It’s no secret that in order to survive in business, companies need to adapt to change and FAST. In recent times, change was often perceived as linear. This allowed management to develop models which enabled proper, thorough planning at a pace that was consistent with market relevance and competition. Today, it’s wild and I love it!
In 2003, a famous futurist, Ray Kurzweil, wrote;
The 21st Century will be equivalent to 20,000 years of progress at today’s rate, and organisations have to be able to redefine themselves at a faster and faster pace
15 years later, there’s no denying that technology has rapidly changed our every day and the impact of digital technologies and AI are far more progressed than was ever thought possible.
The biggest challenge comes when management teams need to then make that critical call; do we flip the switch and start accelerating at an extreme pace and join the race, or continue at a slower speed that might have short term benefits for the business and its investors?
So what’s the answer? Well if a company is serious about change, there are three phases to consider:
1. Believe
Get to the core of your brand and understand your “why”. Simon Sinek puts it nicely when he says, “People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it. And what you do simply proves what you believe”.
There needs to be a deeper understanding of the “why” before a strategic direction can be put in place.
2. Inspire
With change comes resistance, and the fastest way to avoid this is to get the people inspired, get them excited and get them understanding the benefits for both the company and its employees. This takes strong leadership and a sense of passion and belief.
3. Transform
Without organisational transformation, no brand strategy will succeed. As a business, everyone will need to buy in to ensure the strategy works. A set of organisational focus areas could include; identifying gaps in skills or knowledge, looking into processes that can be streamlined, and dedicating resource appropriately to help drive the change.
By using the power of a brand, a company can really pick its direction and drive it home. If done strategically, companies can transform and quickly adapt to this “age of acceleration” that each of us is no doubt feeling daily.
Source: Branding Business
