 |
|
||
Most of us hold on to things because we can't make the decision to drop it. We are comfortable with old things because we know their limitations and they are part of our history. This same emotional attachment applies to all aspects of our businesses to include products, services, markets, customers, and suppliers. Keeping those products, services or customers around because they have a few good years left is almost always a bad strategy. These dying products generally require more time and effort from your most experienced personnel, which holds back the new product development.
Successful companies are always reinventing themselves. No product, no customer, no location, no market is sacred to them. There strategy is to never tie-up their assets in a declining opportunity. They have made a system out of answering the two big questions What to abandon and How to abandon it. Here is an idea out of Peter Druker's book Management Challenges for the 21st Century.
On the first Monday of each month have a meeting of your Abandonment Team. This team should be represented from all sections of your company including upper management. Each of the seasons examines one aspect of the business such as regions the company does business in, products and services offered, customer groups, etc. You can expect maybe three or four major decisions to come out of these meetings along with recommendations on the How question. One company that did this discovered that there were twice as many innovative ideas for new products and services for every abandonment recommendation.
10/25/00
© Business Systems Design & Software, Inc.
This Web site presents information to educate members of the public on various business subjects. The information on this Web site is compiled from a variety of sources. It may not be complete or timely. It does not cover all aspects of any tax, financial or accounting matter. If you have any tax, financial, accounting or related questions, please consult a qualified certified public accountant licensed in your jurisdiction or in the appropriate jurisdiction promptly.