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Forum’s Leadership Challenges Index: What Are Your Rankings?

September 14th, 2010 by Steve Barry

In this inaugural version of Forum’s Leadership Challenges Index, we look for trends in the ways organizations are aligning and mobilizing their people to attain business results.

To see the trends, we tagged each of our requests for work from clients or prospective clients in the first half of 2010 as relating to one of eight business issues.  We then ranked the issues in order of frequency of requests (1 = most frequent, 8 = least frequent).  In addition, we ranked the number of clicks on each of the eight business issues on forum.com (1 = most clicks, 8 = fewest clicks) for the same period.  Interestingly, the clicks and requests rankings were nearly identical—which indicates some themes in organizational approach and interest.

Results:

Business Issue Client Requests (Rank) Web Site Traffic (Rank) Composite Rank
Restart growth by increasing leader bench strength 1 2 1.5
Reduce time to value and increase value over time by accelerating execution 5 1 3
Gain a competitive edge with an aligned, differentiated global sales model 4 3 3.5
Grow revenue and profits by creating a loyalty-building customer experience 3 4 3.5
Deliver on a key strategy by aligning organizational culture 2 5 3.5
Drive profits in commoditized markets by selling value over price 6 6 6
Grow your business by developing and retaining strategic accounts 7 7 7
Uncover opportunities and gain efficiencies by creating a one-firm firm 8 8 8

This is not a scientific study, and our marketing activities likely swayed some of the outcomes.  (At least, I hope they did!)  Specifically, with the release of our book Strategic Speed, it stands to reason that the accelerating execution challenge would top the site traffic chart.  However, the other challenges received roughly equal love and attention from marketing and show remarkable symmetry.  The Index provides a high-level snapshot of challenges facing leaders.

Three headlines jump out for me:

1. Leadership development, which waned as a concern in 2008-09, has returned.  Big time. In fact, there were three times the number of client requests relating to this business issue as there were requests relating to the issue of the next greatest concern.  Opportunity costs have grown too high to ignore today.  Several of our clients are focusing on the Strategic Speed model of clarity, unity, and agility as a development chassis to help their leaders handle personal and organizational transitions, accelerate execution, and capture market opportunities.

2. Sales gets aligned. Value-based selling and strategic account development can be successful aspects of a sales strategy.  Yet, their importance pales in relation to the importance of creating a clear, compelling sales and marketing strategy.  Sales leaders who create such a strategy are able to translate it into sales-force deployment decisions and align interrelated components of execution.  The result is a sales force that is equipped to consistently find, win, and keep customers.

3. Outside-in trumps inside-out. Prospective and existing customers favor a superior experience over a focus on organizational efficiencies or cultural alignment.  Although there is often a strong collaborative culture at the core of a superior customer experience, this could signal a tipping point.   Organizations have stripped many costs out of their business—perhaps few efficiency plays remain?

How would you rank these issues?  Which are most important to making your 2011 a success?

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Posted in Accelerating Execution, climate, Customer Experience, Growth & Leadership, learning, Sales Alignment, strategy | No Comments »

5 New Strategic Initiatives That Are Creating Business Impact Right Now

November 13th, 2009 by Forum Corporation

Reflecting on Strategic Initiatives

We asked our colleagues across Forum to share strategic initiatives that have a positive impact for clients.

We see a gradual shift away from short-term focus on results, and a renewed emphasis on the implementation of strategic initiatives to take organizations forward.  Here are some examples:

1. Re-engage employees through focus on growth
Clients are re-engaging their people and developing new products, services and markets. The enthusiasm generated by these ‘growth’ conversations positively impacts their organizational climate and injects renewed optimism for 2010 and beyond.

2. ”Back to Basics”
Several clients are using this time of economic turmoil to re-assess their strategic plan and focus on the individual gaps standing between them and their strategic goals.

For example, a regional energy company is ‘going back to the basics’   They have placed an emphasis on understanding the fundamental service skills and are focusing time and energy on the critical skills of customer service for front line representatives.    

Another example is a not-for-profit organization embarking on a 24-month plan to enhance leaders’ abilities to sustain success and to develop new opportunities for growth.

3. Retain Talent
I have noticed increased thinking about how to retain and motivate top talent. For example, a leading investment firm is assessing the climate of its sales force and preparing managers to create a high-performance environment.

4. Leverage Six Sigma
A global pharmaceutical company has started a thorough Six Sigma initiative.  However, rather than focus on systems, they are focusing on the numbers (increasing consistency and reducing variation).  Initially they are aligning their revenue-producing sales and marketing teams, attaining their buy-in using basic indicators such as call rates and customer segmentation data.  The business then plans to focus on high performance, enriching and improving every action based on global benchmarks.

5.  “One-firm firms”
Organizations seek to gain market share by pooling their combined capabilities to better serve clients in “one stop”.  Collaboration is the key to this initiative.  For example: 

• A large Middle-Eastern conglomerate with global operations is breaking down internal barriers to communication and collaboration in order to accelerate growth.  They see learning as the key lever in this effort, and they’ve created a common language and approach across the sales organization.

• One of our Asian clients implemented a successful, cross-functional collaboration initiative to deliver customer value. This initiative is championed by the General Manager, which has enabled it to gain traction.

What strategic initiatives would you add to this list?

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We asked Forum consultants: What are the top 10 trends in learning or strategy-execution methods you are seeing in your client companies?

July 17th, 2009 by Forum Corporation
  1. While economic factors make learning a bottom budget priority for many clients, it remains a top action priority for companies seeking to retain talent. This presents a unique dilemma for leaders as they look for ways to minimize cost and maximize learning. The up side is the dilemma is forcing organizations to find new ways to bring learning into the workplace—accelerating innovation and generating new ideas that will shape the learning organization of the future.
  2. Many clients are responding to today’s economic situation by looking for ways to shorten or eliminate classroom learning experiences. All too often clients inquire about “e-learning,” as they call it; what they’re wanting is travel-free learning. As we explore these clients’ needs, we discover that they are using “e-learning” as shorthand for any learning delivered with electronic technology.Our experience indicates there are many forms of technology-based learning that both expand the reach and increase the impact of classroom learning. Webinars, podcasts, virtual role-plays, and collaboration sites are just a few examples of technology-based learning systems used today by businesses around the globe. With all the available options, we must remember that the learning content (regardless of delivery method) is only a part of the equation. Critical to the effective implementation of any learning initiative are the communications, systems, and processes supporting it.
  3. Keep it practical, relevant, and focused on the short term: results now versus long-term investment thinking. This thinking relates not only to today’s economy but also to the demographic makeup of the workforce. In a recent interview, Rajeev Peshawaria, CLO of Morgan Stanley, cites “Simple, simple, simple—practical, practical, practical” as one of his three mantras for leading in a down economy.  
  4. We’re starting to see signs that people are ready for what’s next. For example: “Prepare for the upturn.” 
  5. Some clients are bucking the trend of reducing classroom time. A major software firm that had grown considerably through consolidation ended up with several sales forces that had little in common. Forum built a learning system to provide them with a common language and set of selling skills. The classroom component was essential for enabling people to get to know one another. The client company even increased the expense of the travel component by flying people to other regions for training. As a result the company improved morale and increased retention in the new unified sales force; powerful informal support networks also improved sales performance.
  6.  Some clients are being hit bad by the turbulent economy. Travel for learning is an issue, time off the job for learning is an issue, learning location is an issue. One client company’s proposed solution is to develop and run a series of webinars (one per month) called Sustaining the Gains to reinforce the application of learning in recent workshops—and to explore specific ways the learning can be applied in the turbulent economy. The webinars could also introduce relevant topics (for example, leading in a tough economy and selling in a tough economy. They would be interactive and materials-light, and they would be recorded and posted on the company’s intranet to facilitate participants’ continuing their learning journey. 
  7. One trend (or positioning) is “going green.”Travel leaves a substantial carbon footprint. So does materials production involving three-ring binders, as an example. Binders are often just left on a shelf—or else immediately thrown away. Flipcharts are now frowned upon; whiteboards are preferred (though whiteboard pens are potentially toxic). We can go green by providing materials in simpler, crisper formats as PDF files and by lobbying hotels to providing conference rooms whose walls are whiteboards.
  8. Social networks have come to corporate life. Organizations are increasingly open to exploring ways to use tools like Facebook and Ning to generate and sustain communities of practice. Facilitation remains key in these virtual environments, with the focus shifting to deepening thought and insight at the group and individual level and to navigating groups through focus areas. Increased connection in today’s distributed workforce creates a strong draw for learners and helps bolster personal accountability for action and reflection. While there are challenges inherent in this medium, look for it to play front and center in the learning of the future.
  9. “The world has changed and we are not going back.” So says a client in the U.K. who has moved a segment of her company’s learning curriculum into a virtual classroom/webinar format. The current business climate has forced organizations to be bolder in trying new things—and many are finding they like it. Expect to see more organizations using blended delivery options as the norm.
  10. In the next 10 years “digital natives” will turn 40, and so become an increasingly powerful voice in corporate life. What is their expectation for learning? Learner-driven design: choice, customization, transparency, collaboration, fun, speed, and innovation.
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Cutting Through the Noise

March 13th, 2009 by Ed Boswell

I’ll confess – I’m a news junkie. But lately, I’ve found myself tuning out. Not because the news isn’t interesting; in some ways, it’s too interesting. Rather I find the news terribly unhelpful as a business leader. Most of it focuses on forces over which we have no control. The news also has become a bit of an echo chamber; once someone utters the latest doom-and-gloom headline, it is repeated so often on radio, television and the newspapers that one wonders if we aren’t creating some self-fulfilling prophecies. And finally, sometimes the news just seems, in an ironic way, out of touch with reality. Let me tell you what I mean.

I spent time recently visiting clients on the West Coast of the US and speaking at an industry conference. What I realized in my travels and conversations is that most companies, like my own, are as fundamentally sound today as they were six or nine months ago – still producing high quality products or services for customers and still staffed by highly productive and committed men and women. No one can deny that the financial markets are a mess and that credit is tight. Nor can anyone deny that almost all of us are engaged in some form of belt-tightening. And finally, no one can deny that it has become more and more challenging to lead and sell in this tough economy. But who we are and the value we provide to the marketplace remain unchanged.

There is a huge psychological element in all of this. If we focus on the grim headlines and on the factors over which we have no control, I’m afraid that we’re in for a long recession; our attitudes (for instance, our caution in making investments) and our actions (for example, huge cutbacks in spending) will only prolong the pain. But if we turn our attention to those things that we can control, to those assets of ours that do provide value, and to our customers who do depend on our products, services and insight, then we have a better than even chance of emerging from this downturn sooner and in better shape.

I haven’t cancelled any of the newspaper subscriptions yet, but I am spending more time on the human interest stories and not the front page!

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