Systems Thinking for Business: Survival

Whether you are starting your business from the ground up, or looking at strengthening your business, you are thinking about how your business will survive.  While you might say that you are simply going to provide goods and /or services to buyers, you are differentiating yourself from anyone else.  Your likelihood for success is slim to none.

What I always recommend to my clients, before even looking at goods and services is to look at several areas:

1. What type of leader are you?  It takes a leader to build an organization where none was.  It takes a leader to grow and organization.
2. What is the organization about?  While you might rattle off a list of things that you will or won't do, realize that the organization's beliefs will help to dictate its existence.  Cumulatively, these are your belief statements: your company mission, vision and values.
3. Who does your organization serve?  Originally, many businesses say, "we serve anyone, anywhere at any time."  Well, think about the airline industry: would it make more sense to spend money accommodating people with heart problems or people who are afraid to fly?  No - they emphasize marketing to people in a certain age bracket who have some indication that they have flown before
4. What void or need do you hope to fulfill?  This might come in terms of a product or service, or a set of products and or services.  You may also sell an ideal or an experience.  for example, a restaurant might have great food and great service, but some restaurants are actually selling an experience - the food and service are components of this.

This is the most basic needs for your organization, without which the organization will not last, and may as well not exist.  While organizations have moved forward without having well-defined belief statements, or adequate leadership or any of the others, they have suffered as a result, and many or them have had to replace a founder with a leader, reign the company in with a new set of belief statements, re-brand the company or reposition the organization, wasting valuable resources that could have been used to make the overall organization stronger.

At Aepiphanni Business Solutions, we are a Small Business Consulting Firm dedicated to serving the needs of small business owners. We specialize in helping you develop strategies for your organization, and are committed to your success. If you have further questions about creating your strategy or developing your vision, please give me, Rick Meekins, a call at 678-265-3908, or email us at info@aepiphanni.com.