Do you have all the elements for a strong company culture?
Company culture can be defined as a set of shared values, goals, attitudes and practices that characterise a company. Company culture impacts all facets of the business, from recruitment to retention to performance. Organisations with strong corporate cultures have been linked to higher retention rates and increased engagement.
Company culture can be defined as a set of shared values, goals, attitudes and practices that characterise a company. Company culture impacts all facets of the business, from recruitment to retention to performance. Organisations with strong corporate cultures have been linked to higher retention rates and increased engagement.
Company culture is a naturally occurring phenomenon; your company will develop a culture whether intentional or not. Culture is influenced by a company’s mission statement, core values, beliefs and attitudes, appetite and success of innovation, work environment, employee benefits, charitable and social events and flexibility/business working hours.
Post Covid-19 culture is going to play an extremely important role in retaining and attracting top talent. Has your organisation considered what changes need to be made to create/maintain a strong company culture post covid-19?
Developing your lead generation strategy
Since the onset of COVID-19, businesses have had to find new and clever ways to connect with their customers to generate sales and maintain relationships – this has led to the acceleration of digitisation as more customers shifted to online.
Since the onset of COVID-19, businesses have had to find new and clever ways to connect with their customers to generate sales and maintain relationships – this has led to the acceleration of digitisation as more customers shifted to online.
Customers now have the power to dictate when and where companies can interact with them. Organisations that are customer experience-minded and leverage communication technology to engage with today’s customer in the way they prefer – in the right channel, at the right moment, with the right information, will be most successful in converting leads.
Have you analysed the change in your customers’ behaviours to help better manage them and improve your customer experience?
The question on everyone’s mind - how will customers behave post the pandemic?
The question on everyone’s mind - how will customers behave post the pandemic?
A pandemic is temporary but it will influence temporary behaviours into fundamental shifts - some things will revert to pre-covid, some things will look very different, and other things will be gone for good. Covid-19 propelled a whole new generation of digital adopters online with about 70% planning to keep using the new channels permanently. It is critical for companies to improve their online offerings to provide a competitive experience for digital adopters. The quality of the customer experience remains an influential buying factor. To improve the customer experience overall, organisations need to understand the changing wants, needs and expectations of their target customer in terms of product/service offerings, the channels they use to interact/engage and when they use these channels.
There is no one size fits all option
When redesigning your company’s ways of working it’s critical that you design a model that intentionally and thoughtfully supports your business operations.
The covid-19 pandemic has fuelled the remote working trend that was already underway – it has accelerated the shift toward more flexible and customised models. If companies don’t reinvent their people strategy and how they support their employees, they will lose in the new reality. This week’s focus will be on “Ways of Working and Your People Strategy”.
Business leaders have the opportunity and imperative to redesign the future of work to unleash a new wave of human creativity and productivity. The new design will need to have intent and requires effort, leadership engagement and innovative thinking. This will result in unlocking new talent, creativity, and productivity benefits.
When redesigning your company’s ways of working, it is fundamental that you adopt a broad and holistic approach while considering the value at risk to revenues, efficiencies, customer and employee satisfaction, retention, acquiring new talent, sustainability, and wellness.
The Whiteark Guide to Strategy & Execution
THE GUIDE | The key building blocks to guide the process of strategy to execution. Answering strategic questions will form the basis of the key components to the Company Strategy building block. Constantly monitoring the industry, market and economic trends is critical for setting and achieving your strategic objectives.
The key building blocks to guide the process of strategy to execution.
Answering strategic questions will form the basis of the key components to the Company Strategy building block.
•What is your current situation?
•Where do you want to go from here?
•What do you want to accomplish?
•How do you get from where you are today to where you want to be in the future? What are the steps do you need to take?
•What obstacles will you have to overcome? What problems will you have to solve?
•What skills and capability do you require to achieve your strategic objectives?
•What problem does your company seek to solve?
•Why do you believe this problem needs to be addressed?
•Does this problem matter to others?
•What are your offerings to solve this problem?
•What is the nature of your products and services?
•What specific customer/consumer needs are you addressing?
•Who are your ideal/target customers?
•What is your unique selling proposition?
•Are there other comparable offerings in market?
•What differentiates you from your competitors?
In today’s unpredictable environment strategic planning needs to be adaptive.
Covid-19 has been the catalyst for companies to reset their business strategy. In a time of such uncertainty, executive leaders need to be increasingly reliant on adaptive strategies so that they can set long-term goals but still flex with evolving conditions.
Contents of the Guide.
Key building blocks for strategy to execution
Considerations for each building block
Adaptive strategy
Building block one - market and industry trends
Building block two - companies strategy
Building block three - build the plan
Building block four -manage performance
Looking for help with your strategy? Reach out.
Whiteark is not your average consulting firm, we have first-hand experience in delivering transformation programs for private equity and other organisations with a focus on people just as much as financial outcomes. We understand that execution is the hardest part, and so we roll our sleeves up and work with you to ensure we can deliver the required outcomes for the business. So, if you’re looking to transform, reimagine or upgrade your strategy, then give us a call on 1300 240 047 for an no-obligation conversation.
Our co-founders have a combined experience of over 50 years’ working as Executives in organisations delivering outcomes for shareholders. Reach out for a no obligation conversation on how we can help you. Contact us on whiteark@whiteark.com.au
Simplicity
Jo Hands is talking about simplicity. It's a theme for 2021... Companies want to drive simplicity, and many CEOs we are talking to consider this to be a key area of focus. As companies grow, shrink and change, they find themselves more complex. But where does it come from? Ultimately complexity is driven by core business functions: process, policy, systems, operating models, and is fuelled further by unclear decision-making.
It's a theme for 2021. Companies want to drive simplicity, and many CEOs we are talking to consider this to be a key area of focus. Let’s explore why…
As companies grow, shrink and change, they find themselves more complex. But where does it come from? Ultimately complexity is driven by core business functions: process, policy, systems, operating models, and is fuelled further by unclear decision-making.
Complexity costs companies’ both money and time – and probably more than you would think. On average, complexity costs companies 23% of their cost base.
So, given its impact, it makes sense that a key area of focus is to reduce complexity. But how do companies do this successfully?
“Simplicity (noun) is defined as “the quality or condition of being easy to understand or do.” And “the quality or condition of being plain or uncomplicated in form or design.””
The five key steps to reduce complexity in your business:
Ask senior leaders to write a list of roadblocks in the organisation
Ask staff to ask it they could change one process in the company what would it be
Identity themes (4-5) that would reduce complexity
Identify measures of complexity for 4-5 items and targets to drive simplicity
Start a program of work endorsed by the CEO around driving changes in 4/5 items and celebrate success
It helps to put things in context, so here are some key areas where we have seen improved simplicity that has directly created a financial benefit:
Remove unprofitable customers - reprice or remove
Remove Unprofitable products - stop selling
Remove number products in offering (do we neatly need 214 staplers?)
Clear delegations driving improved and timely decision making
Bill / billing process
Simplicity is an overused term and not many companies do this well. Ask yourself, is it time to spring clean the cupboards in your business? To remove the clutter, simplify the way you work and operate in order to drive a better customer experience and improved financial outcomes…
Remember the secret is to take a non-emotive view of things - no sacred cows!!
At Whiteark we love helping companies simplify through the 5 Step approach. The impact is beneficial for customers, employees and shareholders alike.
Download our free guide below to help you analyse your business processes and get started…
James Ciuffetelli and Jo Hands have practical experience in helping companies implement change around simplification, and we have seen the benefits this provided first hand. Get in touch for a no obligation conversation about how you can strategically simplify your business.
Browse more articles about change and transformation.
Need support in your organisation? Reach out.
Whiteark is not your average consulting firm, we have first-hand experience in delivering transformation programs for private equity and other organisations with a focus on people just as much as financial outcomes.
We understand that execution is the hardest part, and so we roll our sleeves up and work with you to ensure we can deliver the required outcomes for the business. Our co-founders have a combined experience of over 50 years’ working as Executives in organisations delivering outcomes for shareholders. Reach out for a no obligation conversation on how we can help you. Contact us on whiteark@whiteark.com.au
Article by Jo Hands, Co-Founder Whiteark
Measure what matters
Jo Hands explains why you need to measure what matters. So much data, so many reports means we’re not sure what we should measure; inactivity of red metrics… Metrics not measured against targets. Targets are soft. There are all issues that we hear from our clients.
So much data, so many reports means we’re not sure what we should measure; inactivity of red metrics… Metrics not measured against targets. Targets are soft. There are all issues that we hear from our clients.
It sounds simple - and it is - but measure what matters.
Be clear on strategy, priorities and key lead indicators for the business. One report with key metrics versus targets and an agreed plan where metrics are not on track.
Here’s how I work out key metrics:
Start with a driver tree of what key elements drive value
Pick top metrics - no more than 15 than it off work impact the results
Ensure there is clear accountabilities of metrics - which executive is responsible?
The report should go out each week with key call outs, and - if over a 4 week period - the metrics are off base, then a remediation plan is required to resolve and rectify issues.
At Whiteark we love helping our clients set up their reporting through:
Building our driver tree
Identifying key metrics
Identifying targets and profiles
Building robust reporting framework
Measuring what matters sounds simple but not many companies do well.
Do you?
Want to know more…? Read other articles in this series - click here.
Browse more articles about change and transformation.
Need support in your organisation? Reach out.
Whiteark is not your average consulting firm, we have first-hand experience in delivering transformation programs for private equity and other organisations with a focus on people just as much as financial outcomes.
We understand that execution is the hardest part, and so we roll our sleeves up and work with you to ensure we can deliver the required outcomes for the business. Our co-founders have a combined experience of over 50 years’ working as Executives in organisations delivering outcomes for shareholders. Reach out for a no obligation conversation on how we can help you. Contact us on whiteark@whiteark.com.au
Article by Jo Hands, Co-Founder Whiteark
Simplification
Jo Hands talks about the importance of simplification and where to start when trying to simplify in your own business. Companies create complexity as they grow, and action is required to change. You don't want to shave around edges, so instead create a set of criteria - and be very clear on what must change. Then build a program of work around this.
Simplification... it's the buzz word. But it’s not to be eye rolled, because when done effectively, it can have brilliant (and profitable) outcomes.
The power of simplifying your organisation can:
Drive improved employee experience
Drive improved customer experience
Drive efficiency and better commercial benefits
Improved governance
Improved simplification
…and more
Companies create complexity as they grow, and action is required to change. You don't want to shave around edges, so instead create a set of criteria - and be very clear on what must change. Then build a program of work around this.
Ask yourself, does your company have:
Too many products
Too many price points
A complex labour module
A complex IT / technology set up
Governance processes
Decision processes
It's the time to take a hard line on simplifying your business in order to drive improvement. Download our free guide below to help you analyse your business processes and get started…
James Ciuffetelli and Jo Hands have practical experience in helping companies implement change around simplification, and we have seen the benefits this provided. Get in touch for a no obligation conversation about how you can strategically simplify your business.
Browse more articles about change and transformation.
Need support in your organisation? Reach out.
Whiteark is not your average consulting firm, we have first-hand experience in delivering transformation programs for private equity and other organisations with a focus on people just as much as financial outcomes.
We understand that execution is the hardest part, and so we roll our sleeves up and work with you to ensure we can deliver the required outcomes for the business. Our co-founders have a combined experience of over 50 years’ working as Executives in organisations delivering outcomes for shareholders. Reach out for a no obligation conversation on how we can help you. Contact us on whiteark@whiteark.com.au
Article by Jo Hands, Co-Founder Whiteark
Perspective...
Jo Hands is talking perspective. She explains “There are things in life that result in an increase in perspective. It's normally something unpleasant. So it takes some unpleasant to happen to you or someone you love to create perspective. The perspective needs to be strong enough to drive a change in behaviour. The perspective needs to be consistent / enduring enough to make long term sustainable change.”
There are certain things in life that result in an increase in perspective. It's normally something unpleasant.
So does it take something unpleasant to happen to you or someone you love in order to create perspective? Perhaps.
The reality is, your newfound perspective needs to be strong enough to drive a change in behaviour. And this newfound behaviour must be consistent and enduring in order to make long term sustainable change.
Ask yourself:
What things in your life have given you perspective?
Has it resulted in a behaviour change, and if yes, for how long?
Our recent shared experience of Covid19 has given everyone perspective (in differing degrees) which has resulted in behavioural changes throughout society.
These ideas have been taken from our podcast episode with Bernard Salt about Building A Better Australia (EP016). 🎧 Tune in to 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐞𝐟𝐬 🎧
Let’s explore some emerging thoughts as a result of altered perspectives:
People are considering career changes
People are thinking differently about work - and what flexibility means to them
People are reconsidering overseas trips and business trips
People are considering where they live
People are considering how they spend there money
These ideas have been taken from our podcast episode with Bernard Salt about Building A Better Australia (EP016). 🎧 Tune in to 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐞𝐟𝐬 🎧
This disruption has triggered major changes in the way people think and operate, and has resulted in a number of trends:
A push for flexibility or people are changing jobs
Remote working: Living regionally, working CBD
People changing jobs with a major challenge around War On Talent
These ideas have been taken from our podcast episode with Bernard Salt about Building A Better Australia (EP016). 🎧 Tune in to 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐞𝐟𝐬 🎧
So, what does this mean for organisations and leaders?
Acquiring and retaining talent is more difficult
Policies around flexibility are critical
Building connection with team members will result in better retention
Leaders need to tweak their style as a result of hybrid working and find something that works for teams and organisation
Executives need to proactively manage their people - creating a great place to work, with flexibility and opportunity and ensure attract and retain top talent . Having a clear people plan and communications will be critical
Building a way to measure productive work is really important that moves from hours to time to be productive
Leaders need to pivot to be relevant, right now. How are you pivoting your style to be relevant?
Need some inspiration? Reach out to us for a no obligation conversation today.
Browse more articles about change and transformation.
Need support in your organisation? Reach out.
Whiteark is not your average consulting firm, we have first-hand experience in delivering transformation programs for private equity and other organisations with a focus on people just as much as financial outcomes.
We understand that execution is the hardest part, and so we roll our sleeves up and work with you to ensure we can deliver the required outcomes for the business. Our co-founders have a combined experience of over 50 years’ working as Executives in organisations delivering outcomes for shareholders. Reach out for a no obligation conversation on how we can help you. Contact us on whiteark@whiteark.com.au
Article by Jo Hands, Co-Founder Whiteark
Transforming your Sales and Service Model
Are you ready to take on a bold sales and service model transformation? Now is the time to reinvent your model and integrate the value your business provides into the “new” societal landscape post the global disruption of Covid-19. In today’s environment, your successful sales and service transformation will be enabled by strong leadership, facts driven from data and analytical insights, and new approaches to technology.
Are you ready to take on a bold sales and service model transformation? Now is the time to reinvent your model and integrate the value your business provides into the “new” societal landscape post the global disruption of Covid-19. In today’s environment, your successful sales and service transformation will be enabled by strong leadership, facts driven from data and analytical insights, and new approaches to technology.
It is important that you remain flexible and resilient while looking to the future - redefine your operations so that you can emerge stronger than your competitors. You must pivot your sales and service models in response to the new societal landscape - purchasing power is shifting fast, the demand for digital channels is rising. To retain customers, protect revenues and realign go-to-market investments you must pivot your sales and service model to meet the constantly changing expectations of your customers.
Hold tight and embrace the uncertainty – be courageous and apply a different approach to how you would usually gain market share all while monitoring the shift in consumer demands to ensure you are ahead of the competition.
Below are the key considerations for redesigning your sales and service model:
Rediscover your customer - understand your customers so that you can meet their evolving wants and needs so that you can remain relevant
Redefine the sales and service journey – segment your customers and focus your efforts on the strongest and most profitable opportunities
Enhance your product/service offering to meet customer expectations - reinvent through new narratives, approaches and terms, and diversify dynamic offers
Enable your team with the tools and skills to succeed in today’s digital age – ensure you provide your team with the key enablers that they need to support them in being successful including training and coaching, sales tools, technology
Reward your sales and service resources for the right behaviour/outcomes – align on priorities, determine the metrics to monitor, measure performance and reward success to keep your workforce motivated
If you need help with transforming your sales and service model to meet the needs of customers in today’s environment, please reach out to Whiteark for a no obligation consultation and we can help you navigate your future to success.
How to effectively navigate change...
Jo Hands explains how to effectively navigate change. When it comes down to it, change isn't easy. Most people resist it. Most people find a way or an excuse not to change. It's human nature. But change is inevitable and for high performing companies a must. So as a leader you need to determine, how to navigate change?
Change isn't easy. Most people resist it. Most people find a way or an excuse not to change. It's human nature.
But change is inevitable and for high performing companies a must. So as a leader you need to determine how to navigate change…
Five key tips:
Make a case for change - the 'why'
Get Executive buy-in / sponsorship
Build a champion network to drive change
Set goals and measure success
Communicate, communicate, communicate
When you start change program, you will have naysayers - people who say it's not going to work, we have tried this before, it's not worth the effort. You need to push through and show them all you can make change - showing activity and outcome is critical.
The culture of an organisation will determine how hard it is to drive change - and therefore doing some change around culture is critical.
There are so many things you can do to drive culture improvement but the most important is to have the right leaders. If you don't have the right leadership team, you will likely fail - and so your job is to get the right people in your team to run and manage the teams.
Change is required - having a team that proactively manages change will give you the best outcome.
Be bold, ignore the naysayers and make change.
Browse more articles about change and transformation.
Need support in your organisation? Reach out.
Whiteark is not your average consulting firm, we have first-hand experience in delivering transformation programs for private equity and other organisations with a focus on people just as much as financial outcomes.
We understand that execution is the hardest part, and so we roll our sleeves up and work with you to ensure we can deliver the required outcomes for the business. Our co-founders have a combined experience of over 50 years’ working as Executives in organisations delivering outcomes for shareholders. Reach out for a no obligation conversation on how we can help you. Contact us on whiteark@whiteark.com.au
Article by Jo Hands, Co-Founder Whiteark
How to deliver a successful transformation program
Jo Hands writes about how to deliver a successful transformation program. Nearly every project today is called a transformation. Most companies are changing, evolving and putting in programs to change the way things are done and these call these programs – ‘transformation project’s. It doesn’t matter what the programs are called, what matters is the that it achieves the outcome you are expecting.
Nearly every project today is called a transformation. Most companies are changing, evolving and putting in programs to change the way things are done and these call these programs – ‘transformation project’s. It doesn’t matter what the programs are called, what matters is the that it achieves the outcome you are expecting.
The statistics are terrible, however on average 20% of transformation programs achieve the required outcomes, this is a terrible statistic. Many companies put money, focus and effort into delivering the outcome however they are unable to deliver the required outcome.
Why?
There are four main reasons that transformation programs are not successful:
Success for the project has not been defined and is not well understood. Being very clear on what the project is trying to achieve, what is success and how the results are going to be measured is critical.
No Executive sponsorship – the Executive team do not sponsor the project and help show how important it is.
No accountability for the outcomes. The roles & responsibilities are not clear and the people running the program are not being held accountable and this flows down.
The organisation doesn’t want the change/they haven’t bought in and they make it so hard that the organisation gives up. It’s all too hard.
Once one or all of the 4 above happen the transformation program will likely not be successful, will not deliver the required outcome and next time people try they will say we tried this and it doesn’t work in our company.
No one sets out for it not be successful so how to do maximise the chance of success for your transformation program. There are four main things that will help maximise success:
Be very clear on what success is – define success, work out how to measure success & ensure you communicate this change to people impacted and key stakeholders
Ensure you have an Executive Sponsor that will support and drive the project and help clear blockages that are in the way
Build a change champion network in the organisation – key people that can champion change and support the program
Demonstrate progress and the ‘what is in it for me’ mentality to show people why change can be great
The success of transformation will be driven from the ability of the lead:
To set up the program for success
To get buy in
To not listen to naysayers
To focus on delivering outcomes and communicating
To build out the what is in it for me
The lead for the transformation needs to be very strong leaders, someone who is not worried or concerned about driving change and showing resilience.
From experience, I have seen many transformations go really well. I am someone who doesn’t like to give up and I like to be on the winning team – everyone makes mistakes and from these comes learnings and experience that helps you when you do your next program/project/transformation.
At Whiteark we love helping our clients with transformation; focused on ensuring that we can use our experience to help ensure their transformations are successful. If you are interested in having a conversation about how we can help you, reach out.
Need support in your transformation project? Reach out.
Whiteark is not your average consulting firm, we have first-hand experience in delivering transformation programs for private equity and other organisations with a focus on people just as much as financial outcomes.
We understand that execution is the hardest part, and so we roll our sleeves up and work with you to ensure we can deliver the required outcomes for the business. Our co-founders have a combined experience of over 50 years’ working as Executives in organisations delivering outcomes for shareholders. Reach out for a no obligation conversation on how we can help you. Contact us on whiteark@whiteark.com.au
Article by Jo Hands, Co-Founder Whiteark
Linking transformation to strategy
In today’s business environment, transformation can take many forms but no matter the type it revolves around the need to generate new value - unlock new opportunities, drive new growth, deliver new efficiencies. It is critical that the transformation project aligns to the company’s strategy – strategy is fundamental in guiding/aligning decisions and actions to ensure they support the achievement of the company’s strategic goals.
In today’s business environment, transformation can take many forms but no matter the type it revolves around the need to generate new value - unlock new opportunities, drive new growth, deliver new efficiencies.
It is critical that the transformation project aligns to the company’s strategy – strategy is fundamental in guiding/aligning decisions and actions to ensure they support the achievement of the company’s strategic goals. A sound strategy helps shape an executable transformation objective.
The value that your transformation project will create/deliver must be aligned to your company strategy and it will help with articulating desired transformation outcomes, from a financial perspective or from an operational perspective.
Once you have aligned your transformation ambition you can build out your transformation program.
THE STEPS
Clearly defined company strategy
Determine your company strategic priorities
Define your transformation ambition – ensure it aligns to your company strategy/strategic priorities
Get leaders involved
Build your transformation plan
Be clear on what success is
Gather resources and expertise
Choose the right enablers
Focus on culture and change management
Measure success
For more support on transformation please explore our range of thought leadership articles…
The Whiteark Guide to Supply Chain Optimisation
The coronavirus pandemic highlighted the need for companies to focus on transforming their traditional supply chain models to digital supply networks, in order to better manage supply chain risk and disruption. Digital supply networks, breakdown functional silos and allow companies to become connected to their complete supply network to empower end to end visibility, collaboration, agility, and optimisation. Organisations that deploy Digital supply networks will be equipped to deal with unexpected events.
The coronavirus pandemic highlighted the need for companies to focus on transforming their traditional supply chain models to digital supply networks, in order to better manage supply chain risk and disruption.
With the growing emergence of new supply chain technologies, organisations can invest in enablers that will support their supply chain network in resisting unexpected disruption. These technologies significantly improve visibility across the supply chain and are designed to anticipate and meet future challenges.
Some of these enablers include:
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Intelligent, self-correcting AI will make inventory monitoring more accurate and reduce material waste.
Blockchain
Will verify authenticity, improve traceability and visibility, and improve transactional trust.
Quantum Computing
Unprecedented computational power will solve previously unsolvable problems.
Internet of Things (IoT)
Data from IoT sensors will provide insight into inventory location and status.
Intelligent Order Management
Supply chains will master inventory visibility with improved demand forecasting and automation.
Digital Twins
Virtual representations of complex creations — let you track objects through entire lifecycles.
Digital supply networks, breakdown functional silos and allow companies to become connected to their complete supply network to empower end to end visibility, collaboration, agility, and optimisation. Organisations that deploy Digital supply networks will be equipped to deal with unexpected events.
Supply chain optimisation.
Supply chain optimisation makes the best use of technology and resources such as blockchain, AI and IoT to improve efficiency, responsiveness and performance in a supply network so that companies can provide customers with what they want, when and where they want it – in a way that positively contributes to the organisation’s profitability and sustainability. An organisation’s supply chain is a critical business process that is crucial for a successful customer experience.
Goals of Supply Chain Optimisation
Top supply chain trends for 2021.
Contents of the Guide.
Mitigating supply chain disruption.
Supply chain optimisation.
The process for optimising your supply chain.
Key features of effective supply chain optimisation.
The importance for supply chain optimisation.
Supply chain trends.
Looking to transform your Supply Chain? Reach out.
Our team has extensive global experience leading large scale Supply Chain Transformations from Factory to Customer across multiple industries. We have in depth capabilities around designing and delivering value in the Physical, Financial and Information (Digital) Supply Chain and can help your organisation create competitive advantage and value centred on the global supply chain.
We understand that execution is the hardest part, and so we roll our sleeves up and work with you to ensure we can deliver the required outcomes for the business. So, if you’re looking to transform, reimagine or upgrade your supply chain then complete the form below or give us a call on 1300 240 047 for an no-obligation conversation.
Obsessed about business optimisation
Optimisation is an overused word that can mean a lot of things, so let me explain... can a business perform better than they currently are? Can they improve customer experience, their pricing strategy and financial outcomes to drive a better return? In most cases the answer is yes!
Optimisation is an overused word that can mean a lot of things, so let me explain... can a business perform better than they currently are? Can they improve customer experience, their pricing strategy and financial outcomes to drive a better return? In most cases the answer is yes!
I'm that person at the cafe that worries about how the owners are affording to pay all their staff (overstaffed), that nail place that isn't charging enough to make ends meet, the tradie that doesn't make me pay when the service is done but a month later, the discounts in the department stores, the amount of stock on the shelves and the cashflow management of companies.
The COVID period has shown us that companies need to be:
More efficient
More commercial
Focus in on cashflow more
Get the pricing right
Focus in on customer experience
Small, medium and large businesses all have areas that they can improve. Research shows that business optimisation can improve the financial performance of your company by 21%+.
Business owners and leaders need to focus on business optimisation. What are the 4-5 things that will move the dial for your business?
Cashflow optimisation - maximising your working capital through tactical and strategic levers. Are you putting enough focus on this?
Pricing rationalisation - are you charging enough for your product and service and how you do compare to your competitors?
Strategic sourcing - are you strategic around how you manage your vendors to drive cost improvements and working capital outcomes?
Process optimisation - improve process efficiency and effectiveness by reducing complexity in the process.
Property management - lease costs cost approximately $10-12k per person per year. With the new ways of working and companies adapting to remote working, review your lease arrangements and assess whether your company really needs all that space. Can you sublet the space or hand it back to the landlord? Many companies are considering other options in relation to rental space. Are you?
One way to really reset the cost base of a business is the zero-based budget. Read our recent Whiteark article that explains why, how, and when you should use this technique. With a focus on what money is spent on and the return on investment including dollars and time to recover cost outlays, you can significantly change your cost base.
“If I had one hour to save the world, I would spend fifty-five minutes defining the problem and only five minutes finding the solution.”
Do you need to create a business optimisation plan? Let us help.
At Whiteark we have professionals that have practical, hands on experience on how to optimise business. Understanding every business is different and there is no one size fits all but we would be very happy to have a no obligation conversation around your business optimisation plan. Our co-founders have a combined experience of over 50 years’ working as Executives in organisations delivering outcomes for shareholders. Reach out for a no obligation conversation on how we can help you. Contact us on whiteark@whiteark.com.au
It’s time to simplify
Create some momentum in the organisation to simplify - give the executives and leaders the challenge of identifying areas that the company can simplify and put a program of work together to drive change and promote continuous improvement. Be structured and be clear on mandate. Remember what measures gets done.
There are a lot of reasons to simplify but why don't companies do it? Because it's hard work. It takes time, money, effort and a lot of change. It's never too late to start and I suggest you make 2021 the year.
Companies have grown too complicated and it results in:
• Customer dissatisfaction
• Errors in reporting
• Lack of good commercial decisions
• Higher costs
• Poor management of cash
• Higher prices
• Longer lead times to deliver
• Lack of problem management
• No accountability
• Too many people
Companies need to simplify to:
• More effective
• Improve the timeliness of data for decision making
• Improve your competitive advantage
• Be more price competitive
• Improve customer experience
• More efficient
Key considerations to simplify;
• Less executives
• Clearer accountability for process and outcomes at the Executive level and clear delegations
• Black belts to undertake process reviews from end to end and identify areas of waste and the key metrics to focus on to drive process improvement
• Streamline systems and transition everything to the cloud
• Determine your outsource strategy - what you want to own v outsource
• Vendor consolidation to drive savings
• Create one centralised data hub where all reporting and information is stored as the source of truth
Create some momentum in the organisation to simplify - give the executives and leaders the challenge of identifying areas that the company can simplify and put a program of work together to drive change and promote continuous improvement. Be structured and be clear on mandate. Remember, what gets measured gets done.
“It’s like doing a spring clean of your cupboards - there is some therapeutic and liberating about it and you find the piece to the puzzle that’s been missing. Imagine how you’ll feel when you simplify your organisation - there will never be the perfect time - so decide today to start the process of simplification.”
Looking to simplify the structure and set-up of your organisation? Let us help.
If you need assistance, please reach out to Whiteark as we have extensive experience in simplification programs focused on improving the financial performance of companies, we would be happy to help. Our co-founders have a combined experience of over 50 years’ working as Executives in organisations delivering outcomes for shareholders. Reach out for a no obligation conversation on how we can help you. Contact us on whiteark@whiteark.com.au
How to build the right culture in your company?
Most people assume building the right culture within a company is simple, but the reality is, it’s quite difficult and very few do this well. Being a start-up or smaller company makes it easier to manage, influence and build the desired culture but as companies grow and evolve it is important that you hold the right culture, and ensure it is driven from the top down.
Most people assume building the right culture within a company is simple, but the reality is, it’s quite difficult and very few do this well.
Being a start-up or smaller company makes it easier to manage, influence and build the desired culture but as companies grow and evolve it is important that you hold the right culture, and ensure it is driven from the top down.
Let's explore factors that drive culture in organisations:
Recruitment.
Companies recruit based on whether the candidate is the right fit for the company’s culture.
Performance.
Are employees rewarded for practicing the right behaviours, that align with the culture of the organisation.
Values.
Most companies have values that are core to their operations. These are usually displayed on their website, the walls in their office and screensavers to remind their community of what their foundations are built around. Many companies have values but very few actually live them; this needs to be driven from the top. Do your executives live/display the company’s values?
Leadership.
The leadership in the organisation sets the tone, and ultimately that culture of an organisation.
We all want to work for a company with the right culture. While there are some things we can control – culture is the responsibility of the leadership team to drive.
“If you change your mindset, you have the ability to change your whole world.”
4 key things to consider when influencing culture:
Leadership team - right people, right behaviours and help build out the culture in organisation.
Reward performance/behaviour aligned with culture and values.
Continuously remind/train employees on what is expected of them from the time they join
Ensure there is an outcome if employees are not aligned to expectations
As a leader in a company you must set the right culture and foster it. A positive culture is the biggest driver of productivity in any organization and people spend a lot of time working, so it is important to create an enjoyable workplace environment.
You can have the best business strategy in the world but if your culture is rotten you won't be successful in the long-term.
“Alone, we can do so little; together we can do so much.”
Looking to create a lasting culture and rally the team in your organisation? Let us help.
Whiteark is not your average consulting firm, we have first-hand experience in delivering transformation programs for private equity and other organisations with a focus on people just as much as financial outcomes. We understand that execution is the hardest part, and so we roll our sleeves up and work with you to ensure we can deliver the required outcomes for the business. Our co-founders have a combined experience of over 50 years’ working as Executives in organisations delivering outcomes for shareholders. Reach out for a no obligation conversation on how we can help you. Contact us on whiteark@whiteark.com.au
Does it take a crisis for change to occur quickly?
In general companies are slow to make a change but when faced with a crisis they were able to respond differently, quickly, decisively and achieve an outcome. Why does it take a crisis to make a change this quickly? In recent conversations on this topic with my network, many people believe that's just how it is and nothing you can do to fix it -- but I'm not convinced that is right...
Sitting around the table at Christmas everyone talked about how quickly their companies responded to Covid-19. People were shocked and surprised and impressed all at once.
In general companies are slow to make a change but when faced with a crisis they were able to respond differently, quickly, decisively and achieve an outcome. Why does it take a crisis to make a change this quickly? In recent conversations on this topic with my network, many people believe that's just how it is and nothing you can do to fix it -- but I'm not convinced that is right and would love to explore this further.
Speed is a differentiator for companies:
• Speed to market competitive advantage
• Speed on process drives efficiency and productivity
• Speed to deliver product or service
• Speed to pivot when something goes wrong
So if speed is so important why don't companies focus on what is slowing them down and focus on increasing speed. There seems like a lot of benefits of speed.
The Four Factors…
Below are 4 key factors that slow companies down. Do any of these resonate for your company?
1. Process, policies and red tape.
Companies implement processes, policies and standards to ensure consistent application of outcomes across the company. This can create barriers for speed to get things done.
2. Unclear accountabilities.
It's not clear who is responsible or accountable for the activity. Many meetings but no one takes responsibility.
3. Unclear delegation.
It's not clear who can make the decision or it needs executive approval and therefore this is a formal process that takes time (6-8 weeks).
4. Leadership team unable to make a decision.
They go around in circles on the pros and cons before making a decision - sometimes a decision is ever made. Making no decision is worse than making the wrong decisions.
I don't believe there needs to be a crisis to speed up businesses.
Survival and competitive positioning rely on speed and therefore every company needs to consider how they increase their speed. Consider what is slowing your company down and what changes are required to speed it up and the benefits.
Reflect, reset and charge -- take charge in leading your company to increase the speed across all aspects. What are you waiting for? Time is money!!
Looking to reset your own strategic priorities and make some change in your organisation? Let us help.
Whiteark is not your average consulting firm, we have first-hand experience in delivering transformation programs for private equity and other organisations with a focus on people just as much as financial outcomes. We understand that execution is the hardest part, and so we roll our sleeves up and work with you to ensure we can deliver the required outcomes for the business. Our co-founders have a combined experience of over 50 years’ working as Executives in organisations delivering outcomes for shareholders. Reach out for a no obligation conversation on how we can help you. Contact us on whiteark@whiteark.com.au
Change isn’t easy, our guide to successfully navigate change
Change is not easy. There are so many leadership books around change. Leading people through change, the change curve etc stories to tell people, videos to get people engaged and management courses on how to navigate it but change is a strange thing….
Change is not easy. There are so many leadership books around change. Leading people through change, the change curve etc stories to tell people, videos to get people engaged and management courses on how to navigate it but change is a strange thing…
There is a natural resistant to change – more often than not people will put up a wall in relation to change – there are so many reasons not to change, to not do thing differently but above all else change takes effort and courageous and most people don’t want to make the extra effort or be courageous enough.
This explains why 70% of organisations fail to executive change. They have the plan and strategy and it all makes sense but can’t make the change. This is a major issue, cost and reason for poor financial / commercial outcomes for businesses, so what is the secret?
Strong leadership that explains the why and takes people on the journey to deliver. A mandate to make change in the organisation is required from the senior leaders / shareholders otherwise it will fail. Having strong leaders that understand the why and how and work with the team in the trenches to drive champion celebrate and push the change.
It’s not easy - it takes tenacity and persistent to continue to make changes to the organisation. If you are doing it right there will be resistant and push back and barriers for you to keep going – you then know you are on the right track. Find some people that support the change and can help champion with you to provide support.
Looking Back…
Looking back it’s the time in my career when I have overcome and adversity and made change despite the naysayers that I am most proud of the outcome. Delivering outcomes for businesses is what I love – making a different to commercial model and financial outcomes is my number 1 passion. There is such an opportunity to make a difference for businesses especially post COVID but having the courage to do this is critical.
What are the key things you should consider when making change:
Having support at the senior level for the change
Being clear on the why and communicating this
Getting people to see the greater good of the work that needs to get done
Track and measure the outcome
Hold people to account
Looking to reset your own strategic priorities and make some change in your organisation? Let us help.
Whiteark is not your average consulting firm, we have first-hand experience in delivering transformation programs for private equity and other organisations with a focus on people just as much as financial outcomes. We understand that execution is the hardest part, and so we roll our sleeves up and work with you to ensure we can deliver the required outcomes for the business. Our co-founders have a combined experience of over 50 years’ working as Executives in organisations delivering outcomes for shareholders. Reach out for a no obligation conversation on how we can help you. Contact us on whiteark@whiteark.com.au
The 4 Rs - Reflections & considerations as the year closes out
It's been a tough year for many -- and people are limping to the finish line. It's time for a break and get yourself ready for 2021. 2021 is going to be another busy year so getting yourself refreshed and ready is critical and taking the time to relax, refresh reflect and reset is critical.
It's been a tough year for many -- and people are limping to the finish line. It's time for a break and get yourself ready for 2021.
2021 is going to be another busy year so getting yourself refreshed and ready is critical and taking the time to relax, refresh reflect and reset is critical.
Christmas is generally crazy eating, parties and a lot of people to connect with. It's fun but can leave us feeling more tired.
Relax
What makes you relax? Everyone is different. For me going for a walk, writing in my journal and doing a jigsaw puzzle all are things that help me relax.
Refresh
Taking time for yourself. Sleep, exercise and eating healthy are a good start! What's does refreshing look like for you?
Reflect
In the craziness of the year it's hard to really reflect - what worked well this year, what are my priorities for next year and what do o need to change to make this a reality?
Reset
Be bold. Make sure you make the change to ensure you achieve your priorities. It's not easy - and it's normally outside your comfort zone so be accountable to drive through outcome.
Ensuring you take the time on the 4Rs is critical to ensure you are refreshed for 2021. These 4 Rs are critical for you personally but also for your business, especially the last two.
Reflect - On key lessons learnt for the year (2020) in your business and team. What worked well? What could be improved?
Reset - What are the priorities for 2021? What changes are required to deliver these? How do we measure success across the year?
For most businesses 2020 has been a challenging year, it's imperative that they start 2021 with the following:
Alignment and clarity on what good looks like - reset priorities, measuring success and understanding the impact of changing consumer and customer trends
Transitioning the team back to the office - it's an interesting challenge
Assessing capability in the business - what is missing and focus on development and recruitment
Many organizations are organising planning sessions with leadership in new year to align. It’s an excellent idea to get this alignment underway early in the new year.
Over the Christmas break Whiteark will continue to give you podcasts, thought leadership and thought provoking polls to help you through your 4 Rs and get your head focused on returning back to the new year with a good reset.
Whiteark has extensive experience in resetting strategy, defining priorities and identifying and measuring key success metrics. If you need some help reach out to us.