(Time to read this Blog is about 3 minutes)
Before we get to the main topic, here are a few things to get you thinking or smiling:
- My Biz Quote of the week:
“Many businesses approach to profitability is, ‘We’ll do our best and hope for the best.’ but our profit is something we plan for and commit to…not something we hope for. What is your profit commitment for next year and what are you doing to make it happen?”
…Donald Cooper. - Quick Biz Tip:
How to delegate some of your workload:
As business owners and managers, we all get bogged down and have little time to tackle the big ‘stuff’ that we’re paid to do. Here’s a simple solution.
Every time you start a project or activity, or make a decision, ask yourself this question…
“With a little coaching and encouragement who else could do the task I’m about to tackle?
Specifically… - Who is this person?
- What training, coaching and encouragement might they need?
- When will I start coaching and delegating to this person?”
Remember, you can’t grow your business without growing your people. - Breaking news from down under. An Australian court rules Vegemite isn’t a human right. A man serving a life sentence for murder in the state of Victoria tried to argue that a ban on prison access to the ‘it’s an acquired taste’ spread breached his right to “enjoy his culture as an Australian.” The court sided with the state, upholding that Vegemite can potentially interfere with drug sniffer dogs.
- And the prize for the worst judge of character in the entire world goes to… On October 21st, US Special Envoy, Steve Witkoff called Vladimir Putin ‘a humanitarian’.
- AI update: Microsoft has just offered ‘voluntary exit packages’ to 60,000 employees, globally. This is more than 25% of their work force. The tech giant is drastically reducing its workforce to allocate more resources to AI. Microsoft already offered retirement buyouts to 8,750 employees in April.
Now, to this week’s important topic…
Disruptive new business models are changing most industries. Will you be the ‘innovative disruptor’, or the victim of one?
Disruptive new business models are changing most industries. We need to create a business model that defines the future of our industry…not one that perpetuates the history of our industry.
Costco is a different business model and it’s a huge success. You pay and annual fee just to get in the door. Their low-overhead warehouse stores with no frills offer a huge range of quality products from rotisserie chickens, to tires, to caskets…all at low prices and backed by a no-hassle return policy. They sell hundreds of millions of dollars of clothing and have no change rooms.
Many years ago, IKEA wrote the book on disruptive business models. They design their own furniture and accessories, source them globally, use a flat-pack RTS (ready to assemble) product format on bulky items to reduce production, shipping and warehousing costs. All items are exclusive to them and carry their brand. This innovative business model has made them the world’s largest furniture retailer.
Amazon’s business model has been hugely disruptive to thousands of businesses while creating opportunities for thousands of other businesses who are partnering with them.
You can buy legal advice, find a life partner or manage your own investment portfolio for $10 a trade, or less…all online. Using the internet, niche market Travel Agent specialists can serve customers anywhere in the world, leaving the local, generalist travel agents in the dust.
Whenever a disruptive new business model comes to any industry, the ‘old guard’ cries “Unfair competition”. But, unless you’re competing with either the government or the mob, there’s actually no such thing as unfair competition. It’s just that someone else came up with a new and better business model…and you didn’t.
And, yet, most businesses invest almost no time in thinking about ‘what’s next’ in their industry or market and what changes in their business model will be required to remain relevant and profitable.
Here in Canada, our 3 huge national Department Store chains, one of which had been in business for 355 years, have all gone out of business. In the US, many Department Stores like Lord & Taylor, Gimbels, Marshal Fields and Henri Bendel have disappeared…and the rest are struggling. They became irrelevant.
How might you change your business model by changing what you sell, where and how you produce or procure it, and how and where you sell it? Or, are you so buried in the day-to-day running of your business that you never have time to think about such things?
So, does your business model need a complete reinvention rather than a ‘fine-tuning’? If your business model is fundamentally flawed, or becoming irrelevant, all the ‘fine-tuning’ in the world won’t save you. It’s time to get out the bulldozer…or just fade away! Sure, this is the really tough part of your job, if you’re a business owner or manager. But it is your job. It’s why you get the ‘big bucks’!
That’s it for this week…
Live brilliantly and be kind to each other!
Donald Cooper
