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StrategyDriven Podcast Special Edition 16b – An Interview with Scott Davis, author of The Shift, part 2 of 2

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StrategyDriven Podcasts focus on the tools and techniques executives and managers can use to improve their organization’s alignment and accountability to ultimately achieve superior results. These podcasts elaborate on the best practice and warning flag articles on the StrategyDriven website.

Special Edition 16b – An Interview with Scott Davis, author of The Shift, part 2 of 2 examines the bottom line benefits of the Chief Marketing Officer serving as an organization’s corporate growth leader. During part one of our discussion, Scott Davis, author of The Shift: The Transformation of Today’s Marketers into Tomorrow’s Growth Leaders shares his insights with us regarding:

  • five shifts CMOs need to make in order to transform themselves from
    tactical marketer to corporate growth leader
  • the most important customer data sets in making the shift
  • how CMOs can demonstrate bottom line results
  • benefits for the CMO and organization for making the shift

Additional Information

In addition to the incredible insights Scott shares in The Shift and this special edition podcast are the additional resources accessible from his book’s website and his organization’s website, www.Prophet.com. Scott’s book, The Shift, can be purchased by clicking here.

Complimenting The Shift, are Scott’s books on the brand asset management including:


Final Request…

The strength of our community grows with the additional insights brought by our expanding member base. Please consider rating us on iTunes by clicking here. Rating the StrategyDriven Podcast and providing your comments online improves our ranking and helps us attract new listeners which, in turn, helps us grow our community.

Thank you again for listening to the StrategyDriven Podcast!

About the Author

Scott Davis, author of The Shift, is a senior partner at Prophet, a global marketing consultancy. Scott was an adjunct professor at the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University and has guest lectured at many top MBA programs including Harvard, New York University, Columbia, and the University of Chicago. He has worked with top executives at GE, Johnson & Johnson, IBM, Best Buy, Sara Lee, and Boeing. Scott is frequently quoted by leading business publications including The Wall Street Journal, Reuters, USA Today, and Business Week. To read Scott’s full biography, click here.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 31:24 — 43.2MB)

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Problem-Solving Success Tip: Define the Problem First

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It seems obvious, but how many times have we gone to a problem-solving meeting and the discussion started with either whose fault was it or an assertion about the proper solution?

Instead, start by explaining what the problem is – what went wrong, what the symptoms are, what the impact on your business and your customer’s business is. These are the things that someone knows at this point in the problem solving process. If the someone is not you, and you’re leading the problem-solving effort, you need to do some research to find out. No guesses or assumptions allowed: the problem description must give the facts clearly and accurately.

Write it down. Writing the problem down forces you to describe it carefully, completely and unambiguously. The statement is a valuable tool to help focus your team on the real problem and avoid wasting time on extraneous issues. Everyone who reads it should understand what the problem is and why it’s important. No jumping ahead, either: you don’t know yet what caused the problem much less what you will do to fix it.

The written statement can also be used as a “sales tool” to explain what problem you’re solving and why it’s important. Use it to make sure you have the support you’ll need from management, your customer and any other key players. This is especially important if the significance of the problem is not universally understood or accepted.

The problem is defined when everybody who reads your problem statement, including you, understands what will be different when the problem is solved and your team agrees that it describes the correct problem.

Copyright 2007. Jeanne Sawyer. All Rights Reserved.

Article Source:
http://www.bestmanagementarticles.com
http://crisis-management.bestmanagementarticles.com

About the Author:

Jeanne Sawyer helps her clients solve expensive, chronic problems, such as those that cause operational disruptions and cause customers to take their business elsewhere. These tips are excerpted from her book, When Stuff Happens: A Practical Guide to Solving Problems Permanently. Now also an ebook, find out about it and get more free information on problem solving at her web site: http://www.sawyerpartnership.com/.

Celebrating Our Second Year… Continuing a Trend of Innovation

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July 1, 2009 marked the second anniversary of the StrategyDriven website and we have experienced considerable growth and innovation! Since July 1, 2008, we have tripled our number of registered members and have grown to a peak of:

  • 1,035 registered members
  • 9,107 unique monthly visitors
  • 22,090 monthly site visits
  • 69,519 monthly page views

Our website has also grown, now offering insights on strategic business planning and tactical execution through:

  • 229 principle, best practice, and warning flag postings – covering 24 management and leadership categories
  • 27 episodes of the StrategyDriven Podcast – ranked in the top three of all business podcasts during the last 12 months and twice voted as the number one business podcast!
  • 20 Interviews
  • 5 whitepapers
  • 8 models and
  • the monthly edition of the StrategyDriven Newsletter – click here to sign up

As a community, we are fortunate to have had several of our members share their insights with us through posted comments including:

  • Mark Horstman, Manager Tools (www.Manager-Tools.com)
  • Todd Watkins, The Immigration Truth (www.TheImmigrationTruth.com)
  • John Bogard, Fountainhead (www.Fountainhead.org)
  • Kenneth Sawka, Outward Insights (www.OutwardInsights.com)
  • John Ringland, New Civilization Network (www.NewCiv.org)

Finally, we have been complimented by many reviewers and websites linking to us including:

Thank You!

The StrategyDriven family would like to thank you, our readers and listeners, for helping to make our second year even more successful than the first! We truly appreciate your time and your insights and we look forward to an exciting year to come.

All the Best,

Karen Juliano
Editor-in-Chief and
Director, Communications and Marketing
StrategyDriven

StrategyDriven Podcast Special Edition 16a – An Interview with Scott Davis, author of The Shift, part 1 of 2

/in , /by

StrategyDriven Podcasts focus on the tools and techniques executives and managers can use to improve their organization’s alignment and accountability to ultimately achieve superior results. These podcasts elaborate on the best practice and warning flag articles on the StrategyDriven website.

Special Edition 16a – An Interview with Scott Davis, author of The Shift, part 1 of 2 examines the bottom line benefits of the Chief Marketing Officer serving as an organization’s corporate growth leader. During part one of our discussion, Scott Davis, author of The Shift: The Transformation of Today’s Marketers into Tomorrow’s Growth Leaders shares his insights with us regarding:

  • treatment of the organization’s brand as an asset
  • role and benefits of the corporate growth leader
  • attributes needed to assume the role of growth leader
  • why the Chief Marketing Officer is uniquely position to serve as an organization’s growth leader

Additional Information

In addition to the incredible insights Scott shares in The Shift and this special edition podcast are the additional resources accessible from his book’s website and his organization’s website, www.Prophet.com. Scott’s book, The Shift, can be purchased by clicking here.

Complimenting The Shift, are Scott’s books on the brand asset management including:


Final Request…

The strength of our community grows with the additional insights brought by our expanding member base. Please consider rating us on iTunes by clicking here. Rating the StrategyDriven Podcast and providing your comments online improves our ranking and helps us attract new listeners which, in turn, helps us grow our community.

Thank you again for listening to the StrategyDriven Podcast!

About the Author

Scott Davis, author of The Shift, is a senior partner at Prophet, a global marketing consultancy. Scott was an adjunct professor at the Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University and has guest lectured at many top MBA programs including Harvard, New York University, Columbia, and the University of Chicago. He has worked with top executives at GE, Johnson & Johnson, IBM, Best Buy, Sara Lee, and Boeing. Scott is frequently quoted by leading business publications including The Wall Street Journal, Reuters, USA Today, and Business Week. To read Scott’s full biography, click here.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 20:53 — 28.7MB)

Subscribe: RSS

Five Problem-Solving Success Tips

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The ability to solve complicated problems quickly is more important than ever in today’s competitive world.

From the time we’re little kids, we’re taught to solve problems by trial and error. That’s fine if the problem is as simple as a burned out light bulb. When the problem is a muddle of business, technical and political problems, we need something that helps us untangle the mess. Unless you’re Harry Potter, treating a mess like a burned out light bulb is as effective as wishing for magic.

Fortunately, there are alternatives to magic. Many key concepts in problem solving seem obvious but are often overlooked, causing delays and frustration in getting important problems solved. Here are some tips and reminders that will help you solve messy problems quickly and easily.

** Define the problem first.
Explain what the problem is – what went wrong, what are the symptoms, what is the impact on your business. Write it down. Everyone who reads it should understand what the problem is and why it’s important. Caution: describe the problem, not what you will do to fix it.

** Use your time for problems that are truly important.
Just because a problem is there doesn’t mean you have to solve it. If you ask, “what will happen if I don’t solve this problem?” and the answer is, “not much,” then turn your attention to something more important.

** Test your assumptions about everything.
Check the facts first. Be sure that you and your team understand the problem the same way, and that you have data to confirm that the problem is important. Test the assumptions about proposed solutions to improve the chances your solution will actually solve the problem.

** Measure.
The key question to answer is, “How will you know when the problem is solved?” If you don’t measure, you won’t know for sure. Use measurements to learn and portray the truth-the real truth, not what you wish were true.

** Measure the right things.
A common measurement trap is to measure something because it’s “interesting.” If knowing a measurement won’t change anything (e.g., help you make a decision, verify an assumption or prove the problem is solved), then don’t waste your time measuring it.

Copyright 2007. Jeanne Sawyer. All Rights Reserved.

Article Source:
http://www.bestmanagementarticles.com
http://crisis-management.bestmanagementarticles.com

About the Author:

Jeanne Sawyer helps her clients solve expensive, chronic problems, such as those that cause operational disruptions and cause customers to take their business elsewhere. These tips are excerpted from her book, When Stuff Happens: A Practical Guide to Solving Problems Permanently. Now also an ebook, find out about it and get more free information on problem solving at her web site: http://www.sawyerpartnership.com/.