Hindsight, Insight, Foresight, provide business owners with situational awareness. Many owners lose sight of industry performance in the last quarter, and year. Trends come and go. The sources of information are numerous, yet many don’t have the time or energy to determine reliability. This is too much for one person to disseminate. The next logical step- determining how relevant that information is to your segment of the market, may get relegated to the bottom of a priority list if the information isn’t used in decision-making, forecasting, or in plotting strategic objectives.
The challenge of identifying possible disruptions can feel overwhelming.
For a lot of companies, there are many responsibilities with too few to do the work. The formula for determining trends, disruptions and interruptions in talent flow or supply chains- much less technology, require a high degree of situational awareness. For those in leadership, this responsibility can feel as though it has little to do with immediate objectives, yet looms on the horizon. Allocating resources to this task may feel risky.
Let’s turn this around and shift the perspective. What if industry research became a team building activity? The opportunity to brainstorm responses to disruptions could uncover possible opportunities. The organization could adopt different roles and play those out- innovator, middle of the road, holder of the way it’s always been done, are just a few to try out. Your teams could have a try at each role to reinterpret the last year’s performance, what is currently happening within the company, and the market as a whole. Then, consider the impact of each role as it may play out over the coming year.
Playing the “what if” game allows people to imagine iterations of different divisions, personnel development, products and the list goes on. This is the owner’s opportunity to create a growth mindset. The game could include a segment on “everything within the organization is for sale every day”-so speculate on what happens next. Or, adopt the other side of the Mergers & Acquisitions equation. Challenge each team to determine a strategic target for acquisition, justifying the purchase, qualifying and quantifying the data.
Activities such as these build resilience and a sense of readiness within your organization. It could also pave the way for you to identify undiscovered talents or interests. An M&A Coach could assist you, and your teams in creating a MasterMind group for this purpose. So many business owners get lost in the trees, and lose sight of the forest. This mindset matters. Owners hold the big vision- THE WHY for the organization. The challenges of bringing that vision to life encompass knowing the ecosystem: climate, growth opportunities, disruptions, and trends. Owners hold the vision: hindsight, insight, foresight matter.
