The no-nonsense,
pragmatic solution for resolving business distress
Back to basics with ‘old-school’ inspired original thinking
Just for fun, invest one minute with us on a whistle-stop journey through 7 decades of old-school* business’ situation analysis
* Just because it is 'old school' doesn't make it wrong, it just requires care and thought to propose different approaches.
Built upon great ideas with plans delivered by trusted hands, what could possibly go wrong?
The Great Idea
Decisions have been made and effort committed, but was the start focused with the end in mind,
or were those targets just simply wrong?
The Bold Plan
Not on target? Whilst really big mistakes are often made right at the beginning,
change and move on.
Hype or Hope2010's
Gartner's branded Hype Cycle depicted in 2017 that apparently great ideas are prone to disappoint and only those prepared for the long campaign (with deep pockets) are likely to achieve success.
One of the obvious criticisms of the Hype Cycle is that it is not a cycle!
Gartner Hype Cycle for Emerging Technologies
Chasm Hopping 1990's
Geoffrey Moore wrote in 1991 about the painful gulf that separated early apparent success from the attainment of
self-sustained business traction.
Whilst Moore's theories are best applicable for disruptive or discontinuous innovations, he also has interesting views on the evolving role of the entrepreneur.
Crossing the Chasm: Marketing and Selling High-Tech Products to Mainstream Customers
More than just a tea break1970's
Boston Consulting analysed the world differently in 1970, their (much critiqued) Boston Box still influences investment thinking to this day.
Worryingly, one study (Slater and Zwirlein, 1992) that looked at 129 businesses found that those who follow portfolio planning models like the Box actually created lower shareholder returns.
The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) growth share matrix
Who hasn't swotted up?1950's
Widely accepted as the origin of this ever-helpful analysis, Stanford University’s Albert Humphrey led a research project in the 1960s-70s that ultimately developed his
Team Action Model
(TAM) highlighting that performance improvement can only be successful when organisations know exactly what needs to be changed.
However the origin is probably the earlier work of Harvard Business School Policy Unit professors George Smith Jr and C Roland Christiensen during the early 1950s.
Use SWOT carefully; whilst it doesn't prioritise issues, provide any solutions or offer alternatives, it can expose many ideas.
True origin is unclear, realistically SWOT has evolved rather than having been invented..
Alternative advice and reasoning....
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal:
it is the courage to continue that counts.”
Winston Churchill
One of many attributions never actually said by Churchill along with...
“If you’re going through hell, keep going”
"Great minds think alike,
though fools seldom differ."
Anon
Suggests that the people that arrived at the same conclusion, aren’t so smart after all
“In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.”
Benjamin Franklin
Statesman and prodigious inventor;
such as the lightning rod, Franklin stove, bifocal glasses, flexible catheter .....
In summary:
"...because as we know, there are
known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are
known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also
unknown unknowns – the ones we don't know we don't know...." USA Secretary of Defence Donald Rumsfeld's wisdom, February 2002.
WELCOME TO ENABLE BUSINESS, AN ALTERNATIVE & CONSIDERED APPROACH TO BUSINESS READINESS
The chance to reflect
Time is a scarce commodity in the business, together we maximise yours.
Gut feel combined with sound decision
Knowledge is facts, information and skills, mixed together, appropriately applied to achieve progress.
The Call to Arms, what to do next...
So you want to discuss your situation but are hacked-off when you hear...
- "There are no problems, just opportunities"
- "This is not a cost, it's an investment"
- "Please take a few moments to provide some information"
- "At this moment in time.....and then let's hit the ground running"
You've felt the old jibe...
"Consultants steal your watch, then invoice you to tell you the time".
So, if this website has caught your imagination, touched a nerve or (even more amazingly) is sounding sensible, then contact us.
Simply email or call Enable Business and let's talk. It probably won't take just a few moments, but you will converse with a business pragmatist and maybe you will get what you need to hear.
Plans
Where and how to start with the end in mind
Starter for ten
Free
Just pick up the phone and let's talk.
[All discussions are confidential and covered by a Non-disclosure agreement]
Business Readiness
A few days
Together we look at your business and the next steps to achieving your goals.
Advising
Ongoing
If we really like each other that much.
Contact Us
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