BEE Partner, South Africa Economy Watch

11. Be prepared to adapt the supply chain

A company’s supply chain should reflect the strategic initiative it takes in its attempts to outmanoeuvre its opposition. Because the supply chain impacts heavily on costs, customer service, asset productivity and revenue, it must play a key role in company efforts at creating an ongoing, seamless transition of responsibilities. This means that customers should perceive a ‘business-as-usual’ focus. Essentially, the supply chain should be assisting the company in searching for competitive advantage, and sustaining it for as long as realistically possible. Read the rest of this entry »

The problem in most organisations seems to be that value innovation is kept at the corporate level and does not permeate the entire organisation. Employees need to see themselves as a critical resource in the job that they do, not just for the organisation, but also for themselves. Put simply, if an organisation creates an environment in which value innovation is encouraged and rewarded, the participating individual’s self-worth will improve, which in turn will have a positive spin-off on job satisfaction, job involvement, and, ultimately, customer satisfaction and loyalty. Read the rest of this entry »

8. Share wealth

According to holistic health guru Deepak Chopra, one of the fundamental universal principles is that of giving.” This principle works through a form of universal reciprocity, whereby the act of giving, in whatever form it may take, is returned to the giver. This reciprocity may not come from the recipient, but may find its way to the original giver via another source. In a business context, sharing wealth, particularly with one’s employees, in whatever form that may take, is a form of giving. The new breed of South African manager will find it particularly beneficial to enhance the talents, willpower and motivation of his or her employees by sharing the company’s wealth with them. South African companies have to have as many of their people as possible feel part of the company’s strategic initiative if it is going to be successful in tackling the opposition. Sharing the wealth of the company with employees rewards them for their endeavours and spurs them on to achieve even greater feats. Read the rest of this entry »

These are but two examples of a process that was repeated throughout the entire company with stunningly positive results. However, the key to success in an exercise of this nature lies in the extent to which management rethinks the view it has of its business, as well as the extent to which it is prepared to bring its people into the process. In the above examples, subsequent organisational climate surveys indicated a greater feeling of achievement and job-fulfilment in this organisation. Job satisfaction improved, as did customer loyalty. Ceteris paribus, a contribution was being made to the maximisation of shareholder value and a win—win relationship created between these two elements of modern-day capitalism. Read the rest of this entry »

Fortunately, management realised that if things continued in the _way they had for decades, the company would be vulnerable to attack by global predators. This was of particular concern, as foreign competitors were beginning to eye South Africa’s small but potentially good pickings. In addition to this, global customers such as Johnson & Johnson were beginning to demand justification for their local _subsidiary retaining its South African supplier, instead of plugging into the global supply network.

Essentially, it took threats from major customers to bring home to this company the gravity of the situation. Persuading management to think carefully on how they saw themselves, the company and its role in the marketplace, solved the problem. After careful thought, management reached the conclusion that its company was more than simply a manufacturer and distributor of packaging. Read the rest of this entry »

In addition to all of this, the development and application of strategic thinking is dependent not only on the manner in which the manager views his or her company, industry and competition, but also on how he or she actually views business per se, and the world in general. All organisations function within the greater universe. How a manager views our universe will have an impact on how a strategy is developed. For example, if business is seen purely as a means of making money, then one’s overall thinking will reflect that view. If, on the other hand, a broader context is applied, such as a business as a means of providing employment and/or making a contribution to the development of one’s community or country, then broader-based thinking will result. Read the rest of this entry »

A well-known marketing adage states that a bad product will not last very long in the marketplace. No amount of sales, advertising or promotional effort will do it any good if people simply do not want to buy it. As any first-year marketing student knows, and in the words of famed marketing guru Philip Kotler, the marketing concept states that ‘the key to achieving organisational goals consists in determining the needs and wants of target markets and delivering the desired satisfactions more effectively and efficiently than competitors’: In today’s bitterly contested global marketplace, countries have customers and competitors too. South Africa is no exception. Read the rest of this entry »