What do you do if your business strategy is no longer effective in a changing landscape?

Mega trends in technology, regulatory and socioeconomic areas are disrupting markets and businesses Key is to understand how these disruptions are affecting executive priorities, and investment decision Typically by vertical at your customers Quite often - the customers who are innovating and growing rapidly are the ones who tend to purchase the most Identifying these “net new growth” sub segments is key to driving large incremental sales

In my experience, if you want to increase your sales productivity you’ve got to start talking to your customers as if they are five years old! I’m a very educated person (3 degrees and a wide variety of business experience over several markets and roles within each market) and I didn’t understand anything in this post, especially the word “vertical” used in that post. Stop using a lot of jargon only a CEO may use in front of other C-class executives and speak clearly to your target audience. They’ll appreciate it more and want to buy from you.

Entenda qual a natureza da mudança de cenários. É um choque momentâneo e passageiro (mudanças de clima, modismos, etc) ou algo estrutural (tecnologias, mudanças de sociais profundas, megatendências)? Aqui um modelo como o SCP pode ajudar a entender a profundidade daquele choque na conduta e performance daquele setor. Caso seja algo pontual, é crucial agir rápido, reajustar margens e garantir um bom fluxo de caixa para lidar com o momento de adversidade. Caso seja algo estrutural, como uma nova tecnologia é necessário entender a natureza dessa mudança e preparar a companhia para uma mudança profunda envolvendo todo o modelo de negócios!

Analyzing factors causing strategy ineffectiveness: market changes, competition, customer shifts, regulations, and tech disruptions. Reworking on priorities, objectives, mission, vision, and target segments to match new realities. Evaluating existing resources, processes, and tech to identify execution gaps. Mapping out initiatives covering innovation, operations, talent, tech, and partnerships. Rolling out a comprehensive strategy for organization-wide buy-in, communication, training, and mindset shift. Defining clear tracking metrics, governance structure, and agile processes. Embedding innovation, foresight, and adaptability for ongoing success.

Incorporate agile methodologies not just in product development but across all business operations to enhance flexibility and responsiveness. This approach encourages iterative progress, adaptability, and team collaboration, which are crucial for navigating u ncertainties in the business landscape. Integrate sustainability into your core business strategy. Consumers and businesses alike are increasingly favoring companies with strong sustainability credentials. Create a business resilience plan that outlines how your company will respond to unforeseen challenges, such as economic downturns, supply chain disruptions, or global crises. Create an ecosystem that supports innovation, involving employees, customers, and external partners.

After assessing your business, gather insights for strategy refinement. Listening to customers reveals what needs improvement while analyzing competitors shows where you're losing ground. Staying informed on industry trends helps anticipate future shifts. Collecting these insights ensures your strategy is both relevant and competitive, aligning with market demands and positioning your business for future success. This proactive approach is vital to maintaining a solid market presence and achieving long-term growth.

Innovation is vital to stay ahead in the market. Review your offerings and update them to match current demands, which might involve new technology, rebranding, or shifting to a new product line. This keeps your business relevant, attracts new customers, and opens new markets. By prioritizing innovation, you maintain your competitive edge and set the stage for continuous growth and expansion, adapting proactively to changing market dynamics.

After gathering insights and innovating, revise your strategies. This might mean updating your marketing tactics, adopting fresh sales techniques, or rethinking your business model. Establishing clear, measurable goals and outlining a specific plan to achieve them is crucial. Ensure your strategies are flexible to allow for adjustments based on their success. This strategy keeps your business adaptable and focused, ensuring you can evolve and thrive in a constantly changing market.

If your strategy changes, getting your team ready and motivated is key. Provide training to align their skills with the new direction and cultivate a growth and open communication culture. This empowers employees to offer ideas and feedback, making them more effective in executing the updated strategy. An engaged team is essential for success, ensuring they can adapt and thrive in the evolving business landscape.

Important that employees are taken on the journey when new strategies are implemented — too often employees are not listened to and (top-down) strategies often fail to recognise the reality of the day-to-day .

If your business strategy is no longer effective in a changing landscape, is it a real strategy? It almost sounds like a specific action plan being confused with strategy !? Adaptability to the changing environment is a key component of any real strategy. Economy, Resources, Technology, Industrial Compliance, Govt Regulations, etc etc are all moving parts and ever changing - any real business strategy will have to continuously adapt and align to the current operating environment. Change is the only constant. Adapting to Change is the only secret.

Continuously monitor the implementation of the revised strategy and be prepared to adapt as needed in response to feedback, new information, and evolving market conditions. Stay agile and responsive to changes in the landscape to maintain competitiveness.

If your strategy is no longer effective in a changing landscape, I would strive to identify the nature and magnitude of change, and recalibrate strategically accordingly. In my view, business landscape might change due to new market conditions, obsolescence of previous assumptions, or new forms of competition making incumbent business model obsolete or irrelevant. Gaining clarity on the first two through a candid assessment seems a logical first step. To identify the potential business model change, I would recommend to: 🔵 screen the business model dimensions that might have been taken for granted at industry level or that need recalibration in the face of new breeds of competitors, and 🔵 redesign your business model accordingly.

Move very quickly. If your strategy is truly invalidated, you have been disrupted and need to completely redefine and pivot the business. Don't confuse "this quarter didn't go well" with "our strategy is no longer effective. Those two are not the same. But if your strategy is truly ineffective due to changing conditions - sprint.