June 2011
When asked why he’s so successful, legendary comedian Steve Martin often replies, “Be so good they can’t ignore you.”
Being so good often means changing what you are doing now. Much of this issue of the Atkinson Advisor focuses on change, whether it’s communicating change to your organization or changing to stay ahead in difficult times. And sometimes, it’s about undoing the wrong change as Howard Schultz did at Starbucks.
We hope there’s at least one idea in this issue that helps make your company so good that others can’t ignore you.
Martin follows his own advice. His Twitter account is definitely one you can’t ignore.
June 2011
Most organizations hate change. It’s built into our DNA.
Yet every organization has to embrace change to survive.
How leaders communicate change can be as important as the change itself. Most companies stumble with the order of their messages, much like the saying, “Ready, Fire, Aim!”
Engaging employees in the change requires three pieces of information:
- Why does the organization have to change?
- How is the organization going to change?
- Where will the organization be after the change?
Most organizations make the mistake of starting with how the change will happen. The emphasis on operations creates confusion (“What’s going on?”) and even resentment (“Is this the latest program-of-the-week?”) among employees.
A better approach is to begin with why the change is necessary. The picture has to be clear to employees that staying in place will hurt the organization – and potentially jobs.
Follow with where the organization will be after the change. Leaders should paint a clear vision of the new and better organization. This will help to answer some of the WIIFM (what’s in it for me) questions from employees.
The last step is how the change will happen.
June 2011
Next time you walk into a crowded room, try scanning it in a sweeping motion beginning closest to you and working toward the far side of the room. Within seconds, you can check the entire room for people you know and people you want to meet. This is an entry technique used by special operations and SWAT teams to identify and assess threats when they conduct raids.
June 2011
More than half the companies that were industry leaders in 1955 were still industry leaders in 1990. But more than two-thirds of 1990 industry leaders no longer existed by 2004.
Wow!
Harvard researcher Justin Menkes believes there are no more calm periods for leaders in any industry. It’s survival under duress for everyone.
Menkes’ research found three traits consistent in 200 CEO candidates considered “highly successful.” They were:
- Realistic optimism. They pursue audacious goals, which others would typically view as impossible pipedreams, while at the same time remaining aware of the magnitude of the challenges confronting them and the difficulties that lie ahead.
- Subservience to purpose. Leaders with this ability see their professional goal as so profound in importance that their lives become measured in value by how much they contribute to furthering that goal.
- Finding order in chaos. Leaders with this trait find taking on multidimensional problems invigorating, and their ability to bring clarity to quandaries that baffle others makes their contributions invaluable.
Read more from Menkes on the Harvard Business Review blog.
June 2011
www.contentmarketinginstitute.com
Content marketing is a hot topic in marketing circles, especially with B2B companies. The Content Marketing Institute is the best destination online for information, insights, reports, and resources about content marketing. We read the CMI blog at least once a week and use the website to find great case studies.
June 2011
Onward – How Starbucks Fought for its Life without Losing its Soul
By Howard Schultz
In 2000 Schultz stepped aside as Starbucks CEO to focus on Starbucks’ international expansion.
By 2007 the recession, overexpansion, and changes in consumer behavior were affecting every aspect of Starbucks’ business.
In an unusual move for a former CEO, Schultz decided to return to lead the day-to-day operations in 2008.
Onward gives readers an inside look at Schultz’s concern that Starbucks was at risk of losing the customer-centric focus and the agonizing task of finding the balance between product quality, core values, and profit.
In his return Schultz took a number of risks not popular with Wall Street or customers. In 2008 he shut down all 7,000 stores for three hours simultaneously so that baristas could be retrained in the art of making the perfect espresso. And he removed the breakfast sandwiches from the menu until they could find a way to keep the cooking smell from competing with the experience of walking into a coffee shop intended to delight the senses.
Onward is a must-read for all students of leadership, management, and consumer marketing.
