We have all been there- the
classic project scenario- fantastic visions, excitement, creativity, great
expectations before the seemingly inevitable disillusion and pain of cost
realities, politics and reactionary forces frustrating any attempt at changing the
world. With experience you try to manage expectations and introduce realistic
thinking to anticipate possible road blocks but how often have you heard ‘we
want blue sky thinking’ but you know they really need you to keep your feet
firmly on the ground.
Trading issues - image and
appearance must always be balanced with operational cost and performance
criteria but selling dreams and cost benefit analysis rarely happens in the
same room with the right people.
People talk about
innovation and creativity but this means change and this is not a comfortable
concept for vested interests who feel threatened by new challenges and
practices. It is unfortunate but perhaps inevitable that companies still often treat
costs for individual exercises in isolation rather than reviewing in a company
context the real costs to the company rather than an individual department
budget.
A typical brand development
initiative should involve people, selling channels, processes, technology and
communications but how often is it measured and truly assessed as a cross
departmental company initiative?
Marketing and real estate can
be costed conventionally in anything that can be measured in terms of quality, time and finance
criteria, but placing a value on happy staff/ happy customers is not such a direct and
obvious measure but potentially the biggest cost benefit whether measured in
minimal staff churn or growing customer loyalty and spend.
A new concept may need less
staff but an investment in training - who calculates the costs/ savings short
and long term? Protectionism is a natural human trait and we all know figures
can be manipulated with the appropriate ‘spin’ to say virtually anything.
People inside the
organisation need to constantly review strategies for change in a company-wide context
to identify and achieve real value. The value of objective external advice and
resource is part of that matrix- outsource or do it yourself - another
balancing act !
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