We say it each year but every year really does feel quicker than the last. Christmas is coming quickly and it’s a natural time of year to reflect. Below is a snapshot of some of this year’s blogs to provide a summary of the key messages as well as some questions to reflect on over the holiday season…
Wishing everyone a very merry christmas and a prosperous 2020!
Are you creating your own economy?
It’s often said that we live in uncertain times, but we really do live in uncertain times! Now more than ever it is imperative to ‘create your own economy’. One of the common traits of businesses that have traded through an economic cycle or two is the strength of their culture. A culture is either more reactive (fear-driven, avoid mistakes) or creative (goal-driven, let’s create our own economy).
Where is your culture?
Click here for some help to answer this.
Are your suit pants too tight?
Poor George Calombaris was in the news for all the wrong reasons this year when it was discovered his staff had been underpaid. In my experience, these oversights are not intentional, rather a function of a business outgrowing its ‘platform’ (systems/processes and structures).
Growing a business is like managing a teenagers’s wardrobe. You’ve got keep the waist size on the pants ahead of the growth or they will split.
Knowing the capacity of your business and how full your are is one of the most important things to understand. Many Businesses don’t understand this. It ‘feels’ busy but they’re not sure why. Is it busy because of inefficiency or capacity?
Solving an efficiency problem with capacity will send you broke. Solving a capacity problem with efficiency will burn your team out.
If your suit pants are feeling tight and you are in danger of splitting, work out an objective measure of your capacity.
Click here for full article.
Strategy or implementation, which one is my problem?
Too many times I have seen businesses blame the strategy (and then continue to change it) when the implementation is the problem. This is akin to hearing someone divorced for the 10th time complain about their current partner.
On the other hand, stubbornly continuing down the same path because it ‘worked before’ can be dangerous. As Jim Collins writes in the ‘Good to Great’ book, one must confront the brutal facts.
Which one is the problem? Click here to find out.
Part 1 – http://www.altusq.com.au/strategy-or-implementation/
What can we learn from the price of Orange Juice?
Did you know that orange juice derivates is a common ‘bet’ for traders? These trades are very well researched and considered. Traders will commonly ‘short-sell’ the derivative if their analysis predicts a downturn but will also put some money into the derivative in the event the prediction is wrong. In other words every time they put some money on heads, they will also put a little on tails to limit the risk.
This is a fundamental part of the strategy because it means they can stay protected and calm no matter what happens. The worst-case scenario for a trader is to lose their nerve and become reactive.
There’s a nice analogy to running a Business. The lesson from our orange juice traders is that Leaders who have thought through the various scenarios will be more composed in their decision–making, no matter the weather….. be it blue skies or hurricanes.
Click here for the article.
Merry Christmas and happy reflecting!