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Chain reversal as company vision

9 Adequate entrepreneurship, Values give a perspective

Frans van der Reep

Company values are on the business agenda. And rightly so. Values will get you somewhere.

After all, values are “points of departures for behaviour”, create frameworks and steer strategy, policy and action in interaction with the environment, which requires worthy behaviour from us. This is often done unintentionally and implicitly, usually a sign of authenticity. If they are made explicit, then that is usually at the level of the obligatory mission-statement. There, high-flown moral notions like reliability and responsibility will be sported then. That is great, but it does have a high state-the-obvious content and a large general validity. In order to be able to react adequately to the rapidly changing environment and its expectations with regard to our behaviour and attitude, we (also) have a (greater) need of a practical vision. A vision with insights that we can interpret in concrete behavioural points of departure, in attitudes that help us to be adequately and worthy enterprising.

Mind you, that is not only about customers, markets and money, but also about you and me, about ourselves. Then it is about a deep understanding of what you are good at and of what you are not (“pretence = competence”). This goes for the company as a whole but also for the individual colleague inside it. This requires lasting attention. As it is, values are about the core of the company. Having no attention means investing in what was good in the past. Usually that will not have a happy ending for that company.

So, concretely: what do we put on the business balance score card in this era of acceleration in business dynamics and internettization of the business management?

We make a first move with a number of statements and interpret these into keywords.

These statements mainly deal with the interaction with the customer and one by one have concrete implications for Set-up and Operations, for ICT solutions and for HRM profiles.

They may serve as a basis for prioritisation, for instance with project selection, investment decisions, individual assessments or with the selection of new colleagues.

Statements 1-3 deal with customer- and market-focus. Statements 4-7 deal with the issue of how we internally aim at that market.

1. To the customer, the company feels like a small company.

2. We are assessed by our supply in the market.

3. We operate on a buyers’ market: help the customer to buy.

4. The customer goes before the boss.

5. Dare to be teacher and pupil.

6. Pay for performance, promote for ability.

7. Also the supporting role of the hairdresser is on the credit titles.

Ad 1. Of course we already did do relation management in the company. But we should not only embed that in the structure of the company, but also in the little figures: B2B = P2P (Business-to-Business is People-to-People). However, there are more and more indications that also MZM (Mid-Business Market) customers find this important and are prepared to pay for that. Just like your regular car mechanic or your regular financial advisor forms an inter-pretation of “preferred banking” for you. ICT makes it possible to make this a selling point for every company and in this way, at the same time give more customer focus to the company.

Keyword: brand value

Ad 2. The market is/becomes even more the standard. That decides the added value of a company and with that its continuity. That means that, with regard to our ideas on added value, earning power and customer desire, we have to listen to the market and not to ourselves.

Customer focus and really listening are essential issues here. In this statement, it is obviously not only about what but also about how. A clumsy putting away of a good offer does not work either. So that also means that the organization should closely “chafe” the market with an open eye for what the market wants to pay for the supply with a high “do as you promise” content.

Keyword: customer focus

Ad 3. The more transparent the market, the more king the customer will be. In a business where a long-lasting relation with the customer is desirable, the approach of the bags-seller on Gran Canaria, who has to score now and here, is no use. Companies who put a long-lasting customer relation at the focus, often do not need sales anymore but consultative selling. This requires a certain humility, great listening skill, empathy, patience and the ability to win the customer’s trust. It is the attitude of the butcher at the corner, who combines the desires of yesterday, of today and of tomorrow of his individual customer in the supply that he, as a company, provides. Driven by customer value, consequently.

Keyword: consultative selling

Ad 4. The customer pays my wages. This goes directly and very palpably in a one-man business. This also goes, though less palpably, for large companies. More and more, a conflict may arise between the boss, who assesses me and the customer who pays my added value. This means that the loyalty will more and more shift from the employer towards the customer. According to this guideline, you will therefore opt for the customer.

This movement becomes very visible in the chain reversal, where the customer will control the company, with spectacular effects for turnover and costs.

Keyword: customer at the centre

Ad 5. If you experience yourself solely as a teacher and not as a pupil, then that will result in your not learning anything anymore. This is a dangerous situation for the business, the more so because usually you do not notice that as a teacher. Even though it will be difficult, the only remedy is to call each other to account for that. 360 degrees assessments help to prevent this.

Keyword: living organization

Ad 6. We pay for performance, but someone’s possibilities for the business determine his earning power. Therefore, avoid promote for performance. We discover the possibilities through the development of competence passports and real interest for the colleagues.

The talent to spot talent is one of the determining factors for continuity of the company.

Keyword: talent spotting

Ad 7: Out of sight, out of mind is a powerful mechanism but does not promote real cooperation. To put down real performances in the market we will have to “build giants”

by daring to stand on each other’s shoulders. Trust each other, grant each other the honour, pats on the back for every visible or less visible contribution form the basic attitude and condition to create real cooperation. Just as in sports: also he who gives the assist, deserves applause.

Keyword: respect