Acerca de medir o que interessa

O @pauloperes chamou-me a atenção para "Should You Use Market Share as a Metric?"

É claro que me lembrei do primeiro livro que li de Hermann Simon, "Manage for Profit, Not for Market Share: A Guide to Greater Profits in Highly Contested Markets"
.
Voltando ao artigo:

"Managers commonly argue that market share is a useful intermediate measure — in effect, a leading indicator of future success. In some markets, market share probably does help increase future profits, but this is not always the case: General Motors Co. was the world’s biggest carmaker before filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy court protection in June 2009. Therefore, it is critical to understand the expected relationship between market share and profitability in your specific market.
.
In some markets, bigger can be better; the most obvious examples are markets with economies of scale. Companies in such markets can reduce their cost per unit by selling more — thus increasing overall profits. If you think you are in such a market, you should confirm that the economies of scale you think exist actually do. Economies of scale do not automatically apply to all markets."

O tema deste artigo joga bem com este texto de Seth Godin "Numbers (and the magic of measuring the right thing)":

"When you measure the wrong thing, you get the wrong thing. Perhaps you can be precise in your measurement, but precision is not significance.
.
On the other hand, when you are able to expose your work and your process to the right thing, to the metric that actually matters, good things happen.
.
We need to spend more time figuring out what to keep track of, and less time actually obsessing over the numbers that we are already measuring."

E na sua empresa, o que é que se mede? Qual o racional por trás dessas escolhas? Que sinais internos são enviados por essas escolhas?

Lealdade e clientes satisfeitos vs rentabilidade

Não consigo deixar de relacionar "Do Happy Customers Lead to Happy Shareholders?" com "Price Discounting – The Dark Side of Customer Loyalty" e com o gráfico do "Evangelho do Valor".

"higher discount received by loyal customers is entirely due to two factors – (1) the customer’s intention to negotiate a lower price and (2) the salesperson’s goal of retaining a loyal customer.
...
loyal customers (even based on a manipulation) are more likely to (1) have an expectation of being rewarded for their loyalty and (2) perceive that they have more negotiation power due to their loyalty."

Recordo que a relação entre satisfação dos clientes e rentabilidade não é assim tão linear:

""The best customers, we're told, are loyal ones."
...
"What we've found is that the relationship between loyalty and profitability is much weaker - and subtler - than the proponents of loayalty programs claim."" (aqui)

Se os clientes procuram e valorizam uma estratégia baseada no preço estão a exercer a sua natureza.
.
Se os clientes procuram e valorizam outras estratégias que não o preço, até que ponto os fornecedores os alimentam com novos produtos/serviços?
.
Como refere Mintzberg as empresas pertencem a espécies diferentes. Por isso, cuidado com leis gerais e universais.

Favor tirar as palas

Este trecho retirado de "Confessions of the Pricing Man: How Price Affects Everything" de Hermann Simon devia fazer muita gente parar para pensar:

"Special discounts and price promotions - two standard forms of price cuts - are an everyday occurrence in retail , but they seem to occur with increasing frequency and depth. In recent years, promotions accounted for 50 % of beer sales in one of the world’s largest beer markets. Just two years later, some 70% of all beer  sales at the retail level came on special offer, with discounts as high as 50 %. Whether driven by opportunity or perceived necessity, this is clear evidence that managers think that aggressive prices help their business. But is this really true?"

Entretanto, assistimos ao crescimento da cerveja artesanal, mais cara:

• Craft craze brings variety to German brewing ;
• Bringing craft beer to Germany;
• Why the Germans want to brew U.S. craft beer

Faz logo pensar nesta figura:

A maioria concentra-se na massa dos overserved e esquece-se do potencial de margem que existe nos underserved. 

.

Claro, não podem é ser servidos da mesma forma e pela mesma estrutura.

Pricing man (parte XI)

"Success Factors for an Ultra-low Price StrategyIt is still unclear whether companies can sustainably generate adequate profits with ultra-low price strategies. Nonetheless, the success factors for such a strategy are quite clear:
1. Think “simple yet robust”: A company must strip down a product to the bare essentials, but without making it too primitive or rendering it dysfunctional.
2. Develop locally: The company must develop the product in emerging markets; that is the only way to guarantee that it meets the customer  requirements in the ultra-low price segment.
3. Lock in lowest cost production: This requires the right design and the ability to manufacture in the lowest wage locations which still ensure adequate productivity.
4. Apply new marketing and sales approaches: These will also require keeping costs as low as possible, even if that means forgoing traditional channels and approaches.
5. “Easy to use, easy to fix”: These two aspects are of paramount importance, because customers may lack the background to understand complicated  functionality and service providers may lack the resources to make anything but the most basic repairs or adjustments.
6. Provide consistent quality: Sustained success is only possible if the quality of ultra-low price products is not only adequate, but above all consistent.
.
The key challenge in the ultra-low price segment is to find an acceptable level of value to customer which will attract enough buyers and still keep costs at extremely low levels."

Trechos retirados de "Confessions of the Pricing Man: How Price Affects Everything" de Hermann Simon.

Pricing man (parte X)

"Success Factors for a Low-Price Strategy
.
The list of companies who have succeeded with a low-price strategy tends to be short, but their strategies share a set of factors which help create and sustain that success.
1. They began with that strategy from day one: All successful low-price companies focused on low prices and high volumes from the very beginning. In many cases, they created radically new business models. I am not aware of any company having made a successful transformation from a high-price or mid-price position to a low-price one.
2. They are extremely efficient: All successful low-price companies operate with extreme cost and process efficiency, which enables them to enjoy good margins and profits even while charging low prices.
3. They guarantee adequate and consistent quality: With poor and inconsistent quality, success is unlikely, even if you offer low prices. Sustainable success requires adequate and consistent quality.
4. They have a strong focus on their core products: The term no-frills is often applied to airlines , but it could apply to companies such as Aldi or Dell as well. They do nothing that isn’t absolutely required by the customer. That saves costs, without putting the essential value to customer in jeopardy.
5. They have a high-growth, high-revenue focus: This creates economies of scale which they exploit to the greatest extent possible.
6. They are procurement champions: That means they are tough and forceful in their purchasing, but not unfair.
7. They have little debt: Only very rarely do they turn to banks or debt markets  for financing. Instead they rely on self-financing or supplier credit.
8. They control as much as they possibly can: This means they carry only their own brands ( Dell , Ryanair , IKEA ); even Aldi ’s assortment is over 90 %  private label. They also exercise strong control over the entire value chain .
9. Their ads focus on price: To the extent they even advertise at all, they focus almost exclusively on price ( Aldi , Lidl, Ryanair ).
10. They never mix their messages: Almost all of the successful “low price–high profit” companies stick to an “everyday low price” strategy rather than a “hi-lo” which relies on frequent temporary promotions.
11. They understand their role: Most markets have room for only a small number of “low price–high profit” competitors, often just one or two."

Trechos retirados de "Confessions of the Pricing Man: How Price Affects Everything" de Hermann Simon.

Pricing man (parte IX)

"Success Factors for Luxury Goods Price Strategies.
As we have done with the other price-positioning concepts, here are my recommendations for pricing luxury goods:
.
1. Luxury goods must always deliver the highest level of performance: This applies across all dimensions, including materials, product quality , service, communication, and distribution .
2. The prestige effect is a big driver: In addition to the dimensions above, luxury products need to convey and confer a very high level of prestige.
3. Price contributes to the prestige effect and serves as a quality indicator: A
higher price does not usually come at the expense of volume . In fact, sometimes
the opposite is the case.
4. Volume and market share must remain within strict limits: Observing volume and market share limits - especially if limited editions have been promised - is a must in the luxury goods market. Companies have to resist the temptation to go for a “bigger” volume or market share, no matter how attractive this may seem in the short term.[Moi ici: Recordar Gucci e LVMH]
5. Strictly avoid discounts, special offers, and similar actions: They will tarnish a product, brand , or company’s image (if not destroy it) and will diminish the products’ residual value.
6. Top talent is essential: Every employee must meet the highest standards and perform on a high level. This applies to the entire value chain , from design and production down to the appearance of salespeople.
7. Having control of the value chain is advantageous: Luxury goods companies should strive to control the value chain, including distribution , to the greatest degree possible.
8. The primary factor in price setting is the customers’ willingness to pay :
Willingness to pay is decisive, while variable costs play a relatively smaller role"

Trechos retirados de "Confessions of the Pricing Man: How Price Affects Everything" de Hermann Simon.

Pricing man (parte VIII)

"Success Factors for a Premium Price Strategy
.
What are the common factors behind successful premium pricing strategies? What recommendations can I give?
.
1. Superior value is a must: Premium pricing will work over time only if a
company offers superior value to customer.
.
2. The price-value relationship is the decisive competitive advantage:
...
3. Innovation is the foundation: In general, innovation provides the foundation for a successful, sustainable premium price position.
...
4. Consistent, high quality is a must: This prerequisite comes up time and again. Successful premium supplier s maintain high and very consistent quality levels. Their service must also meet the same requirements.
.
5. Premium pricers have strong brands: One function of these strong brands is to transform a technological advantage - which is often temporary - into a longlasting image advantage.
.
6. Premium pricers invest heavily in communication: They know that they have to make the value and advantages of their products perceptible and understandable to consumers. Remember: only perceived value counts.
.
7. Premium pricers shy away from special offers: They are hesitant to offer promotions and special offers. If the promotions they offer are too frequent or too steep, these instruments can endanger the premium price position."

Trechos retirados de "Confessions of the Pricing Man: How Price Affects Everything" de Hermann Simon.

Cuidado com os descontos

Mais um texto a suportar a pregação do Evangelho do Valor, a chamar a atenção para o efeito medonho dos descontos. Recomendo uma reflexão com base em "How A Price Increase/Decrease Affects Gross Profit vs. Unit Sales":

"If you decrease your prices (a sale or discount coupons, for example), how many more units do you have to sell to keep gross profit dollars the same? We have it for you in the chart below.

Como sublinha Hermann Simon em "The Pricing Man":

"The obsessive pursuit of the wrong goals - customer counts, revenue, and market share - leads even the sharpest managers to neglect the effects that discounts and promotions have on profits."

Pricing man (parte VII)

"As a customer you have to make sure that you understand the value the product or service offers you, and then decide how much you are willing to pay for it. This knowledge of value is your best protection prior to purchase, in order to avoid regretting the decision.
.
As the French say, “ le prix s’oublie, la qualité reste .” Loosely translated, that means that the quality you bought endures long after you have forgotten the price.
.
The famous Spanish philosopher Baltasar Gracian (1601–1658), whose wise words I would not encounter until many years after that episode with the harvesting machine, summed up the same sentiment this way: “That is the worst and yet easiest error. Better be cheated in the price than in the quality of goods.”
…
Yes, it is very frustrating to pay more than you should have. But the anger over this form of “rip-off” fades if the product still gets the job done. Worse is the situation when the product is flawed. The frustration stays with you until you finally use up the product or get rid of it. The moral here is that one should not lose sight of quality in pursuit of a better deal. Admittedly, that is easier said than done.
…
Price is often ephemeral and quickly forgotten. Consumer research and behavioral studies show time and again that we struggle to remember prices, even for products we just purchased. But quality, good or bad, stays with us. Every one of us has quickly seen a deal, bought a product, and then realized that the product didn’t live up to even our most modest expectations. Many of us have also paid a price that seemed too high, but ended up surprised by the exceptional quality of the product.”

Trechos retirados de "Confessions of the Pricing Man: How Price Affects Everything" de Hermann Simon.

Efeitos de 2ª ordem

Há dias em "Pricing man (parte VI)" sublinhei:

"value is often inextricably linked to outcomes which managers fail to truly understand and quantify: second-order effects and intangible benefits"

Num comentário, o Paulo Peres pergunta-me a minha opinião sobre o sentido daqueles "second-order effects".
.
O fabricante "clássico" normalmente concentra-se nas especificações, nos atributos que pode controlar.
.
Entretanto, neste artigo "Value Definitions and Consumer Consciousness" encontro uma boa contribuição para o tema:

"The principal difference between the atomistic and phenomenological philosophical assumptions is that in the former, value sits in the ‘noun’ to be subjectively perceived and consumed; in the latter, it sits in the ‘verbs’ to be enacted and practiced in use. The implication of an atomistic assumption is that it may underestimate the actions, practices and interactions that create the experience of an offerings use in context.
...
in utility theory, like perceived satisfaction literature, an exchange is considered successful when the ‘utility’ received is that which has been stipulated as the terms of the exchange. Therefore, satisfaction is relative to what was defined at purchase. This implicitly assumes that what represents value in the context of a purchase is the same value in the context of consumption i.e. the offering generates the same utility in both time-space contexts. The limitation of this assumption is that it does not recognize the phenomenological nature of value at consumption and that value could change if the context of consumption changes. This implies that satisfaction in use may not be the same as what was expected at purchase because the customer’s context, agency and resources have changed, despite the offering being ‘delivered’ exactly as promised at purchase."

As especificações, os atributos, são o que o fabricante controla, são a 1ª ordem. O que o fabricante não controla é o que o cliente pretende conseguir, sentir, experienciar com a integração dos recursos na sua vida.
.
A integração dos recursos gera efeitos de 2ª ordem na vida dos clientes. Porque comprou a matéria-prima aquele fornecedor, a maior densidade permitiu maior produtividade, traduzida em mais metros por unidade de tempo, traduzida em menores custos, traduzida em maior margem ou preço mais baixo sem perder margem - mais competitividade. O que é que o fornecedor faz, domina? A densidade. O que é que o cliente consegue? Preço mais competitivo sem perder nível de margem, ou seja, mais quota de mercado! Por exemplo.

Pricing man (parte VI)

“Offering true value is a necessary but by no means sufficient condition for success. Far too often I have heard managers claim that if you make a good product, it will sell itself. This is especially common among managers with a background in engineering or sciences. A board member of a major carmaker believed this wholeheartedly. “If we build good cars, we won’t have to worry about our sales figures,” he told me in the mid-1980s. Today this company is in big trouble.
What a mistake!
…
Managers have become keenly aware that value alone does you little good unless you can communicate it successfully. That means that customers understand and appreciate what they are buying. Remember, the only fundamental driver of willingness to pay is the perceived value in the eyes of the customer.
.
Nonetheless, the struggles continue. What makes the understanding of value to customer so complicated is that this value is often inextricably linked to outcomes which managers fail to truly understand and quantify: second-order effect s and intangible benefits.
…
Whenever possible, you should try to communicate value using hard data, especially in a business-to-business situation.”

Por que o valor não é algo intrínseco e incorporado na oferta mas um sentimento experienciado pelo cliente, a comunicação é fundamental.
.
Trechos retirados de "Confessions of the Pricing Man: How Price Affects Everything" de Hermann Simon.

Pricing man (parte V) - muito sumo

"People have asked me thousands of times to name the most important aspect of pricing. I answer with one word: “value.”
.
When asked to elaborate, I will use the term “value to customer.” The price a customer is willing to pay, and therefore the price a company can achieve, is always a reflection of the perceived value of the product or service in the customer’s eyes.  If the customer perceives a higher value, his or her willingness to pay rises. The converse is equally true: if the customer perceives a lower value relative to competitive products, willingness to pay drops.
.
“Perceive” is the operative word. When a company tries to figure out the price it can achieve, only the subjective (perceived) value of the customer matters. The objective value of the product or other measures of value, such as the Marxian theory that value is defined by the human labor time invested, do not matter intrinsically.  They matter only to the degree that the customer thinks they matter and is willing to a pay a price in return.[Moi ici: Em Portugal ainda há muitos marxianistas, sobretudo empresários... mesmo quando são politicamente mais de direita]
.
The Romans understood this connection so well that they incorporated it into their language. In Latin the word “pretium” means both price and value. Literally speaking, price and value are one and the same. This is a good guideline for businesses to follow when they make their price decisions. It leaves managers with three tasks:
– Create value : The quality of materials, performance, and design all drive the perceived value of customers. This is also where innovation comes into play.
– Communicate value : This is how you influence customers’ perception. It includes how you describe the product, your selling proposition, and last but not least the brand . Value communication also covers packaging, product performance, and shelf or online placement.
– Retain value: What happens post-purchase is decisive in shaping a lasting, positive perception. Expectations about how the value lasts will have a decisive influence on a customer’s willingness to pay for luxury goods, consumer durables, and cars. [Moi ici: Algo na linha de J. C: Larreché que referi aqui]
The process of price setting begins at the conception of the product idea. A company must think about prices as early and often as possible in the development process, not just after a product is ready to launch."

Trechos retirados de "Confessions of the Pricing Man: How Price Affects Everything"

Pricing man (parte IV)

Interessante como Hermann Simon começa o seu último livro "Confessions of the Pricing Man: How Price Affects Everything":

"I grew up on small livestock farm shortly after World War II. When our hogs were ready for slaughter, my father would bring them to the local wholesale market, where they would be auctioned off to butchers or traders. The sheer number of farmers who brought their hogs to market, matched by the large number of butchers and traders on the “buy” side, meant that no individual buyer or seller had a direct influence on the price of the hogs. [Moi ici: Condição para a concorrência perfeita] We were at the mercy of the local cooperative, which cleared the transactions. They would tell my father the price he would receive, and thus determine how much money he could take home to our family.
The same applied to milk, which we would deliver to the local dairy. We had absolutely no influence on the price. The dairy, again part of a cooperative, told us what the price would be. The milk price would fluctuate based on supply and demand . In times of an oversupply, prices would plunge. We never had hard numbers on supply and demand, only the impressions we gained from observing the market itself. Who else delivered milk? How much did they have?
.
In every market my father went to, we were “price takers.” We had to accept the set price, whether we liked it or not. It was an extremely uncomfortable position. As anyone with a similar experience will attest, money is tight on a farm; these sales were our only source of income.
.
I absorbed all these impressions as a young boy and I must admit, I didn’t like them. Decades later, I would explain in interviews that these lessons taught me something which has guided me in running my own business and helping others improve theirs: never run a business in which you have no influence on the prices you charge.[Moi ici: Só possível praticando, em maior ou menor grau, a concorrência imperfeita]
...
Prices determine how much money you make. That much is clear.

Continuação de "Pricing man (parte III) - para reflexão"

Continuado de "Pricing man (parte III) - para reflexão"
.
De acordo com este Quadro do Sector, publicado pelo BdP para o sector com
CAE 10110 - Abate de gado (produção de carne) de 2014, sem problemas em Angola, sem problemas na Rússia, sem invasão espanhola:

Cheira-me que estamos perante um sector a funcionar com modelo mental tornado obsoleto pelas mudanças do mundo nos últimos 20 anos e que tem sobrevivido ligado à máquina, certamente com generosos apoios comunitários.

Pricing man (parte IV) - jornais e chineses

Este título "“Guardian” corta 20% dos custos com despedimentos no horizonte":

"A previsão é a de que, em março deste ano, “The Guardian” registe perdas de receitas de entre 66 e 69 milhões de euros. A resposta a essa quebra acentuada foi anunciada pelo próprio jornal: um corte de 20% nos orçamentos dos próximos três anos, solução que dificilmente permitirá evitar mais despedimentos num grupo que, entre 2012 e 2014, reduziu o número de trabalhadores em 30% e os custos com salários em mais de 1,3 milhões de euros, segundo o “Financial Times”."

O Guardian, tal como todos os jornais em papel, está a tentar competir no preço com os chineses (a Internet). Qual a lição deste blogue há muitos e muitos anos?
.
.
.
Competição com resultado já conhecido, no fim ganham os chineses.
.
O que é que recomendo aos jornais?

"Os jornais são como Ferreira do Amaral, e muitos outros a quem chamo encalhados ou membros da tríade. Os jornais estão num combate com a Internet, a Internet está para os jornais como a concorrência chinesa está para as empresas que produzem bens transaccionáveis, ou da grande distribuição está para o comércio tradicional.
.
Como é que os jornais combatem a Internet... reduzindo custos, tentando competir no mesmo campo que dá vantagem à Internet. Só que a Internet é imbatível, é gratuita... é como uma escola privada querer competir com uma escola do Estado pelo custo... é uma guerra perdida à partida."
...
Para competir com a China, para ter sucesso com uma moeda como o marco, para os jornais competirem com a Internet, para o comércio tradicional competir com a grande distribuição e para as escolas privadas competirem com os chineses do Estado, só há um campeonato, o campeonato do valor! Tudo o resto é albanização que nos leva a ser a Sildávia do Ocidente."

 Lembrei-me de mais um trecho do recente livro de Hermann Simon  "Confessions of the Pricing Man: How Price Affects Everything":

"Crises change the supply and demand-situation in a market and therefore create an opportunity for companies to analyze and rethink their price propositions. One should not confine oneself to price decreases, but instead think more broadly and also consider the alternative. For example, the crisis period of 2008–2010 hit the restaurant industry particularly hard. After all, dining out is more expensive than eating at home. But the Panera Bread chain, which operated roughly 1,300 outlets in the USA at the time, reacted differently than its competitors as the crisis struck.
.
Instead of cutting prices or offering promotions, Panera upgraded its menu and raised its prices. This included adding a lobster sandwich to the menu at $16.99. Panera- CEO Ron Shaich explained the changes as follows: “Most of the world seems to be focused on the Americans who are unemployed. We’re focused on the 90 % that are still employed.” Bucking the industry trends, Panera’s revenue rose by 4 % in 2009 and profit by 28 %. Apparently the people in Panera’s target segment were willing to pay higher prices for higher value."

Não basta subir o preço, é preciso reformular a oferta para proporcionar mais valor em potencial. 

Pricing man (parte III) - para reflexão

A propósito de "Suinicultura. Tempestade perfeita pode abater 40% das explorações agrícolas":

"O excesso de produção de carne suína e a pressão espanhola sobre os preços, o embargo russo e a diminuição das exportações para Angola, a que acresce a política de promoções dos supermercados estão a afundar a suinicultura portuguesa.
...
“O que se recebe não chega para pagar a alimentação, muito menos medicação e vacinação”,
...
por outro lado, a política dos supermercados, alicerçada em promoções sistemáticas, leva a uma pressão adicional sobre a indústria e a um esmagamento dos preços. Na prática, a carne que vemos nas prateleiras de algumas lojas está a ser vendida “abaixo do custo de produção”.
...
Grande parte da produção que era canalizada para o exterior deixou de o ser, devido, nomeadamente, ao embargo russo e às dificuldades em Angola e na Venezuela. A este factor junte-se o excesso de produção mundial e a pressão da distribuição sobre toda a fileira e eis a tempestade perfeita, que ameaça 40% das explorações suinícolas."

Ao ler este texto lembrei-me logo das palavras cruas e pragmáticas de Hermann Simon em "Confessions of the Pricing Man: How Price Affects Everything":

"The biggest challenge facing pricing in the modern world is overcapacity. This conclusion has become clearer and clearer to me over time, and received a lot of support during the last crisis.
...
“No one can make any money in our business. Every single company has too much capacity. Every time a project comes up for bid, someone needs it desperately and offers suicidal prices. Sometimes it’s us, sometimes it’s a competitor . Even though four suppliers make up 80 % of the global market in our business, no one makes any money.”
.
It didn’t take long for me to formulate my answer: “As long as this overcapacity remains, nothing will change.”
...
But as long as overcapacity remains in such markets, most of the efforts to obtain better prices will not be very effective. The answer here lies not in vain attempts to raise prices, but in cutting capacity. This means that the complex interplay between price and capacity is a top management issue of highest priority.
.
What can a company do, though, if it reduces capacity and other competitors do not? Or even worse: What can a company do when a competitor seizes another’s capacity reduction as an opportunity to increase its market share ? Similar to the situation with a price increase , we have another prisoner’s dilemma. If  competitors do not follow the move, or counter it with their own capacity increase, then cutting one’s capacity can be dangerous. One will lose market  share or even put the company’s long-term market position in jeopardy."

O que é que os subsídios aos produtores faz? Atrasa a solução duradoura do assunto, a redução da sobre-capacidade.
.
Como não recordar o estudo de Spender sobre os apoios às fundições inglesas e os seus efeitos perversos.
.
Não acham que um jornalista devia, antes de publicar acriticamente o que lhe dizem, fazer o papel de mediação e investigar?
.
Até que ponto aquelas justificações:

"O excesso de produção de carne suína e a pressão espanhola sobre os preços, o embargo russo e a diminuição das exportações para Angola, a que acresce a política de promoções dos supermercados estão a afundar a suinicultura portuguesa."

Explicam a realidade?
.
E quando não havia embargo russo? E quando as exportações para Angola estavam de vento em poupa? E então Portugal não é autosuficiente em carne de porco e há excesso de produção? Recordo este texto de 2013:

"Portugal não é auto-suficiente na produção de carne de porco, produzindo apenas 67,8% do total consumido, mostram números de 2011."  

Recordo esta conversa da altura no texto:

"A Federação Portuguesa da Associação de Suinicultores afirma que os custos de produção poderão ditar a saída de muitos produtores do sector." 

Não acham estranho?
.
Continua com dados do Banco de Portugal.

Campeões escondidos

Hermann Simon, que tanto aprecio e que recentemente visitou Portugal, fala dos campeões escondidos. Empresas desconhecidas do mainstream, empresas que não frequentam o circuito da carne assada, empresas que não ocupam as páginas dos media, empresas que viajam pelo mundo à procura de clientes que possam servir com vantagem competitiva.

.

Em Estarreja, em 2011, conheci uma empresa dessas. Apanharam em cheio o impacte de 2009 na economia mundial e passaram um mau bocado.Não desistiram, contra tudo e contra todos, mantiveram a fé neles e no futuro. Apostaram na inovação, um dos gerentes é daqueles que se comporta como uma criança a fazer experiências, a testar coisas que os engravatados nem pensam ou julgam que não é possível. E apostaram em dar-se a conhecer ao mundo. Enquanto o país era encharcado pelos media no cortisol que afunila e encolhe o cérebro, eles meteram os pés ao caminho e começaram a ser presença regular nas feiras internacionais do sector:

• Brasil,
• Rússia,
• Estados Unidos
• Alemanha
• Holanda

Foi do melhor que fizeram, ao visitarem essas feiras não só se deram a conhecer, não só estabeleceram contactos como tiveram injecções de optimismo, mesmo sem encomendas, pois viam o potencial que havia.

.

Apostaram no site, no Linkedin, na comunicação técnica, nos testemunhos de clientes satisfeitos, começaram a calçar os sapatos dos decisores e a fazer as contas por eles, demonstrando com números os ganhos de produtividade que podiam ter recorrendo às suas máquinas.

.

Na semana passada, recebi um e-mail carregado de orgulho são e contentamento, depois de vendas concluídas com sucesso para países como:

• Brasil (apesar do proteccionismo brasileiro, a inovação das suas máquinas permite flanquear as pautas alfandegárias)
• México;
• Porto Rico;
• El Salvador;
• Roménia; e
• Zimbabwe

O e-mail informava-me com fotos que tinham pronta para embarque a primeira máquina para os Estados Unidos.

Como não ter orgulho por esta gente, que soube dar a volta, que soube não dar ouvidos aos cantos das sereias das desgraças.

Pricing man (parte II) - para reflexão

Mais um trecho retirado de "Confessions of the Pricing Man: How Price Affects Everything" de Hermann Simon.

"Countries show significant differences in how profitable their companies are. I have tracked data on this topic for many years, and attribute some of the results to cultural norms. Figure 5.1 compares the average profit margins for companies in 22 countries.

US companies are in the middle of the pack at 6.2 %. German companies have an average after-tax profit of 4.2 %, placing them in the lower half despite their improved performance in the recent past. Japanese companies have assumed their customary place near the bottom, with a meager 2.0 %. The average across all countries works out to 6.0 %.

.

What causes these sharp differences? To a large degree it is a matter of having the wrong goals. While I wouldn’t say these numbers are completely self-fulfilling prophecies, they do reflect the priorities that companies set. Too many companies have given higher priority to goals other than profit.

...

There is nothing inherently wrong with having sales, volume, and market share targets. Most companies have them and work hard to strike the right balance. These three secondary goals, however, offer you no useful guidance for price setting. Price setting requires a thorough understanding of two things: how your customers perceive your value and the profit level you need to sustain or improve that value. If market share is your primary goal, why don’t you just give away your product for free? Or even pay customers to use it? Of course such a strategy makes no sense. The reality in almost all companies is that goal setting is not an “either-or” exercise. 

.

Balance is paramount. The central problem is that most companies are not balanced. They still underemphasize profits relative to such goals as market share, revenue, volume, or growth. And they misunderstand the often dire consequences of that prioritization. This imbalance results in bizarre pricing strategies and ineffective marketing tactics."

Pricing man (parte I)

Nos próximos dias vou registar aqui alguns trechos retirados de "Confessions of the Pricing Man: How Price Affects Everything" de Hermann Simon.

"The pursuit of profit is both a driver of excellent pricing and an outcome of it; there is no way to separate the two topics. Profit is ultimately the only valid metric for guiding your company. The rationale is simple: profit is the only metric which takes both the revenue side and the cost side of a business into account. A company which wants to maximize its sales neglects the cost side. A company which wants to maximize its market share can distort its business in many ways. After all, the easiest way to maximize market share is to set one’s price at zero.
...
defending “profit” is not tantamount to defending greed and excess. It is a defense of corporate survival and growth. Let’s remember the comment by Peter Drucker, one of the most respected and widely followed management experts of our time: “Profit is a condition of survival. It is the cost of the future, the cost of staying in business.” [Moi ici: Lucro como o custo do futuro foi das primeiras frases de Peter Drucker que sublinhei. Julgo que ele citava textos de Schumpeter de 1909] Or as the esteemed German economist Erich Gutenberg once remarked, “no business has ever died from turning a profit.”
.
Profit transcends other corporate goals because it ensures a company’s survival. Businesses cannot afford to treat profit as a “nice to have” or a “pleasant surprise” at the end of the year. Put another way: if the company you work for makes no profit - or takes actions which puts profits in grave danger - your own job is at risk. It is only a matter of time before the cuts come.
...
Because profit is an indispensable condition of survival, it follows that excellent pricing is a means of survival. Companies need to take prices into their calculations with the same intensity and rigor they apply to costs."

Portugal, Alemanha e PME

"“Portugal deve construir o seu futuro apostando no Mittelstand e não em gigantes globais. Não vão ter gigantes como conseguiu a China ou os EUA, vaticinou.
.
O caminho passa por encontrar “nichos de mercado, mais do que grandes mercados”. O gestor dá uma recomendação: “Não deslocalizem a produção industrial para mercados mais baratos, procurem ficar no país”. Ao mesmo tempo, entende, “a capacidade de inovação tem de ser melhorada radicalmente, o que implica mais e melhor educação e formação”."

Palavras de Hermann Simon em Portugal.
.
Lembram-se da moda dos Campeões Nacionais? Uma forma que as "so-called elites" tentaram para obter apoios do Estado à manutenção da sua influência? (aqui e aqui)
.
Hermann Simon propõe há muitos anos os campeões escondidos e os nichos (recordar também Alberoni).
.
Recordo o "agora somos todos alemães" e o que escrevi em 2008 aqui:

"Concluo que o país precisa de campeões!
.
Mas o que eu entendo por campeões nacionais é muito diferente do que o mainstream entende. Para mim campeões são PME's que parecem invisíveis, que ninguém conhece, que não aparecem nos jornais, e que são bons numa coisa, muito bons mesmo, e em vez de andarem por aí a puxar o lustro dos gabinetes ministeriais, andam a fazer pela vida, incógnitos, visitando e expondo em feiras, desenvolvendo e afinando produtos e estratégias.
...
Campeões nacionais são empresas pequenas, invisíveis para os media e grande público mas que:
* olham para o negócio à la longue (não estão pressionadas por relatórios trimestrais);
* estão concentradas em ser líderes de mercado no que fazem (não querem, não aspiram a ser líderes de mercado em facturação);
* estão concentradas nos clientes-alvo, procuram a sua satisfação e lealdade;
* estão concentradas na rentabilidade, não nas taxas de crescimento;
não estão no mercado do preço-baixo (volume), estão no mercado do valor, da diferenciação;
*têm uma visão estratégica das parcerias de longa duração, com os seus fornecedores, com os seus trabalhadores e com os seus clientes;
Estes campeões esquecidos e muitas vezes mal vistos:"

Trechos iniciais retirados de "Numa discussão sobre as empresas alemãs, quem ganha são as PME"