the effects of change. Our lifestyles barely resemble those of our parents, and those of our children will differ from ours.
Disruptive as the changes to our personal lives may be, they seem insignificant compared to the sea of changes that are happening in our businesses.
Changes in business are like the Canadian weather: If you don’t like what’s happening, wait five minutes; it will likely change.
Because of globalization, money and tangible goods— such as natural resources, manufactured products, and agricultural products—can be easily moved from country to country, usually unimpeded by national borders. In today’s world of international trade, it is not uncommon for the natural resources of one country to be exported to another for processing into goods, which are in turn shipped to other countries for sale to the end user. This international production and marketing process is possible thanks to the growth of multinational trading blocks, which have reduced or eliminated many trade barriers, and also to the efficient air transportation that we enjoy today. In the international marketplace, it is now possible to obtain items from across the world as easily as from across town.
The availability of out-of-season agricultural products illustrates the change in the international marketplace. Barring unforeseen natural disasters or crop failures, we can purchase traditional summer produce such as tomatoes, lettuce, or corn at any time of the year. When we see a news item about a crop failure in California or a hailstorm in Florida, we can expect a price increase on that product at the store within the next few days.
Whether we like it or not, we are in fact interconnected with other people with whom we share our world. What happens on the other side of the world—be it economic, health-related, social, or whatever—can and usually does ultimately affect us. McLuhan was right: Our world is like a global village.
Working in partnership with globalization, technological advances have also forced us to change the way we run our businesses. Realistically, it is difficult, if not impossible, to survive let alone succeed in today’s world of business without using technology in one form or another. From the simplest of bookkeeping and word-processing applications to the most sophisticated Web-based business, technology plays, or should play, a critical role in business operations.
And if changes brought about by globalization and technological advances are not enough, today’s customers and employees are more highly educated and demanding.
Faced with the challenge of doing business in a changing world, we must accept the reality of the situation and seek out opportunities in the changes around us. By accepting and even embracing changes, they can help us achieve our goals, ultimately bringing about our desired results.
When You Initiate Changes
Not all of the changes that we face come from outside. If you are the least bit entrepreneurial, you will be constantly initiating changes. Simply starting your own business triggers a series of changes. Similarly, the approaches to developing
When Everything Around You Is Changing
Unless you have been living the life of a hermit for the past decade, you have experienced dramatic changes in the way you do your work. As we have heard so often, as a developed society we are currently experiencing more changes at a greater rate than atBuilding Block
Globalization is one major trend that is triggering changes in our lives. Today, money has no bound- aries. It can be moved from one country to another and then to a third as quickly as commands can be entered into a computer. As a result, investors can place their funds wherever the return will be the greatest, regardless of where they, their money, or the investment opportunity is located.Entrepreneur Beware
Don’t try to reject globalization and hide from change. The changes will become obstacles and draw your attention and energy away from the challenge of striving to achieve your goals. If you prefer not to have to deal with changes, perhaps it is time for you to start planning to get out of your business. Many people have chosen this as their best response to change. If you think it might be the right approach for you, go to Chapter 28 to learn about planning your exit.any other point in history. No area of our lives is immune to change. In our personal and family lives, we have felt the effects of change. Our lifestyles barely resemble those of our parents, and those of our children will differ from ours.
Disruptive as the changes to our personal lives may be, they seem insignificant compared to the sea of changes that are happening in our businesses.
Changes in business are like the Canadian weather: If you don’t like what’s happening, wait five minutes; it will likely change.
Because of globalization, money and tangible goods— such as natural resources, manufactured products, and agricultural products—can be easily moved from country to country, usually unimpeded by national borders. In today’s world of international trade, it is not uncommon for the natural resources of one country to be exported to another for processing into goods, which are in turn shipped to other countries for sale to the end user. This international production and marketing process is possible thanks to the growth of multinational trading blocks, which have reduced or eliminated many trade barriers, and also to the efficient air transportation that we enjoy today. In the international marketplace, it is now possible to obtain items from across the world as easily as from across town.
The availability of out-of-season agricultural products illustrates the change in the international marketplace. Barring unforeseen natural disasters or crop failures, we can purchase traditional summer produce such as tomatoes, lettuce, or corn at any time of the year. When we see a news item about a crop failure in California or a hailstorm in Florida, we can expect a price increase on that product at the store within the next few days.
Whether we like it or not, we are in fact interconnected with other people with whom we share our world. What happens on the other side of the world—be it economic, health-related, social, or whatever—can and usually does ultimately affect us. McLuhan was right: Our world is like a global village.
Working in partnership with globalization, technological advances have also forced us to change the way we run our businesses. Realistically, it is difficult, if not impossible, to survive let alone succeed in today’s world of business without using technology in one form or another. From the simplest of bookkeeping and word-processing applications to the most sophisticated Web-based business, technology plays, or should play, a critical role in business operations.
And if changes brought about by globalization and technological advances are not enough, today’s customers and employees are more highly educated and demanding.
Faced with the challenge of doing business in a changing world, we must accept the reality of the situation and seek out opportunities in the changes around us. By accepting and even embracing changes, they can help us achieve our goals, ultimately bringing about our desired results.
When You Initiate Changes
Not all of the changes that we face come from outside. If you are the least bit entrepreneurial, you will be constantly initiating changes. Simply starting your own business triggers a series of changes. Similarly, the approaches to developing new business, as outlined in Chapter 19, and all of the techniques for expanding your business, discussed in Part IV, will bring about changes in your business.
Entrepreneur Beware
Not all of the changes that you initiate are driven by business con-siderations. Some are brought about in response to such considerations as changing health or personal needs or wants. Others are brought about by a change in family circumstances. Whether business driven or not, you should not make changes simply for the sake of making changes, but rather initiate changes to bring about a desired result.
Watch Where You Want To Go, Not Where You’ve Been
When you are facing changes over which you have no control, ask yourself, How can these changes help me get to where I want to go? Your answer to this question will suggest a strategy that will help you use the changes to achieve your goals.
If it turns out that instead of being helpful the changes are more like obstacles to your forward progress, your question becomes, How can I minimize potential harm from these changes so that I can pursue my goal? Using this approach, you are treating the changes as hurdles to be jumped or detours to be taken as your continue your pursuit of your goals.
When it comes to making changes yourself, your question becomes, What changes do I have to make to get me to where I want to go? This approach puts you clearly in the driver’s seat, doing whatever it takes to achieve your goals.
According to Terence T. Burton and John W. Moran, authors of The Future Focused Organization
(Prentice Hall Inc., 1995) “a future organization is one that clearly understands its three most important attributes, the past, present and future.” They go on to explain, “The past provides the foundation for growth. The past focussed the organization on its purpose.... The focus needs to be reviewed on a regular basis to keep the organization fresh and focussed on its customers and their changing needs and culture.”
As for the present, it “develops the foundation for the future. We need to project into the future to determine what the shifting landscape might look like two to five years in the future...we develop the strategic plan based on the purpose we want to achieve in the next three to five years.
We develop strategy to achieve our purpose and to delight our customers and not ourselves.”
Hot Tip
Building Block
Before focusing on the future, it is important to remember what business is all about—that is, selling something, as discussed in Chapter 3. Chapter 13 refined this principle by introducing the other side of selling: customers buying to meet their needs or wants. Part III addressed the issue of growing your business by continuing to meet your customers’ needs and wants. And Part IV dis-cussed how you can expand your ability to satisfy your customers.Never forget that your success depends upon your ability to satisfy your customers, both now and in the future
So Where Do You Want to Go?
In the simplest of terms, you will want to go where your customers will be. In the future, you will want to satisfy your customers as well as you do today and as you did in the past. Does this mean your customers will be looking for the same things in the future that they are now looking for? To use a classic lawyer’s answer, yes, no, and maybe.
Yes, they will be wanting you to continue to provide goods or services. It will be important to maintain the same level of quality. In fact, in a more global, increasingly competitive marketplace, quality issues can be expected to become even more important than they are now. The quality-service considerations contained in Chapter 15 will continue be critical elements in how you run your business.
No, they will not be looking for the same things in the future. Like you and every one else, your customers are living in a rapidly changing world. This means that their needs and wants are also shifting. How many of the goods and services that were commonplace ten to fifteen years ago are still available? To look at it from another perspective, many of the goods and services that we will need in the future have yet to make an appearance in the marketplace.
And maybe your customers will be looking for the same things. If you have experienced enough business cycles, you well know that what goes around comes around, a variation on the theme of everything old is new again. You just never know when and if your customers will be looking for something that they used to need or want.
You Can’t Get There Alone
Unless you have the gift of prophecy, you are going to need some help in identifying where your customers are going to be in the future and what they will be looking for. There are two logical places to get help: from your customers and from your employees. Work with Your Customers
If you want to know what your customers will be looking for in the future, ask them. But don’t be surprised if they don’t know. Most of us are so busy with today’s activities that we have yet to sort out what we will be doing at some point down the road. If your customers don’t have a vision of where they will be and what they will need in the future—which is most likely the case—don’t abandon your search for answers. By helping them clarify their vision of where they will be going, you will be helping yourself in a number of important ways. First, you will start the process of obtaining the information that you need to keep your customers satisfied in the future. By helping your customers with the process, you will position yourself to look after your customers once future needs and wants have been identified. If you don’t join your customers into looking into the future, you risk losing customers to competitors who have done a better job of anticipating your customers’ future needs and wants.
Second, you will enhance your existing relationship with your customers. Unless your customers are blind to the future, they will appreciate your willingness to help them prepare for the future. Not only will this encourage them to continue to do business with you in the present; it will also encourage them to make referrals to you.
Third, the process will open the door to a meaningful exchange of information between you and your customers. The driving force behind the growth of e-businesses is the ability for individual businesses to quickly and efficiently exchange critical information with their customers and suppliers. By helping your customers look to the future, you are also opening the door to further exchanges of information that can only help you serve your customer better.
And finally, helping your customers look into the future will also enhance your efforts to distinguish yourself and your business, as discussed in Chapter 14.
Realistically, if you are trying to see into your customers’ futures, you need their input. You simply cannot go there alone. In helping your customers visualize their futures, invite them to consider questions such as the following:
What will your market look like?
Who will be your biggest competitor? What competitive advantage will they have over you and vice versa?
What strengths will you be able to offer your customers? Do you have the appropriate resources?
Do these questions seem familiar? They should: They are variations of questions raised in connection with preparing your business plan. Use the same process that you used to develop your business plan as a model for looking into your customers’ and your own future. Instead of focusing on the current situation as your customers and you see it, consider how it might look three years down the road. Although this may not yield an accurate vision of the future, at the very least it will help you develop useful strategies to deal with the future as it unfolds.
Involve Employees
Brawny and brainless oxen have no place in today’s knowledge-based economy. On average, today’s workers are more highly educated and trained than workers at any other point in history. They represent a vast, largely untapped pool of resources for thoughtful managers. What better opportunity could there be to actively involve your employees in your business operations than that of helping develop your focus on the future? And what better place to start than helping to identify your customers’ needs and wants. Certainly you will need your employees to help you look after your customers in the future. It only makes sense to involve them in identifying your customers’ future needs.
But don’t stop there. In the future, your employees will continue to need your business as much as it needs them. Why not involve them in helping you transform your business to help cope with our changing world?
The Least You Need to Know
The best approach to managing changes beyond your control is to manage your response. The changes that you initiate yourself should help you bring about your desired results.
A future-focused strategic plan will help you manage changes.
Your continued success depends upon your ability to keep your customers satisfied in the future.
To identify what your customers will be looking for in the future, ask them and ask your employees.
