Recovery from the Recession & Organisational Re-design

We hear today that between fifteen, and  as many as thirty major retailers are at major risk going to the wall after Christmas.  Whether or not its true for the big high street names they will not be the last.  We will see a flow of SME’s hit the wall if they cannot borrow the necessary funds to expand their operations in the New Year..

Cash is often not the answer because what lies beneath the problem of poor revenue streams is a fundamental problem.  Providing finance for the short term is often only a temporary reprieve when what is required is a transformation in how the company organises itself for how it does business.

Customers Preferences, Habits, Attitudes & Markets Change

While we know that markets change do businesses anticipate and react fast enough to these changes through how they design the delivery of services to their cleints and customers?

Form follows Strategy

As the recession bites, more companies are close to going bust simply because of cash flow.  The banks will support many businesses till the turn of the year when VAT supplier's and salaries have to be paid.  Whether the support is forthcoming after New Year that is in doubt. 

To remedy the situation, turnaround specialists can often support the management team by providing a rescue package, but this is only a partial solution.

What is needed is a focused business plan with organisational capabilities designed to deliver that plan.

No Focused Business Thrust 

Not enough businesses create a strong and sustainable thrust into the market place.  They 'forget' that without ongoing sales growth, repeat and loyal purchasing they would have no business at all.

What is critical is ensuring that the organisation is designed specifically to service existing customers, and promote sufficient the growth of new ones. 

Fundamentally most organisations need to have sales culture.  Organisations need to be designed to be strictly customer facing, geared totally to delighting the customer and winning loyalty and with that sales and profitable growth.

Design of a Sales Culture

Still, in 2008, many organisations are designed around traditional functional responsibility resulting in poor integration between specialist silos.  Organisations that will survive beyond 2009 will have to think seriously about organisational design and engineer their business around two key processes.  Winning new business and servicing the customer cost effectively.

Organisation Design around the Customer

This requires an in-depth understanding of the customer and the motivations and emotions that drive the customer to you.  If the customer  makes purchasing decisions with you only because you are the lowest cost supplier, you are in deep trouble.

Process design around Customer needs & wants

You have to satisfy as many of the emotional needs of the customer as you can if you hope to win their life time value.  All processes have to be designed with this end in mind.

Processes designed around Transactions

In too many businesses, the process and the organisational structure is designed around the business doing business with itself!  In these organisations the majority of staff never meet or actively transact with the customer they are too busy servicing administrative functions.

Customer-Facing Organisational Design

Organisational redesign is about making as many staff as possible becoming customer facing, and proactively anticipating their needs.  Those who don’t interact, add value, and face the customer, need to support those who do.

Organisational Re-Design Issues & Principles

• Really understand your raison d’etre – ask why do we exist as a corporate entity – and what do we deliver and to whom?
• Do we have a focused business plan geared to delivering your strategy?
• Are  processes optimal in delivering to the customers wants and needs?
• Do we have a sales culture that supports the customer, and retains and grows high potential people at the same time dealing with performance management issues?
• How advanced are you in creating a seamless matrix structure and culture which anticipates and enables you to react swiftly to threats and opportunities in your marketplace?
• How confident are you that you can sustain and maintain this culture through your change management strategy.
• Do you have the right leaders in place to deliver this vision contained within these questions?

Organisational Redesign

In Genetics››

In Construction and Agricultural Equipment››

In Financial Services››

Fuller Explanation of Recovery from Recession through Organisation Re-Design››