13 anos depois ...

"A dyadic perspective may be too limited to comprehend contemporary value cocreation phenomena though, especially those that take place in service systems
...
“firms are increasingly engaged  in  complex  market  configurations  where  the  alignment  of  market  views  becomes  central  for  success. Firms  therefore  need  to  offer their  view  on  how  the  market  should  be  configured,  and  engage  actors  in activities aimed at creating a shared market view.” In practice, even service systems with only three firms (e.g., manufacturer, dealer, and user) can prove highly complex as market configurations.
.
Triads  of  independent  firms  that  connect  through  network  ties,  either  directly  or  indirectly,  for  the  purpose of doing business represent complex market configurations. Their network ties can be structural, economic, or social in character. A case in point is the Illinois-based company Caterpillar, a global leader in earth-moving products. To realize its value propositions, the company needs to foster network ties with users of its equipment but also with dealers that sell and service that equipment. Caterpillar operates through  an  extensive  network  of  independent  dealers  in  over  180  countries  and  refers  to  those  dealers  as  “a critical  competitive  differentiator”  and  “the  foundation”  of  its  worldwide  success.  However,  Caterpillar  also believes its dealers may be missing out on US$9–18 billion annually in easy-to-capture revenue, such that they need to enhance their service operations to boost their share of the global service market. Despite the integration of  diagnostic  technologies  into  Caterpillar  machines,  dealers  have  not  capitalized  on  these  assets  sufficiently
...
we  consider  the development of a triadic value proposition and analyze how the discontinuous effects of a new-to-the-industry service  initiative  might  change  relationships  among  actors  in  the  business  triad."

13 anos depois destas minhas experiências:

• Arquitecto de paisagens competitivas (parte II)
• O sucesso no novo mercado interno também passa por esta mudança
• Convite

Trechos retirados de "Triadic Value Propositions" de Kowalkowski, Kindström, e Carlborg, publicado por Service Science 8(3), pp. 282–299, 2016.

Uma lição

Um texto que devia ser lido por todos aqueles que andam seduzidos pelo eficientismo e só conhecem o modelo canceroso de crescimento, "Degression of Economic Value".

Só valida aquela frase de 2008:

"If the customer doesn't care about the price, then the retailer shouldn't care about the cost," E quem o faz começa a matar a galinha dos ovos de ouro.

Provocação para PME certificadas

Há dias, nesta minha outra vida, colocaram-me uma questão sobre a actualização dos riscos e oportunidades. Entretanto, numa auditoria recente, extra-auditoria pediram-me uma opinião sobre o mesmo tema.

A verdade é que há uns tempos que ando a repensar seriamente no tema. A norma ISO 9001:2015 é muito vaga sobre o tema e, portanto, temos toda a liberdade para testar diferentes formatos e ver o que funciona com cada empresa.

Assim, pode ser interessante fazer um levantamento inicial dos riscos e oportunidades que sirva de ponto de partida. E depois?

Uma abordagem possível pode passar pelo que se segue, até para evitar o by-pass da gestão ao sistema de gestão da qualidade:

Há luz do contexto externo (cláusula 4.1 da ISO 9001:2015) e da percepção de quem são as partes interessadas relevantes e de quais os seus requisitos relevantes (cláusula 4.2 da ISO 9001:2015), gerência e responsável comercial formalizam um orçamento de vendas para o ano seguinte.

Um orçamento de vendas define:

• Objectivos de facturação para o ano seguinte; 
• Objectivos de facturação por segmentos, margens, 
• Requisitos e exigências que o orçamento vai impor, testar, exigir, colocar sobre stress (custos, prazos, capacidades, perfis, ...)

Segue-se a revisão anual extraordinária do sistema. Um momento Janus: um balanço do ano que finda e uma discussão sobre as exigências para o ano seguinte. É a resposta à cláusula 9.3 da ISO 9001:2015, mas pode também servir de actualização da cláusula 4.1 relativa aos factores internos

A equipa de gestão fica ciente dos desafios que ajudarão a vencer no próximo ano e do stress a que irão estar submetidos se o orçamento de vendas se concretizar.

Depois da revisão anual extraordinária do sistema, no recato do seu sector, com a sua equipa, cada chefia deve mergulhar nos desafios do próximo ano e determinar riscos e oportunidades. O que os pode levar a contribuir ou não para o que orçamento de vendas requer?

Por fim, uma kick-off meeting para o ano seguinte, onde o compromisso formal de cada sector sobre como vai contribuir para o cumprimento do orçamento de vendas, e tendo em conta a orientação estratégica, os requisitos das partes interessadas relevantes, e os riscos e oportunidades, é validado e divulgado.

A ideia de fazer de cada ano um espécie de projecto, algo único e irrepetível, em vez de uma continuação da rotina de sempre, é capaz de ser útil para mudar mentalidades em muitas empresas.

Portugal competitivo (parte III)

Parte I e parte II.

Se nos deixarmos de tretas e facilitismos, se arrepiarmos caminho do fragilismo... fazemos milagres:

"O rótulo “Made in Portugal” é sinónimo de procura e de negócio
...
Na feira de decoração de interiores e design, no parque de exposições de Paris-Nord Villepinte, há mais de 70 marcas lusas,
...
“Não só aqui, como na feira de Nova Iorque, andam à procura dos produtos portugueses por terem qualidade e também a questão da matéria-prima. Nota-se uma crescente procura de produtos portugueses”
...
Acho que o design português agora reinventou-se. O produto português tem-se notado que tem mais qualidade e o 'made in Portugal' tem mais relevo”
...
Na única fábrica de lápis de Portugal, a origem do fabrico é fator de prestígio e a estratégia de internacionalização passa por exportar os próprios produtos históricos, os produtos concebidos pela sub-marca Art Graph e os produtos personalizados por encomenda.
.
“Nós produzimos material personalizado para alguns dos mais importantes museus do mundo e as pessoas que os comercializam dizem que isto é produzido em Portugal na Viarco. Significa que aquela carga de levar Portugal às costas (...) deixou de ser um problema e passou efetivamente a fazer parte da nossa estratégia fundamental e da criação da nossa própria identidade”"

Recordar 2015 e 2014.

Portugal competitivo (parte II)

Parte I.

A chegar ao final desta semana de trabalho, recordo aquele trecho:

- I've seen things, you people would't believe ...

Impressionado a sério com a qualidade e o luxo do que vi ser feito em empresas portuguesas. A minha bitola foi colocada a um novo nível.

Numa dessas empresas, que estava a auditar, aconteceu uma cena que me encheu de orgulho. Ao auditar a formação verifiquei que faziam uma avaliação da satisfação das pessoas com a formação em que tinham participado.

Imaginem o que encontrei no relatório da formação de 2016... entre mais de 50 acções de formação a que foi salientada como a mais satisfatória foi...



... "Workshop Balanced Scorecard"


Imaginem quem foi o animador dessas sessões hands-on?

Não é por serem grandes que as empresas exportam! (parte II)

Parte I.

"The good news with unfair advantages is that you don't need one from the outset. When you are just starting out, embrace obscurity to build something valuable without calling out too much competitor attention. Identify an unfair advantage story and if one is not readily apparent, it is always better to leave the unfair advantage box blank than stuffing a weak unfair advantage as a placeholder.
.
The bad news with unfair advantages is that once you get some traction, your unfair advantage will get tested -- by your competitors and copycats."

Trecho retirado de "What is an Unfair Advantage?"

"only 54%"

"Since the mid-2000s, organizational change management and transformation have become permanent features of the business landscape. Vast new markets and labor pools have opened up, innovative technologies have put once-powerful business models on the chopping block, and capital flows and investor demand have become less predictable. To meet these challenges, firms have become more sophisticated in the best practices for organizational change management. They are far more sensitive to and more keenly aware of the role that culture plays. They’ve also had to get much better on their follow-through.
...
the success rate of major change initiatives is only 54 percent. This is far too low. The costs are high when change efforts go wrong—not only financially but in confusion, lost opportunity, wasted resources, and diminished morale. When employees who have endured real upheaval and put in significant extra hours for an initiative that was announced with great fanfare see it simply fizzle out, cynicism sets in."

Agora imaginem o quanto o mundo muda e muda a uma velocidade mais forte, o quanto essas mudanças requerem novas estratégias, o quanto essas estratégias são apenas hipóteses que têm de ser testadas e afinadas ou revistas, o quanto a execução de uma estratégia assenta na implementação e integração de projectos de mudança em processos... projectos de mudança?

54% nos Estados Unidos! E por cá?


Trechos retirados de "10 Principles of Leading Change Management"

Não é por serem grandes que as empresas exportam!

A propósito de “Pequena dimensão de algumas empresas ainda dificulta ganhos de escala” julgo que há alguma confusão em algumas cabeças.

Não é por serem grandes que as empresas exportam! É por exportarem que as empresas crescem!

Empresas que exportam e ganham dinheiro têm credibilidade na banca para financiarem projectos de crescimento.

Empresas que querem crescer para depois exportar, são empresas que não têm um modelo validado pelo mercado, são um risco para os bancos e não têm uma especialização que as diferencie.

Empresas que querem exportar só com base na escala são empresas que estão no campeonato do preço puro e duro e duvido que o consigam fazer de forma sustentável. Empresas pequenas que começam a exportar, começam a fazê-lo porque têm uma qualquer vantagem que não passa só pelo volume, e será o abuso, a batota em torno dessa vantagem que dará os alicerces para um crescimento não canceroso.

Dores de crescimento

E quando uma empresa abandona as inseguranças, deixa de titubear e assume a execução duma estratégia.

E quando essa estratégia tem um sucesso para lá do que era previsto ...

A revolução que isso representa ... as dores do crescimento, as insatisfações que vão ser geradas nos antigos clientes, a sensação de estar sempre a correr atrás do prejuízo.

Aumentar a capacidade de produção em 20% e mesmo assim ser insuficiente para o aumento da procura.

O que é que a empresa deveria ter feito de diferente para acompanhar melhor o sucesso da estratégia? Como poderá evitar que situações semelhantes se repitam no futuro?
Qual o plano para meter as coisas em modo controlado?

Portugal competitivo

Nas últimas 3 semanas tenho vivido a experiência de visitar e trabalhar com várias PME portuguesas que estão a ter um 2017 muito, muito bom.

Empresas exportadoras que rejeitam encomendas e que crescem a dois dígitos.

Muito bom!!!

Por onde andam aqueles que diziam que as PME portuguesas não podiam competir por causa do euro?

"Strategies are time-bound"

"In retrospect, it seems inevitable. Nokia was so immersed in executing its strategy that it lost sight of its purpose."

Há dias li esta frase e não me sai da cabeça.

"Nokia is far from alone. In fact, history is filled with similar stories. The pepper trade, for example, was disrupted not by a better spice but by refrigeration. It hardly mattered anymore if your pepper supply chain was the best designed and most efficiently run, if your customer base was elite, or if the quality of your pepper was second to none. Your purpose — preserving food — had been co-opted. All the strengths you had worked so hard to build no longer mattered. Today, broadcast and cable television, print journalism, taxi cabs, and (over the longer term) oil and gas are among the industries facing formidable challengers determined to co-opt their purpose.
.
To safeguard your company at the level of purpose, you must make strategy the servant rather than the master. Strategies are time-bound and target specific results. Your purpose, in contrast, is what makes you durably relevant to the world. Strategy is but one of several important means to operationalize your purpose. Intrinsic human connection to your purpose is even more important."

E este outro sublinhado também é poderoso:

"All the strengths you had worked so hard to build no longer mattered." 

Trechos retirados de "The Best Companies Know How to Balance Strategy and Purpose"

"you need to build relationships"

"Sales and selling shouldn't be competitive or manipulative.
.
Selling is usually competitive, though. Some people love and thrive on the competition. Competition is wrong when the competition is with your client, the industry, or your colleagues. Competition against your best self, well, is needed.
.
You do not need to overcome objections; you need to solve problems.
.
You do not need to attack the market; you need to build relationships.[Moi ici: Outra vez as relações]
.
You do not need to capture deals; you need to create solutions together."

Trecho retirado de "The No. 1 Rule in Sales Is to Forget What You've Been Taught About Sales"

Acerca de Mongo

O que aqui dizemos ao longo de anos e mais anos anda em torno disto, "Why You Should Keep Making Stuff By Hand", eficácia em vez de eficiência, arte em vez de vómito.

Actuar em Mongo

Relacionar "Cuidado com a eficiência" e a citação:

"There are a lot of things that aren’t convenient. There are many possible ways to be more efficient with your limited time and energy. But much of the time, efficiency is the wrong factor to use to decide. Human relationships are inefficient. They require care and feeding. They require effort. That means that the inefficient is more effective in producing the outcome you need, making it the truly efficient choice—and making what you believe to be efficient to be the least inefficient choice because it doesn’t generate a preference to work with you."

Com "Make relationships, not things":

"All relationships are based on trust.
...
Make relationships, not things
The decision to create a relationship instead of a thing has real consequences for what you make, who you ask to make it, and how it gets done."

E com "Cuidado com as melhores práticas":

"Businesses are still organised in the same way they were in Victorian times when we were building factories that churned out consistent objects. We’re now in a world where we sell concepts, content, ideas and thoughts"

Eficácia, relação, interacção. Temas recorrentes neste blogue e fundamentais para perceber como é que as empresas devem actuar em Mongo.

Imaginem a flexibilidade necessária

Imaginem a flexibilidade necessária

"Treat strategy as evergreen. The best companies see strategy less as a plan and more as a direction and agenda of decisions. In effect, a company’s strategy is the sum of decisions it effectively makes and executes over time. This mindset focuses leadership on making near-term decisions with the longer-term destination in mind, but it doesn’t presume that there is only one path from here to there.
...
Think of strategy as a portfolio of options, not bonds. The traditional plan-then-do model treats the value of any strategy like a bond. Management forecasts the future coupon payments (or cash flows) associated with various strategies and then selects the one that has the highest discounted value. When volatility is high, however, strategic decisions should be treated more like call options. Leadership decides whether the small up-front investment is worth making as a call on potential profits. As long as the option appears “in the money,” management can continue to invest; the moment the strategy becomes “out of the money,” leadership can stop investing, cut its losses, and move on.
...
Create response mechanisms. In a world where the best laid plans can go awry, companies that react quickly and effectively come out on top. Rigorous contingency planning is as important as disciplined action planning. It requires that you identify the most important known unknowns associated with your company’s strategy, specify concrete steps to adjust course if you see an unplanned change in the external environment, and put in place mechanisms to continuously monitor market and competitive conditions.
...
Most companies do not take advantage of their opportunities to test and learn. They go for a big bang — and risk a big bust — when a series of smaller, more productive bangs would generate better results.
.
Great performance requires great strategy and great execution, but poor execution is often used as an excuse for flawed strategy. Today’s leaders need a new approach to strategy development. They can no longer define a plan over many years and then just do. Success requires identifying the next few steps along a broadly defined strategic path and then learning and refining as you go. This approach makes execution easier and increases the odds of delivering great results."

Trechos retirados de "5 Ways the Best Companies Close the Strategy-Execution Gap"

Fugir do granel

Eu gosto é destas cenas!

Sistematizar, organizar, fugir do granel.

Atribuir responsabilidades e autoridades e começar a melhorar.

Execution is the act of ...

"The common perception is that strategy is done at the top of the org chart, and execution is done below. It is exactly the opposite – let me explain why.
...
Usually when businesspeople talk about “strategy” and “execution,” the former is the act of making choices and the latter the act of obeying them. My quibble with this characterization is that the things that happen in the activity called “strategy” and the activity called “execution” are identical: people are making choices about what to do and what not to do.
...
No matter where you are in the organization, the choices are the same: they are all where to play/how to win strategy choices.
.
And that is why I describe leadership in this layered choice cascade as follows:
.
Make only the set of choices you are more capable of making than anyone else.
Explain the choice that has been made and the reasoning behind it.
Explicitly identify the next downstream choice.
Assist in making the downstream choice, as needed.
Commit to revisit and modify the choice based on downstream feedback.
...
Strategy is the act of making choices about “where to play” and “how to win” across the various levels and parts of the organization. Execution is the act of parsing out responsibility for those choices, making sure people actually choose (instead of waffling around in indecision).
.
This reverses the normal implied responsibilities. While the traditional definitions hold that strategy is done at the top and execution is done below, in this alternative, more useful definition, strategy choices are made throughout the organization and the responsibility for execution lies at the top."

Trechos retirados de "CEOs Should Stop Thinking that Execution is Somebody Else’s Job; It Is Theirs"

Quando o mundo muda há quem dê a volta (parte III)

Parte I e parte II. 

"“The idea that everybody needs to be terrified of Amazon is completely wrong,” says Brian Spaly, who cofounded two e-commerce-centric startups, Bonobos (menswear) and Trunk Club (a wardrobe-in-a-box service), which sold to Walmart and Nordstrom, respectively, for nine-figure sums. “Everybody needs to figure out what makes them special and use those weapons to compete.”
...
SUCCESSFUL RETAILERS WILL FEATURE PRODUCTS THAT CUSTOMERS CAN’T GET ELSEWHERE...
When consumers can get seemingly anything and everything online, what can Target offer that Amazon can’t?
...
In other words, Target had strayed from what made it “Tar-zhay.” Two decades ago, the company had distinguished itself from other big-box retailers by teaming up with celebrated architect and designer Michael Graves to craft a collection of mass-market housewares, partnering with high-end fashion designers like Isaac Mizrahi for custom fashion lines, and nurturing emerging brands such as Method through forward-thinking curation. “There would be no retail if it weren’t for merchandising, so why isn’t anyone talking about it anymore?” wonders Rachel Shechtman, founder of Story, the novel Manhattan concept store, which reinvents itself regularly (and collaborated with Target in 2014). “Merch assortments designed by spreadsheets and algorithms” is what’s killing department stores, she says.
...
SUCCESSFUL RETAILERS WILL DELIVER A SATISFYING EXPERIENCE...
good experiential design is about solving customer problems.
...
SUCCESSFUL RETAILERS WILL CHALLENGE THE FUNDAMENTAL ASSUMPTIONS OF COMMERCE...
SUCCESSFUL RETAILERS WILL RESURRECT THE ART OF SELLING"

Trechos retirados de "The Future Of Retail In The Age Of Amazon"

Cuidado com a eficiência

Ontem em "Análise do contexto ao vivo e a cores (parte II)" referi:

"E fico a pensar no dilema do filho de Stephen Covey, e penso em gente mais preocupada em fazer um visto numa checklist de conformidade com a norma do que em reflectir pelo menos uma vez por semestre sobre o ambiente onde a organização está inserida. E isto é demasiado importante ..."

Entretanto, hoje li "The Inefficient is Really Efficient":

"It’s easier to send an email than make a phone call.
...
It’s easier to schedule a phone call than it is to show up. It might take two hours to reach your client, and the meeting is only going to last 20 minutes. A phone call may be more convenient for you, giving you back an hour and half of your day. The question, however, is what is the impact of your presence during this conversation?
...
There are a lot of things that aren’t convenient. There are many possible ways to be more efficient with your limited time and energy. But much of the time, efficiency is the wrong factor to use to decide. Human relationships are inefficient. They require care and feeding. They require effort. That means that the inefficient is more effective in producing the outcome you need, making it the truly efficient choice—and making what you believe to be efficient to be the least inefficient choice because it doesn’t generate a preference to work with you."[Moi ici: Excelente trecho!!!]

Recordo a estória do filho de Covey em "A crença louca na eficiência, quando se lida com gente"

Quantas vezes a paranóia do eficientismo prejudicou a actividade da sua empresa? Ontem estive numa reunião em que descrevi a minha adesão a um projecto assim:

- Vim pelos produtos e mantenho-me pela relação. E, "Human relationships are inefficient".

Quantas vezes já chamei aqui a atenção para a importância da eficácia face à eficiência.

Momentos positivos

"When brothers Chip and Dan Heath, a professor at Stanford Graduate School of Business and a senior fellow at Duke University’s CASE Center, respectively, asked executives how they invest their resources, the executives estimated that, on average, their companies spend 80 percent of their resources trying to improve the experiences of their unhappiest customers. Yet, report the Heaths, in 2016, when Forrester Research tabulated its annual U.S. Customer Experience Index and modeled the financial results in 16 industries, it discovered that “there’s nine times more to gain by elevating positive customers than by eliminating negative ones.”
...
“positive defining moments” can produce extraordinary effects in both individuals and organizations.
...
The authors define a defining moment as “a short experience that is both memorable and meaningful.”
...
the positive ones are composed of one or more of four crucial elements: elevation (they rise above the ordinary), insight (they rewire our perceptions), pride (they capture us at our best, reflecting achievements or courageous acts), and connection (they are shared and, in being shared, they bind us together). The more of the four elements that are present in a defining moment, the more powerful it is"

Trechos retirados de "Creating Defining Moments for Your Customers"

Análise do contexto ao vivo e a cores (parte III)

Parte I e parte II.

Na figura abaixo, a equipa de Alex Osterwalder propõe uma ferramenta para fazer a análise do contexto externo em busca de potenciais forças disruptoras

Até que ponto uma ferramenta deste tipo pode ajudar a sua empresa?

Se olhar para trás consegue identificar 3 ou 4 tendências externas ou eventos que influenciaram o percurso da sua empresa, positiva ou negativamente?

Consegue reconhecer essas tendências externas na figura?

Se sim, OK.

Se não, use-as como base para melhor ajustar a ferramenta à sua realidade. Por exemplo, até que ponto este tropeção está representado na figura? Talvez acrescente ao "Market Analysis" mais um tópico "Customer trends", algo mais concreto que "Needs and demands".

Recordar o "Context Map Canvas"

Figura retirada de "How To Scan Your Business Model Environment For Disruptive Threats And Opportunities"

Indicadores

Para alguém como eu, que aprecia o papel e a utilidade dos indicadores na vida das organizações, eis um artigo interessante, "5 Questions You Must Answer to Measure Your Business Well":

"Regardless of the measurement you need to answer five things about it:
.
1. What’s the measurement’s purpose? Know the significance of the metric and what you’ll change in your business based on the numbers you measure.
.
2. What data source will you use? Different sources of data can yield different results.
.
3. How will you calculate the metric? Define a formula, especially for complex measures.
.
4. How frequently will you measure? Measuring takes effort. Be efficient and only measure as frequently as you need to.
.
5. Who will review the measure? Define the stakeholders who are going to receive the reports."

Tropeçar e aprender

"Strategy emerges over time as intentions collide with and accommodate a changing reality.
.
Emergent strategy is a a realized pattern that was not expressly intended in the original planning of strategy.
.
Deliberate strategies provide the organization with a sense of purposeful direction. Emergent strategy implies that organizations are learning what really works."

 Há tempos encontrei uma empresa com um exemplo bem claro desta coisa de tropeçar na realidade e perceber que estava perante uma oportunidade de fazer algo diferente.

Cliente pede um desenvolvimento, empresa faz o desenvolvimento.

Cliente pede produção para esse desenvolvimento, empresa percebe que não tem capacidade de produção para atender a esse pedido e que não está interessada em evoluir para a dimensão que esse cliente impõe.

Empresa percebe que clientes exigentes de grande dimensão recorrem aos seus serviços de concepção e desenvolvimento por causa da sua fama, por causa da sua rapidez e por causa do seu know-how. Empresa percebe que isso pode ser um negócio aparte e independente da produção.

Empresa começa a desenvolver um novo modelo de negócio para certo tipo de clientes-alvo em que a sua proposta de valor gira em torno da qualidade e rapidez do projecto, e já não em torno da produção.

A empresa nunca tinha pensado nesta possibilidade, tropeçou nela e transformou-a numa estratégia deliberada depois de a ter avaliado.

Trecho retirado de "93% of Successful Companies Abandon Their Original Strategy"

Análise do contexto ao vivo e a cores (parte II)

Parte I.

Na semana passada numa empresa, achei interessante o comentário de um trabalhador de uma empresa. Apesar de trabalhar para uma empresa portuguesa, também trabalha em part-time para uma multinacional de muito sucesso.

Qual foi o comentário? Uma desconfiança quanto ao futuro de uma sociedade que não poupa, o que o leva a defender investimentos muito prudentes e a nunca pensar em servir o mercado nacional.

Recordei a conversa quando li "“Nem a moeda única nos salvará de um quarto resgate”, avisa Daniel Bessa".

É sobre estas opiniões que a cláusula 4.1 da ISO 9001:2015 trata, quando se refere às questões externas. A propósito deste webinar ontem realizado, mais de 50% das perguntas que recebi antes e durante o webinar diziam respeito à documentação. A preocupação sobre como é que os auditores vão verificar o cumprimento dos requisitos. Com estes webinars a que acedem pessoas de todo o mundo, percebi que a doença afinal não é portuguesa, é geral: as pessoas acham que só é legal, só é válido o que está escrito na lei. Se não está escrito não deve ser permitido fazer. Se não está escrito, somos livres de fazer o que muito bem entendemos, ponto.

Será que é preciso ter medo de como documentar uma reflexão sobre os factores externos que uma empresa considera relevantes? Se os temas foram discutidos e são relevantes não ficará nada na cabeça de quem os discutiu? E essa discussão não influirá na definição de objectivos e na determinação de riscos e oportunidades?

E apareceu-me agora na cabeça a recordação do texto citado em "Para reflexão" e o título do livro "In an Uncertain World":

"Yet one wonders how long such luck will last. This brings me back to the title of Rubin’s book, his “uncertain world.” In such a world, the vast majority things are outside our control, determined by God or luck. After we have given our best and once the final card is drawn, we should neither become too excited by what we have achieved nor too depressed by what we failed to achieve. We should simply acknowledge the result and move on. Maybe this is the key to a happy life."

Diferentes decisores, perante as mesmas questões externas, terão diferentes opiniões e tomarão diferentes decisões.

Que factores, que temas externos as empresas consideram quando repensam sobre o prazo de validade das suas estratégias, sobre as oportunidades em que tropeçam, sobre as ameaças que julgam perceber no horizonte?

E fico a pensar no dilema do filho de Stephen Covey, e penso em gente mais preocupada em fazer um visto numa checklist de conformidade com a norma do que em reflectir pelo menos uma vez por semestre sobre o ambiente onde a organização está inserida. E isto é demasiado importante ...

Uma testa de ponte

"Mr Galperín is now moving into the banking sector — about half of the region’s 650m population do not have bank accounts. “We have democratised commerce, now we want to democratise money,” he says, humility dissipating.
.
Nevertheless, he balks at the suggestion that he is setting out to “disrupt” the banks. “No, no, no,” he protests. “We are not competing with the banks, but targeting the 50 per cent [of people] who have no account, or whose needs are not being met.”"

Acredito que esta postura é a mais adequada para entrar num sector enfrentando menos concorrência aberta, menos resistência e menos "Antrais". Começar pelos que não são clientes de ninguém, começar por quem não está no mercado. Assim, há medida que se vai crescendo, está-se de certa forma longe do radar dos incumbentes, porque não se lhes está a comer quota de mercado.  À medida que a oferta se for adequando aos clientes-alvo, os clientes overservd dos bancos vão começar a repensar a sua lealdade como clientes, e quando os incumbentes acordarem .... vão ter um competidor muito mais forte e com uma lógica de negócio bem diferente.

Trecho retirado de "MercadoLibre’s Marcos Galperín on Latin America’s ecommerce boom"

"algo à parte da gestão da empresa"

E encontrar uma empresa com bons resultados, com alguma narrativa sobre a estratégia que faz sentido, com alguns escolhas dolorosas assumidas e com um sistema de gestão da qualidade certificado segundo a ISO 9001:2015.

Por que escrevo esta introdução?

Por que sinto que apesar de tudo o que tem de bom falta-lhe fazer batota, falta-lhe abusar daquilo em que é boa e que decorre das escolhas estratégicas que fez. Por que sinto que um dos culpados dessa lacuna é o sistema de gestão da qualidade. O sistema está certificado e cumpre os requisitos da norma mas sente-se que é algo à parte da gestão da empresa.

Uma pena!

A vantagem competitiva

Considerar esta mensagem:

"WE HAVE AN UNFAIR ADVANTAGE:
.
We care more."

E recordar:

"Customers often think we are different not because we are different, but because we recognize what makes them different"

Trecho retirado daqui.

Análise do contexto ao vivo e a cores

Recebi um e-mail em que alguém me pergunta:

- Com que frequência deve uma organização rever/actualizar as sua determinação das partes interessadas para o seu sistema de gestão da qualidade?

E a primeira coisa que me veio à cabeça foi a análise do contexto...

No princípio desta semana visitei uma empresa que está entusiasmada. Está a começar a produzir peças para o T-Roc que está a ser produzido na Autoeuropa e antevê a possibilidade de uma produção regular, certinha, sem problemas de fabrico, para os próximos seis anos.

Agora, imaginem a situação da gestão de topo dessa empresa ao ler "Pré-acordo na Autoeuropa foi chumbado"... agora, imaginem que em Wolfsburg recebem mais um apelo de Osnabruck para a transferência de 30 mil veículos com potencial para chegar aos 100 mil veículos/ano?

Imaginem que Wolfsburg opta por Osnabruck...

Eu, se fosse a gestão de topo da tal empresa, começava a esfriar fortemente as minhas expectativas para o futuro e, a carregar a minha lista de ameaças e a diminuir a minha lista de oportunidades.

Agora, acrescentem as milhares de empresas que estão a trabalhar neste ecossistema...

Agora, acrescentem as estatísticas das exportações...

"scale is turning into a disadvantage"

"advantage of scale has given far more of us increased material wealth, access to mass education, longevity of life increased social complexity and so forth.
...
Organizations have had a blueprint that was tailored for mass efficiency — but not meaningfulness, identity, belonging and individualization.
...
there is an increase in market complexity and uncertainty. We are in an era where digitization has led industries to converge and mutate.
.
So this system of certainty and predictability which was built for stability in certain times. Is suddenly finding itself in uncertainty. Unable to control for the asymmetric relationships that are appearing between their customers and new organizations.
.
The only thing certain becomes uncertainty.
...
the iron law of industry — advantage of scale itself — is being disrupted.
.
In fact scale is turning into a disadvantage due to the massive cost of producing non-standardized parts.
.
Scale, which once was a barrier to entry for new companies has turned into a barrier for incumbents to answer the demand patterns of the market.
As advantage of scale breaks down every scaffolding around it seems to shake or go down with it.
.
When the iron law of efficiency — which has cost individuals, ideas, talents and meaningfulness so much — comes crashing down we are GIVEN the opportunity to redesign how we organize and create together."

Um pobre anónimo da província escreve destas coisas há anos, "Mas claro, eu só sou um anónimo engenheiro da província", um dia isto há-de chegar ao mainstream.

Um dia havemos de ultrapassar o mindset do século XX, de Magnitogrado.

Trechos retirados de "When The Iron Law of Efficiency Comes Crashing Down"

Cuidado com as melhores práticas

"Similarly, when Michelin, the tyremaker, tried to introduce lean production methods — as pioneered by Toyota — in the 1990s, it succeeded in improving productivity at the expense of agility and at a cost to its carefully nurtured humane corporate culture."

E o que é que Mongo requer? Agilidade e mais agilidade.

BTW, sublinho de "Customer experience investment fails to pay off as performance hits all-time low":

"“Businesses are still organised in the same way they were in Victorian times when we were building factories that churned out consistent objects. We’re now in a world where we sell concepts, content, ideas and thoughts [Moi ici: Em linha com "the more important it is to think about boundaries"] and the traditional organisational structure really isn’t effective in being able to do that.”"

Cuidado com as melhores-práticas, cuidado com o benchmarking e com o uso que se dá à caneta.

BTW, aquela perda de agilidade da Michelin fez-me recordar as 8 semanas de congelamento:

"These practices are combined with the tradition within Toyota Production System of freezing the production schedule eight weeks before production begins, which substantially reduces responsiveness."

Trecho inicial retirado de "Best practice can make lemmings of us all"

I see Qimondas everywhere

Mal vi o título, "Portuguesa Sugal bate recorde de produção de tomate e factura mais de 265 milhões", porque sofro o maior castigo que os deuses podem lançar sobre um humano, isto é, ter memória. Cheguei ao Twitter e escrevi:

uma espécie de Qimonda https://t.co/5HaNfSorHn

— Carlos P da Cruz (@ccz1) November 29, 2017

Depois, fui ao blogue e encontrei:

• É misturar alhos com bugalhos (Abril 2016)
• Tomate e proposta de valor (Maio 2007)

Guardem uns minutos para reflectir sobre esta empresa que no final de cada ano apresenta sempre estes resultados, mas que na primeira metade de ada ano está sempre a chorar apoios e benesses ao Estado.

Para reflexão

"As a consequence, I got into the best class in the best school in my city, [Moi ici: Na China] and thus began the most painful year of my life.
...
Most of the class had been participating in various competitions in middle school and had become familiar with a large part of the high school syllabus already. Furthermore, they had also grown to know each other from those years of competitions together. And here I was, someone who didn’t know anything or anyone, surrounded by people who knew more to begin with, who were much smarter, and who worked just as hard as I did. What chance did I have?
.
During that year, I tried very hard to catch up: I gave up everything else and even moved somewhere close to the school to save time on the commute, but to no avail. Over time, going to school and competing while knowing I was sure to lose became torture. Yet I had to do it every day. At the end-of-year exam, I scored second from the bottom of the class—the same place where I began in first grade.
...
Finally, I threw in the towel, and asked my parents to send me abroad. Anywhere else on this earth would surely be better.
.
So I came to the UK in 2001, when I was 16 years old. Much to my surprise, I found the UK’s exam-focused educational system very similar to the one in China.
...
I found it hard to believe how much easier everything became. I scored first nationwide in the GCSE (high school) math exam, and my photo was printed in a national newspaper."

Interessante como o penúltimo aluno numa escola de uma cidade chinesa de segunda categoria, consegue ser o melhor aluno no Reino Unido.

E este trecho:

"On the other hand, although the UK’s university system is considered superior to China’s, with a population that is only one-twentieth the size of my native country, competition, while tough, is less intimidating. For example, about one in ten applicants gets into Oxbridge in the UK, and Stanford and Harvard accept about one in twenty-five applicants. But in Hebei province in China, where I am from, only one in fifteen hundred applicants gets into Peking or Qinghua University" 

Faz-me lembrar uma mensagem que li, talvez em 2011, e que dizia que o top 1% de alunos chineses era mais numeroso que todos os alunos americanos juntos.

Trechos retirados de "The Western Elite from a Chinese Perspective"

O todo não é igual à soma das partes

Por que é que continuo a ver cada vez mais empresas com um sistema de gestão da qualidade certificado, segundo os requisitos decorrentes da ISO 9001:2015, em que as empresas consideram como objectivos da qualidade, como objectivos máximos do seu sistema, o somatório dos objectivos associados a cada um dos processos?

De onde veio esta ideia absurda de pensar que o todo é igual à soma das partes?

De onde veio esta ideia absurda de pensar que todos os processos são iguais e que não existe diferença no contributo de cada um para a execução da estratégia?

Muita gente precisa de aprender o que é a obliquidade.

"the more important it is to think about boundaries"

"If 'management' is the art of achieving efficiency within a more or less defined framework, 'leadership' is the art of navigating an organization through structural change. Structural change may mean adverse conditions.
...
If leadership is the same as helping an organization navigate through structural change, it must be based on an understanding of both external (contextual and business) dynamics and internal dynamics.
...
Business systems are being reconfigured. No definitions, no boundaries are sacred.
...
Co-production takes place in networks. 'Workers' are no longer employed but wandering nomads crossing invisible and undefinable boundaries everywhere. Companies invent means to influence what goes on far beyond their legal boundaries. They see customers and other value constellation partners as equally important to manage as 'employees'.
.
This lack of boundaries, this haze, this lack of definition in the physical world, paradoxically requires us to think more, not less of boundaries. The paradox that the more boundaryless the world seems to be, the more important it is to think about boundaries [Moi ici: Ponto muito interessante, na senda de "First, define yourself, then, define your audience"]
...
If we are to keep our sense of purpose and identity, we must have an idea of what we are and who we are. But the more the physical world becomes blurred, the more this sense of identity must come from reflection, from activities performed in the conceptual domain. [Moi ici: Outro ponto interessante, não somos o que fazemos, somos mais do que isso, somos os resultados que ajudamos a atingir, somos o progresso que facilitamos, somos os sonhos que ajudamos a cumprir]
Conceptualizing must compensate for the haziness."

Agora relacionar estes sublinhados com as reflexões sobre o tecto de vidro e a incapacidade de fazer escolhas dolorosas, sobre a dificuldade de deixar de pensar apenas no que se produz, o output, em vez de equacionar os inputs.

Trechos de Richard Normann retirados do seu "Reframing Business"!!!




tecto de vidro

Sintomas

• "Aumento da procura faz disparar salários de engenheiros"
• "Falta de mão de obra qualificada retrai crescimento alemão"
• "Escandinávia precisa desesperadamente de mão-de-obra qualificada"

Sintomas que serão cada vez mais comuns no futuro. A demografia não engana.

Quais as implicações, quais as consequências?

Mongo não vai por aí

Ao ler "This T-Shirt Sewing Robot Could Radically Shift The Apparel Industry" penso nos custos fixos a suportar.

"When the Chinese clothing manufacturer Tianyuan Garments Company opens its newest factory in 2018, it will be in Arkansas, not China, and instead of workers hunched over sewing machines, the factory will be filled with fully autonomous robots and their human supervisors.
.
Once the system is fully operational, each of the 21 production lines in the factory will be capable of making 1.2 million T-shirts a year, at a total cost of production that can compete in terms of cost with apparel companies that manufacture and ship clothing from the lowest-wage countries in the world. The factory will be one of the first to use a technology that could herald immense changes in how the apparel industry works."

Algo que não está alinhado com a tendência de Mongo, algo alinhado com o modelo do século XX.

Quanto custará uma pequena série?

Quem serão os clientes-alvo, os das grandes séries ou os das pequenas séries?

Conto do vigário

Tantos pensamentos, depois de ler "May the next Etsy learn its lessons" que me levou a procurar mais e chegar a "Inside the Revolution at Etsy".

"Venture capital taught Etsy that making money wasn’t a skill it needed to learn early on. Go on, it said, spend the millions. And when you’ve spent those, come back and get some more. So Etsy did. They came back for a B round, then a C round, then D, E, and F rounds. Just shy of $100 million in total.
That experience deluded Etsy into thinking that they, uniquely, could ferry the scorpion across the river without getting stung. That a cool hundred million wouldn’t ever need to be paid back or corrupt its noble mission.
But the party only lasts until the music stops."

Como não recordar:

• Precisamente por isto é que me faz espécie
• Alquimia da estupidez 

Quando isto, "Why the ‘end of the startup era’ could be great for entrepreneurs", for lugar-comum, muitos vão olhar para trás e achar incrível que esta geração tenha ido no conto do vigário com tanta facilidade.

E as Websummit, onde se encaixam?

que parolice https://t.co/1bNuefiRph que parolice mesmo. empreender ñ é lifestyle nem show, é seduzir clientes ou morrer

— Carlos P da Cruz (@ccz1) October 31, 2016

 

Oh boy... torrar €€ à fartazana. Arranjar clientes e MVP vai ser a última coisa https://t.co/0jzUR9qA1g

— Carlos P da Cruz (@ccz1) March 8, 2016

 

estilo de vida:
-o q fazes?
-tenho uma startup
-já tens clientes?
-ñ preciso, com apoios e subsídios tenho vida por + 10 anos sem clientes

— Carlos P da Cruz (@ccz1) June 26, 2017

 

Fugir das decisões à la Infarmed

"We wanted to unpack the how by identifying what sets these teams apart in terms of how they spend their time and the critical behaviors they engage in.
...
Commit to an identity. The first tenet of their framework is that an organization must commit to an identity through a shared understanding of its value proposition and distinctive capabilities. In short, the organization must commit to focus on what it is good at and then go after it
...
Translate strategy into everyday processes and capabilities. Our analysis of how senior teams spend their time shows that for this dimension:
.
High-performing teams spend over 25% more time focusing the enterprise than their lower-performing peers. That time is spent establishing financial and operational metrics, aligning goals with overarching strategy, allocating resources, and reviewing key metrics.[Moi ici: Daí a importância de um balanced scorecard da 3ª geração]
High-performing teams spend 14% more time checking their progress against strategic goals by reviewing key metrics and shifting resources accordingly.
...
Concentrate on the unique cultural factors that fuel success. Implicit in this assumption is resisting the temptation to drive traditional change programs based on addressing gaps or weaknesses.
...
The academic literature as well as our consulting experience suggest that the ability to prioritize is a key ingredient to an enterprise leadership team’s success. This is no small task, given the constant and overwhelming demands on most teams. What do our data suggest about how teams go about this?
.
High-performing teams, compared to lower-performing teams, spend 54% more time first setting direction, crafting a vision that serves as a guiding light for decisions regarding resources.
When it comes to execution, lower-performing teams spend an astounding 83% more time fire-fighting and dealing with issues at a tactical rather than strategic level.[Moi ici: Quando deixaremos esta mania de nas empresas praticar o mesmo que vimos à dias quanto ao Infarmed? ]
...
Shape the future. High-performing teams successfully shape the future, rather than always being in a reactive mode in the present. How do they do it?
.
They spend 25.3% more time influencing high-level stakeholders by identifying their needs and managing their expectations.
Unsurprisingly, though easier said than done, the high-performing teams spend 13.2% more time planning for the future by setting direction, creating a vision, and defining their strategy.
Finally, they shape the future by responding to change in the present (20.7% more effectively than lower-performing teams), positioning the enterprise for future success. This is consistent with much of the existing literature around the importance of agility in high-performing teams."

Muito, muito bom!!!

Trechos retirados de "How the Most Successful Teams Bridge the Strategy-Execution Gap"

False profits

Como é possível ser um chico esperto tão incompetente… #worten https://t.co/zUXFh8nKSO

— poingg (@poingg) November 25, 2017

"False profits...
Some brands have even institutionalised false profits. I have learned of an airline that instituted a bonus system based on the over-weight baggage charges they manage to accumulate, as well as of a rental car company who offers gift vouchers to the rep having claimed the most damages on vehicles being returned (I wonder if these vouchers expire?).
.
But even if you are less aggressive about what surely are not long-term profit maximising practices, it is probably worth conducting a thorough analysis of your company profits, maybe guided by customer complaints. What is the percentage of profits that can be linked to customer complaints? Are these worth it? Common sense says no. But you can go further and observe the behaviour of customers hit with complaint-generating profits."

E na sua empresa?

Muitas vezes cliente e fornecedor têm uma relação de surdos.

Empresa fornecedora comenta comigo que um seu cliente importante lhe tinha prometido entregar um serviço subcontratado e acabou por descobrir que afinal vai ser feito por outra empresa. Quando olho para os indicadores da empresa fornecedora tento convencê-los de que o cliente tomou uma decisão correcta, dado os problemas que está a receber nos subcontratos actuais. Não é fácil ver o mundo calçando os sapatos do outro.

Trecho retirado de "False profits and the folly of gift card expiry dates"

Cooperativas, partes interessadas, valor e a sua partilha

Se a maior riqueza que há num ecossistema é a sua biodiversidade, porque encerra em si a robustez para lidar com o desconhecido, também numa economia a heterogeneidade e idiossincrasia é algo positivo pelas mesmas razões.

Recentemente visitei empresa muito bem sucedida e que, imaginem:

• desistiu de crescer em quantidade, só aposta em crescer por aumento de preços, por subida na escala de valor;
• rejeita clientes;
• rejeita crescer mais do que um certo valor por cliente;
• rejeita convites de clientes para investir em novas fábricas em mercados onde esses clientes estão a implantar-se ou a expandir-se.

A gerência consegue explicar o racional por trás de cada uma dessas decisões. Outra gerência composta por outras pessoas poderia tomar outras decisões. Não há resposta certa, não há resposta única.

Sabendo e crendo na frase "Não há resposta certa, não há resposta única.", apesar de tudo, fico com pena disto "Aumenta procura direta de azeitona em Murça devido a quebras a nível internacional":

"A azeitona sai daqui a granel e não colocamos nós as nossas marcas no mercado internacional”, salientou. O responsável considerou ainda que, com esta venda direta, “não há mais-valia para o azeite de Trás-os-Montes”."

Quem segue este blogue sabe o quanto valorizo a aposta:

• na autenticidade;
• na fuga ao granel comoditizado;
• na aposta numa marca;
• na subida na escala de valor;

No entanto, também sei que cada produtor é que sabe da sua vida.

O que levanta outra questão:

"esta situação pode “condicionar a vida das próprias cooperativas”." 

Até que ponto as cooperativas estão a fazer o seu trabalho? Até que ponto as cooperativas estão a tratar os produtores como partes interessadas livres que devem ser cativadas e seduzidas para um projecto de longo prazo? Até que ponto as cooperativas estão a recompensar convenientemente os produtores? Até que ponto as cooperativas têm elas próprias uma gestão suficientemente ágil? Para eventualmente melhorar preços a pagar aos produtores e negociar melhores condições com a procura? Para aproveitar oportunidades e colocar em novas prateleiras o seu azeite numa altura de escassez? Para subir preços em tempos de escassez?

Imaginem uma cooperativa com um sistema de gestão certificado pela ISO 9001 a marcar uma revisão do sistema extraordinária para actualizar a análise do contexto e das partes interessadas e tomar decisões à priori, a comandar os acontecimentos em vez de, com as calças na mão, ir a reboque dos acontecimentos.

BTW, estão a ver aquelas simulações sobre a vida das estratégias? Uma estratégia tem sucesso e a maioria das empresas está a tentar ter sucesso seguindo-a. Depois, algo muda no contexto, e uma empresa-pioneira testa uma nova abordagem e tem algum sucesso, à medida que essa abordagem vai se aperfeiçoando, o sucesso vai aumentando, o próprio contexto co-evolui e o spill-over começa a contaminar outras empresas que começam a seguir a mesma estratégia. Então, a densidade de uso da estratégia anterior começa a baixar e a da nova estratégia começa a subir. Depois, algures no tempo, uma nova alteração de contexto e uma nova experiência a nível de estratégia. Experiência que pode passar por recuperar uma estratégia anterior, uma estratégia entretanto abandonada.

Voltar a uma estratégia entretanto abandonada pode ser um retrocesso, pode ser um erro, pode ser muita coisa, mas voltamos ao princípio e à idiossincrasia.

"short-lived consumer trends"

“If you’re selling the same merchandise that’s commonly available, and you’ve got no point of differentiation, you’re dead,” Mr. Rubin said. “It’s just a question of when you die.”

Comecei a perceber como materializar isto com um artigo na revista Business Week em 2005 sobre o fim das linhas de montagem da Canon. E com a leitura em 2006 do livro "How We Compete: What Companies Around the World Are Doing to Make" onde encontrei trechos como este sobre a Kenwood:

"When Kenwood moved production of portable mini-disk players from a factory in Malaysia to their Yamagata, Japan, plant in 2003, they discovered they could exploit short-lived consumer trends."

Em 2017, esta abordagem continua a ser notícia, no país dos gringos:

"When Alejandro Villanueva, a Pittsburgh Steelers offensive lineman, stood for the anthem and the rest of the team stayed in the locker room, his name began trending on Twitter. Fanatics quickly posted a rendering of his No. 78 jersey on its website and on the N.F.L.’s online shop, which it also operates.
.
Sales skyrocketed. Manufacturing facilities in Kentucky and Florida went to work pressing Mr. Villanueva’s name and number onto thousands of blank Pittsburgh jerseys for next-day shipping. Overnight, a player who had never caught a pass or scored a touchdown had the N.F.L.’s best-selling jersey.
.
“That moment happened, people wanted to immediately buy that jersey,” Michael Rubin, the company’s chairman and principal owner said. “A week later, that moment is mostly over.”
.
These micro-moments, as Mr. Rubin calls them, happen all the time in sports: A player reaches a milestone, has a breakout performance or is traded to a new team. Apparel companies have traditionally been poorly positioned to meet the accompanying fan demand as it surges. Fanatics is changing that and, in the process, carving out a lucrative niche in a fiercely competitive online-retail industry largely dominated by Amazon."

Trechos retirados de "Fanatics, Maker of Sports Apparel, Thrives by Seizing the Moment"

"A Sale is the Result of a Great Conversation"

"To lead your customer to a thoughtful decision where they choose you over the competition, you need to help them form compelling beliefs about why you are the best choice. Your customers don’t form these beliefs just by listening to you talk, or by reading your marketing materials. You’ll be much more successful if you look at the customer’s entire purchase decision process as a conversation between you and them."

Trecho retirado de "A Sale is the Result of a Great Conversation"

Recordar os monumentos à treta, again

A propósito de "Infarmed. Ida para o Porto não estava no plano estratégico aprovado em setembro pelo ministro" fui consultar o referido Plano Estratégico 2017-2019.

Plano interessante, com uma estrutura interessante. No entanto, a meu ver, padece de uma falha importante... não encontrarão nenhum número que permita no final de 2019 avaliar se o Plano Estratégico foi eficaz ou não.

Olhando para cada um dos objectivos estratégicos e para cada um dos resultados esperados... não ser encontra nem um número, nem uma meta. Por exemplo:

Objectivo estratégico 2 - Conformidade do mercado e gestão do risco que tem como um dos seus resultados:

• Melhoria na gestão de risco na introdução de terapêuticas inovadoras

O que será ter sucesso com este objectivo estratégico?

O que significa, em que é que se traduz uma melhoria na gestão de risco na introdução de terapêuticas inovadoras?

Ainda e sempre os monumentos à treta... e de que falamos quando falamos de balanced.

Talvez focar primeiro o valor e só depois o preço (Parte II)

Parte I.

Nem de propósito, ontem de manhã cedo, antes de entrar numa empresa para uma auditoria li em "Using best value to get the best bottom line" de Kate Vitasek e incluído em "Value First then Price: Quantifying value in Business to Business markets", editado por Andreas Hinterhuber e Todd Snelgrove:

"the value mantra is: it's not how little you pay, it's how much you get. That's the basic difference and tension between price and value. And today's procurement professionals not only need to understand this difference, they should use their procurement toolkit to help them put the concepts into practice.
.
When used, best-value approaches become the bridge that spans that tension, because determining the true cost and value equation assures companies they are getting the best "deal".
.
Unfortunately, the usual modus operandi for many businesses is to seek price reductions that provide immediate gratification rather than buying on best value, which for many managers is too long-term, involves too many departments, ad is too complicated and abstract."

Talvez focar primeiro o valor e só depois o preço

Há dias mandei um e-mail a um antigo cliente, com quem trabalhei por causa da ISO 9001, a sugerir que contactasse uma empresa a oferecer os seus produtos.

Ainda no mesmo dia obtive resposta:

"Já apresentamos cotação e perdemos, por preço..."

Confesso que na altura não processei esta resposta convenientemente.

Entretanto, no meio de uma sessão de jogging, comecei a relacionar a resposta com as lições de "Value First then Price: Quantifying value in Business to Business markets", editado por Andreas Hinterhuber e Todd Snelgrove.

Tenho ideia que a empresa é competitiva em termos de custos... fiquei a pensar no que poderia ter feito de diferente para conseguir um resultado diferente.

Talvez focar primeiro o valor e só depois o preço. Talvez pensar no ciclo de vida do produto: a empresa produz mas o cliente precisa de armazenamento, distribuição, embalamento, ...

"Never blame your predecessor"

Um conjunto de boas sugestões.

Caro Eduardo, "Never blame your predecessor", faz-lhe lembrar alguma coisa?

"A 10-year longitudinal study on executive transitions that my organization conducted found that more than 50% of executives who inherit a mess fail within their first 18 months on the job. We also uncovered numerous landmines for leaders in this situation. And, with the best of intentions, my client was about to step on a number of them. When a leader inherits a mess created by others, especially when arriving as an outsider, the situation can feel fragile and knowing where to begin the long journey of change can feel precarious. Based on our research and my experience, there are six things the most effective leaders do to avoid failing in a new role.
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Resist the temptation to emotionally distance yourself. Difficult and unfamiliar circumstances can make leaders feel vulnerable. To combat their anxiety, they actively avoid being implicated in the mess in subtle but damaging ways. Four weeks after my client’s arrival, I noticed a distinctive pattern in her language. When referring to the significant challenges of her new organization, she consistently spoke in third-person references — they, them, those people. And when speaking about possible changes that needed to be made, she spoke only in first-person language: I will, I don’t.
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Never blame your predecessor. It’s a natural temptation to blame the past regime when entering organizations in disarray. In one meeting, my client’s frustration got the best of her, and while looking over the past quarter’s budget, she blurted out, “What on earth was he thinking?” Well, since “he” isn’t there anymore, everyone else in the room was implicated by proxy. Nobody knows better about the mess they are in than the people in it, much less about how it came to be. You are better off simply making no references to decisions or actions taken prior to your arrival. Your best response when being baited to blame those that came before you is simply, “We can’t change what happened then, but we can change what we do going forward.” People appreciate when you take the high road.
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Minimize references to past successes. Absent any substantial experience in your new environment, the likely place to reference your track record is past successes. Chances are that you were hired into the role because you had relevant experiences. But talking about those experiences doesn’t help you leverage the wisdom from them.
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Test the reliability of your data. While unvarnished data can be hard to come by when facing harsh headwinds, it’s even harder to come by when everyone wants to appear innocent and important.
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Be transparent about how you will make changes. There are lots of rules about how fast an entering leader should make changes and how big they should be. Some suggest waiting 90 days, even up to a year, to learn the organization before upending anything. Some say clean house on day one. The speed of change will depend on your particular situation and what the business can tolerate. If immediate change is needed, make it. If you aren’t sure, then investigate and diagnose before you make your moves. My client’s thoughtful approach served her well in this regard. She was very transparent up front about how she would assess the organization, how she would approach making changes, and in what time frame. Her “leading out loud” allowed others not to wait in dread and also not to remain in denial. My client’s approach was to start with small wins championed by people in her organization."

Trechos retirados de "Leading Effectively When You Inherit a Mess"

Quando o mundo muda há quem dê a volta (parte II)

Parte I.

Deu-me para recordar o Lindy Effect ao ler "The old-fashioned mail-order catalog gets a new lease on life":

"In an era of explosive growth for online buying, retailers and shoppers are showing renewed interest in a humble purchasing device that uses paper instead of pixels.
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For the first time since 2011, Sears Holdings sent out the Sears Wish Book, a holiday tradition for generations of children. Although this year’s catalog has the heft of a magazine rather than the phone-book size that the department store produced back when it was a retail juggernaut, the offerings are more extensive and searchable online.
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The ability to stand out in that physical mailbox is easier than it was 10 years ago.
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In 2016. the response to catalogs increased 23% from the year before, ... In terms of catalogs, which make up one third of all direct mail, that means they were more likely to buy something than in the past several years.
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Companies are using print catalogs to cut through email clutter and social-media saturation,
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print catalogs will never be as popular as they once were, but that retailers appear to be using them as part of what he called an “omnichannel” approach that tries to more closely integrate a store’s website with its physical stores, such as buying online and picking up at the store the same day."

E isto:

"A survey included in a recent DMA report found that nearly one-third of those polled said getting a catalog drove them to shop online." 

"many simply collapse under the emotional toll it takes"

"For many leaders, the taxing nature of enterprise-level leadership is too great. Being sufficiently knowledgeable about context requires a huge tolerance for ambiguity and the acceptance of a perpetual learning curve. Making hard trade-offs means saying no to people and facing the many dysfunctional ways people deal with being disappointed by their leader. Shifting organizational designs means having to address the harsh realities of instigating major change — organization-wide anxiety, intensified political dynamics, and sometimes having to part ways with those not prepared for the new world you are creating. It’s no surprise that mental and physical stress-related illnesses are high among executives. While some executives thrive on the challenges inherent in the trailblazing work of strategy, many simply collapse under the emotional toll it takes. In our research, 38% of executives said they didn’t expect the loneliness and isolation that accompanied their jobs and 54% said they felt they were being held accountable for problems outside their control. Given the ruthlessly unforgiving nature of executive jobs, I encourage all my clients to have a team of professionals around them, including an executive coach, a licensed therapist, a personal trainer, and a nutritionist. That kind of “scaffolding” helps leaders bear the harsh realities of strategic leadership in healthier ways.
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The work required to effectively craft and execute a company strategy is extraordinarily difficult. It’s no surprise that many try to oversimplify it, or dilute it to match whatever level of competence they have. But if organizations actually invested in preparing executives for the real requirements of these roles, we would see failure rates decline and companies more consistently adapt and thrive."

Uma descrição crua da realidade.

 "Executives Fail to Execute Strategy Because They’re Too Internally Focused":

"if you discover your pricing strategy isn’t working"

Alguns conselhos que fazem sentido:

"So, if your pricing isn’t working, what can you do about it? Well, you have several options, but here are a few to consider:
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Raise your prices. Raising your prices allows you to work with fewer clients [Moi ici: Não percebo porque mais empresas não aprendem esta verdade. Recordar "Um euro de crescimento em preço..."] and gives you more time to deliver great results. What you do is valuable --  own that fact and know your worth.
Change your target audience. If you know that what you are offering provides value, but are still experiencing low conversion rates and/or hearing complaints, this could mean that you are barking up the wrong tree. It may be time to consider other markets or pivot in a new direction to find your ideal clients. Also, if you are spending time with people who don't see your value or complain about your pricing, it is definitely time for you to move on. Remember, if they can't see the value, it’s their problem, not yours.
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Look at your systems. Recognizing when your current systems aren't working and investing in your processes, could be the time-saving boost that you need to get your cycle back into alignment and get your business back to growth.
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In short, if you discover your pricing strategy isn’t working, it’s imperative to take an honest look at yourself, your business, and your current customers. This means pulling data, examining your metrics, and asking others their perspective about what’s working or not working."

Trechos retirados de "Pricing for Profitability: You Are in Control, Even If It Doesn’t Feel That Way Yet"

"That's quite a difference in perception"

Em "Para reflexão" respondia-se à pergunta "Are customers really as price sensitive as commonly believed?..." onde Andreas Hinterhuber defendia que os clientes valorizam outros factores muito mais do que o preço.

Entretanto, ontem o @pauloperes enviou-me esta imagem:

Quando o mundo muda há quem dê a volta

Há dias no postal "Acerca da experiência quando o mundo muda" podíamos ficar com a ideia de que a experiência do retalho físico pode ser um fardo demasiado pesado para triunfar no novo mundo.

Recordo um postal do início do mês sobre o que fazer quando a inovação tecnológica avança:

"We explore the implications of a real and common alternative to attempting the transformation required to embrace a new, dominant, technology—the choice to maintain focus on the old technology. In considering this choice, we distinguish between “racing” strategies, which attempt to fight off the rise of the new technology by extending the performance of the old technology, and “retreat” strategies, which attempt to accommodate the rise of the new technology by repositioning the old technology in the demand environment."

Agora em "How Independent Bookstores Haved Thrived in Spite of Amazon.com" encontro:

"When Amazon.com burst onto the nascent online retail scene in 1995, the future seemed bleak for brick-and-mortar independent bookstores—which already faced competition from superstores like Barnes & Noble and Borders. Indeed, between 1995 and 2000, the number of independent bookstores in the United States plummeted 43 percent, according to the American Booksellers Association (ABA), a nonprofit trade association dedicated to the promotion of independent bookstores.
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But then a funny thing happened. While pressure from Amazon forced Borders out of business in 2011, indie bookstores staged an unexpected comeback. Between 2009 and 2015, the ABA reported a 35 percent growth in the number of independent booksellers, from 1,651 stores to 2,227.
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Independent bookstores provide a story of hope by focusing on core values that include community, curation, and convening."

E agora ler isto:

"While all this was happening on a local level, there was important top-down work going on at the American Booksellers Association (ABA), a nonprofit trade association dedicated to the promotion of independent bookstores. The ABA served as a glue to bind likeminded players together—facilitating partnerships between bookstores and other local businesses, for example. The ABA also strengthened the collective identity of indie bookstores by helping its members share best practices, such as how to use social media to promote special events."

Para depois recordar "Gente de outra estirpe" e o poder da liderança nas associações.

Acerca da importância de estudar o ecossistema das partes interessadas

"Druker: We relied largely on discussions that we’d had with customers, with people in the industry that we worked in, the dairy industry in particular. We’d talk to nutritionists and to dairy producers, asking, “What are some of your biggest issues?” We mainly focused on the nutritionists, who are the people the dairy producer hires to help put together the ration to feed the cows. Our products go into those rations, so even though the dairy producers are buying the products, most of our efforts were focused on the nutritionists.
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Druker: We’ve always known the end customer is the dairy producer, and ultimately the dairy cow, but yeah, we were basically getting our innovation information from a consultant that was being hired by the dairy producer. So yeah, I think absolutely part of our issue was we weren’t identifying the right people to speak to."

Mais um exemplo sobre a importância de estudar o ecossistema das partes interessadas e perceber quais são as relevantes e quais são os seus requisitos relevantes.

Isto faz-me lembrar uma conversa numa empresa há dias. Grande orgulho numa narrativa que o pessoal do marketing inventou para relacionar com uma inovação estética. Enquanto os ouvia pensava:

- O negócio é B2B. Será que os compradores vão ligar a essa narrativa?

Trechos retirados de "Jobs-to-be-Done Case Study: Arm & Hammer"