Mariposa Development

Another week and another politician who thinks he’s found the magic answer to all our problems. This time it’s Nick Clegg, and his suggestion, employee ownership.

Employee ownership does work. John Lewis is Nick’s example and Starbucks does it too. But what Nick fails to understand is that employee ownership isn’t what makes these companies great. It’s the relationship they have with their people. Employee ownership is part of something much bigger, the overall ethos, purpose and values of a company.

If Nick Clegg wants to see a “John Lewis economy” then he needs to lead a much bigger change in the approach to how we do business. Companies need to understand why they do what they do, communicate it to their people and then trust their people to do the jobs they’ve been asked to do. They need to let their people hold them to account, question when actions and decisions don’t fit with their ethos, purpose and values.

Only when a company has built a strong trusting relationship with their people will employee ownership have the impact it does at John Lewis and Starbucks.

I agree that employee ownership should be easier to achieve. But it is not a solution to problems companies have with their people. Businesses can survive and thrive if they have a purpose and if they have their people with them. It’s about time we stopped looking for quick magic fixes, and stopped obsessing about profit maximisation. Sustainable success is not easy, but it is possible and ultimately leads to a more profitable business that is better for everyone – employees, customers and shareholders.

If you are interested in helping your organisation achieve sustainable success then get in touch. Mariposa provides facilitation and coaching to help you understand your business, build strong relationships with your people and as a result deliver fantastic and sustainable results. Find out more at www.mariposadevelopment.com

Does “Primum non nocere” mean anything to you?

In English it translates as “Above all, not knowingly to do harm”. In The Essential Drucker, Drucker discusses this basic rule of professional ethics. But how many “professionals” today adhere to it.

Some of the biggest issues we’re facing at the moment are because there are many professionals out there who’ve lots sight of their ethics. When you focus on making as much profit as possible then you forgo ethics. The banks are a very obvious example. But what about the supermarkets – the local, express, metro (or whatever else they are called) moving into smaller towns and villages. They knowingly cause harm to local economies. Their argument is that they wouldn’t put them there if people didn’t use them. However they get used because they are convenient, not because people need or want them. They get used because we are human, and so when something is made easier, we do it. And the supermarkets make money out of this.

But easy and convenient doesn’t mean something should exist. Profit and growth is good. But at the expense of your employees, your customers or the community you operate, it is not.

Thankfully we’re starting to see growth in businesses that do take care of their people, their customers and their communities. But the fact that we have to seek out ethical companies says something about what business has become. Professional ethics are now an exception not the norm. The idea that social enterprises are a niche part of the market, says it all. Every company should be a social enterprise – a profit making entity that takes responsibility for the part of society in which it operates.

Those companies with ethics build relationships with people, develop trust and do so much more than sell products or services. They adhere to the ethic, not knowingly do harm, and also try to do as much good as possible. If they use their relationships with their customers to innovate and evolve, they are companies that will sustain. They also understand the necessity of profit, while growth is something they can do in a sustainable way that is right for everyone involved.

If you would like advice or support to help your organisation to create an ethical approach to making decisions and taking actions then get in touch now.

Every week the list of big brand names trying to survive continues to grow. Why is this happening? How can they turn it around? And can these actions help your business too?

This week HMV and Sea France are in trouble. Last week it was Blacks. In December it was Thorntons, La Senza, Carpetright, Barratts and Comet. What is going so wrong and how can they make it right?

1. Forget about making money

As I’ve said before profit is a result. Not a focus. The minute that making profit becomes your top priority, there is a good chance it will come back to bite you.

There are exceptions to the rule of course. Making money seems to be Tesco’s top priority, but they have the advantage of a market share in something we all have to do – buy food. To give them credit, they did start with a purpose. To make it easy and convenient to buy all your groceries in one place. Now they’re so big they can compete on convenience and price, and when you can do that customers will compromise on the level of service the receive. However most companies don’t have that luxury – and without it, chasing profit is a bad idea.

Profit is essential for survival and growth, and it is there to test the viability of ideas and actions, not to drive them. If you focus on your products and services, your employees and your customers, then the money will follow.

2. Find your purpose

I know I keep banging on about this, but it really should be at the centre of everything your business does. You need to know why you’re doing what you’re doing. Then make products or services that fulfil that purpose, and have a clear purpose of their own.

For instance a cosmetics company might have the purpose of “making it easy to be beautiful”. They know that their customers spend a lot of time being frustrated and annoyed by the application of false eyelashes. And that sometimes the end result just isn’t worth it. So how about a mascara that has a false eyelash look without the effort? They’ve just found another way to make it easy to be beautiful. And their marketing department just got the best brief of their lives. They know exactly what they are communicating to your customers and why.

If you use your companies purpose as a test for everything you do, then you will build a strong and consistent brand that people rely on. That’s repeat custom, recommendations… and the result? Profit and growth.

3. Forget about the competition (most of the time)

When you’re thinking about the competition you’re not focussing on the customer. Who cares what the competition is doing. If you create something that can fulfil your customers needs, tell them about it and do it consistently well, then there’s no need to look sideways.

via Applej4ck (Flickr)

The exception to the rule? When you are developing new products and services look at what your competition are not doing. Where is there a gap? Who’s needs are not being fulfilled? Are there people who aren’t even in the market sector that could be?

4. Know who your customers are…

I’m not talking about market sectors. Everyone is individual and unique. I bet if you took 10 characteristics and stood 10 people together who shared them they would all still be significantly different people. Target what people need and/or want and you might find that their age, gender and favourite TV show suddenly don’t matter.

I recently bought an amazing tin opener that very cleverly doesn’t leave any sharp edges on the tin. I’m always cutting myself on tins, especially when washing them to go in the recycling. I didn’t know there were tin openers that could save me the pain and blood loss.

I bet there are lots of people out there who would like to not cut themselves on open tins. I bet lots of those people are very different to me.

Your customers are people who want or need something. If you fulfil that need you define your customers. For marketing purposes you might then go on to focus on particular demographics, but as long as you focus on defining your customers as people who’s need you can fulfil, you might just find there’s a whole market out there you didn’t even know existed.

5. …but don’t always listen to them

Customer feedback is fantastic. It comes in all shapes and sizes. Starting with whether the thing you’re selling is being bought. Then you have surveys, complaints, compliments, discussions on Facebook, tweets, the comment made to the shop assistant… All of this is great. It’s brilliant for developing an existing product or service.

However the world is constantly changing, so while you’re improving what you do now, you also need to be anticipating what you’ll need to do in the future. And this is where you don’t ask your customers. They know what they have, and they would like a better version of that. They don’t know what doesn’t exist yet. And you’re in the perfect position to be proactive and show them what that might be.

It’s a risk. But it’s one that’s worth taking. Not everyone will like your new product or service. It’s only human to crave the familiar and be skeptical of something different, but people do adapt. Eventually that risky innovative product will become something people know, love and depend on. Of course by then you’ll be onto the next world changing idea.

What do you think? Have you tried any of the above? Have they worked for you?

If you are interested in working with Mariposa to help define your purpose, identify opportunities and take action to deliver sustainable profit and growth then visit our website or email us now.

We talk a lot about motivating people, but we can’t motivate other people. We can only motivate ourselves. With the right combination of people and environment you can however create a situation where people find motivation to do things. That was one of the many useful revelations I had reading Drive by Daniel H. Pink last year.

Yesterday I read a HBR blog that when combined with what I learned from Drive creates one of those moments that seems crazily obvious, yet so many of us miss it. Your Problem Isn’t Motivation written by Peter Bregman discusses how we confuse motivation with follow-through, and how that confusion stops us from getting things done.

I have a habit of thinking far too much. It has it’s benefits. My brain sees connections between things that appear to be completely unrelated. When I’m having a brilliant flash of inspiration I can also think about the practical considerations to make it a reality. But sometimes it’s a curse. When I’m not in the mood to do something it can come up with a 101 reasons/worries/excuses to avoid things and because I’m very good at considering things from others points of view, it can knock my confidence and create barriers.

In contrast one of my closest friends, who is also intelligent and creative, seems to constantly achieve the impossible. While holding down a demanding full-time job with long hours and lots of travel, she also finds time to keep her house clean, cook amazing food and be an all round domestic goddess. She has been known to get up and bake cakes first thing in the morning before heading off to work, for a dinner party with friends that evening. On top of all that she finds time to run and keep fit. She never forgets a birthday and always makes homemade Christmas cards. And she enjoys it all.

I get exhausted just thinking about it.

As Bregman reveals, sometimes it’s not motivation that’s the problem. It’s follow-through. And that’s where I think I’ve found my friend’s secret, although to her it’s just the way she is. She instinctively knows when to do and when to think. It’s so natural to her she probably doesn’t know she does it. She gets on with things like chores, and she enjoys them. Her brain isn’t programmed to sabotage, worry or find excuses.

I am not a domestic goddess. I dread things and put them off. I worry about fitting all the household stuff in because I don’t want to sacrifice any work or leisure time. Even exercise, which I enjoy, I find myself struggling to fit in.

In his HBR post Bregman talks about the difference between motivations and follow through

Motivation is in the mind; follow-through is in the practice. Motivation is conceptual; follow-through is practical. In fact, the solution to a motivation problem is the exact opposite of the solution to a follow through problem. The mind is essential to motivation. But with follow through, it’s the mind that gets in the way.

So what does this have to do with purpose? Well purpose is the motivation for people to do something. It’s the motivation for your employees to do their job well. It’s the motivation for your customers to buy. But without follow-through your purpose is useless. When making a decision about what to do, your people need to consider whether it fits with your purpose. But once they’ve made that decision they need to take action. Get on with it. Stop thinking and follow-through.

As I’m not one to just believe something because I’ve read it I’ve been trying it out for the past 24 hours. Starting with the work yesterday afternoon. I had the motivation, and all the information to make a decision, but I was still thinking. So I stopped. I made a decision based on what I knew so far and moved on to the next stage. And finished it far more quickly as a result. I even had time to cross another couple of jobs off my list that I planned for today. My brain of course started coming up with reasons why I should leave them, but I stopped thinking and did. However, this morning I did struggle, it seems it might a bit more practice before follow-through can compete with sleep.

I’m currently putting together a ‘People’ workshop to compliment the core work of Profit with Purpose, and while I have a good grasp of motivation, now I can start understanding the follow-through part of the equation.

Read Your Problem Isn’t Motivation on HBR blogs.

Method 10×10 is a series of interesting, entertaining and thought-provoking articles written by industry leaders focussing on brands and new revenue streams. If you’re looking for some new year inspiration I recommend you start with the following two…

Raiders of the Lost Overture - Want to get and keep peoples attention, then you could learn something from Indiana Jones!

What’s so funny about innovation – How can a stand-up comedian help you to create innovative products and services?

Employee ownership is not the answer

What does a tin opener have to do with business success?

Think less and do more

10 x 10 = Inspiration for the New Year

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