change management

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January 15, 2021 – Has Your Cheese Moved?

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Main Idea:

What made you successful in the past?  Was there a particular product, service or system that was critical?  Can you name it and quantify it?  Is it just as important today as it was five years ago?

Expansion of the Idea:

20 years ago, Spencer Johnson wrote the book “Who Moved My Cheese”.  Most of us have read it, thought it was good and then promptly put it away.  However, it is just as timely now as it was then.  The basic story is about two mice in a maze who lost their cheese.  They have to find new cheese.  The cheese is a metaphor for what is important to us.  Five years ago, most businesses were doing fine and we became complacent.  Things have changed.  We have to find new cheese. 

What does this mean in today’s context?

We have to decide what will be important for us for the upcoming year.  We must know our financial numbers and key performance indicators that tell us how we are doing.  However, we can’t use the same old numbers that we used in the past.  We should be more intentional about what numbers we use and set goals for those numbers.  Here are a few ideas on things to look at:

  1. Customer profitability and retention

  2. Lead time and costs of acquiring new customers

  3. Employee engagement and performance

  4. Business operations and systems

  5. Cash flow projections and budgets

  6. Vendor and supply chain performance

  7. Product and service performance and viability

  8. Leadership and Management performance and development

  9. Risk management and potential bottlenecks

There is nothing new in my list.  However, what needs to be new is how we apply it.  Most small business owners don’t make full use of key performance indicators.  And during 2020, those numbers were worthless for some industries.  For 2021, I think it would help all of us if we became very intentional about what our goals are and put together the models to make sure we are on track. 

I think that 2021 will be a very difficult year even after the vaccine is rolled out and we have herd immunity.  People’s attitudes and habits have changed.  This could impact their buying habits as well as their goals.  We might lose key employees or customers.  By planning now, we can set ourselves up for success and minimize the potential for failure.  There will be a new normal.  We need to know what it will be and how we can thrive.

Here are some questions or comments to consider:

  • Read or reread “Who Moved My Cheese”

  • Define what is your cheese.

  • What is my action plan for 2021?

  • Do I have full key performance indicators, cash flow plans and budgets for my business?

  • Have I identified my top 2 or 3 key performance indicators for special scrutiny?

  • If not, create them based on expected reality for the new year?

  • Determine what additional actions you need to do to make 2021 successful.

November 13, 2008 - How Do You Implement Changes?

Main Idea

You have changes in your mind that need to happen.  You have the know-how to implement them.  You have the determination and guts to face the problems.  However, no one else in your organization thinks that they need to change.  What do you do?  Where do you start?  Have you tried to implement changes and after a couple of years, you are back to where you started?

Expansion of Idea

As Peter Drucker said “To thrive in the new millennium, managers must do more than adapt to change: they have to lead it.”  The job of a leader is to facilitate change before it is too late.  The question is how to do it.  The first thing you must do is to establish a sense of urgency.  Sometimes that is easy, such as our nation’s financial crisis.  It is more difficult when your organization is having a good year.  Complacency is a real tough enemy of change.  Sometimes you have to find problems inside your organization.  Some leaders have had to manufacture the problems so that the importance is felt by all.  When life is running smoothly, what incentive do you have to change?

A perfect example of this most everyone can relate to is weight loss. What motivates you to lose 20 pounds? What if your doctor told you that you would eventually die if you didn’t lose those 20 pounds? What if the time period was shortened from eventually to 6 months from now? That need would create inspiration to exercise and make more nutritious food choices.

Without the urgency to make a change, your business may drop a little in revenue.  It may not even be a noticeable difference at first, but you are no longer growing and improving.  The following year it slides a little more.  Then the downward spiral hits and you can’t stop it.  You need to figure out what needs to change, set a timetable, communicate the changes and timetable and then implement the changes, before it is too late.  And when the changes work, you need to celebrate all wins, no matter how big or small (20 pounds, or just 2).  Your team needs to know that they are on the right track.

Action Items

  1. Evaluate the necessary changes and determine if a crisis is present.

  2. If a crisis is not present, then determine if one should be manufactured.

  3. Communicate the changes and the urgency for making changes.

  4. Celebrate the wins.