Business901

Need a collection of tools to help generate business model ideas! The Business Model Canvas is an analytical tool outlined in the book Business Model Generation. It is a visual template preformatted with the nine blocks of a business model, which allows you to develop and sketch out new or existing business models. This book has sold over 220,000 copies the past two years and has established itself as one of the leading sources of modeling for both startups and established businesses.

If you're ready to change the rules, you belong to "the business model generation!" Listen to Alex discuss this concept and some of the latest extensions to the BMGen platform such as the Customer Value Canvas plugin.

About: Dr. Alexander Osterwalder is a sought-after author, speaker, workshop facilitator and adviser on the topic of business model design and innovation. He has established himself as a global thought leader in this area, based on a systematic and practical methodology to achieve business model innovation. Executives and entrepreneurs all over the world apply Dr. Osterwalderʼs approach to strengthen their business model and achieve a competitive advantage through business model innovation. Organizations that use his approach include 3M, Ericsson, IBM, Telenor, Capgemini, Deloitte, Logica, Public Works and Government Services Canada, and many more.

• Competitive Advantage Through Business Model Innovation
• Aligning Business Model Innovation and Information Technology
• From Business Model to Business Plan • Private Banking Business Models - discover, understand, define
• Business Models in the Media Industry
• Business Models at the Bottom of the Pyramid
• Social Entrepreneurship Business models
• Design Thinking in Business

Alex’s Websites:

http://www.businessmodelalchemist.com

http://businessmodelhub.com/

http://www.businessmodelgeneration.com/

Related Information:

Do You Know the Right Job For Your Products?

Lean Canvas for Lean EDCA-PDCA-SDCA

Will Product Managers embrace Open Innovation?

Steve Blank on the Lean Startup at Ann Arbor

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Service Design changes the way you think about business.  No longer can companies focus their efforts on process improvements. Instead, they must engage the customer in use of their product/service rather than analyzing tasks for improvement. We no longer build and hope that there is a demand. We must create demand through our product/service and Service Design Thinking is the enabler of this process. It changes our mindset of thinking about design at the end of the supply chain to make it look good and add few appealing features (all within budget). Instead, it moves design and the user themselves to co-create or co-produce the desired experience to the beginning of the supply chain. 

My blog and podcast for next few months will focus on these features with Business Strategists, Design Thinkers, Appreciative Inquiry Coaches, Architects and of course Lean Thinkers. I could not think of a better way to start this series than having a podcast with co-author Marc Stickdorn of  This is Service Design Thinking.

About: Marc Stickdorn graduated in Strategic Management and Marketing and worked in various tourism projects throughout Europe. Since 2008 Marc is full-time staff at the MCI – Management Center Innsbruck in Austria, where he lectures service design and service innovation. His main areas of interest are service design and strategic marketing management particularly in a tourism context. This involves research such as the development of a mobile ethnography application for mobile phones, the Customer Journey Canvas and various publications and presentations. Marc is co-founder and consultant of “Destinable – service design for tourism” and guest lecturer at different business and design schools.

His Websites:

http://thisisservicedesignthinking.com/

http://www.servicedesignresearch.com

Related Information:

Define the Expectation, Delight the Customer

Lean Engagement Team Book Released

Appreciative Inquiry instead of Problem Solving

Prototypes provide a Pathway for Connecting with Customers

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Matthew Yubas is the author of Getting Your Prototype Made Quick and Easy and a Marketing Consultant for the Small Business Development and International Trade Center. He has developed products for 24 years as an Engineer, Product Manager, and Consultant for startups, small business, and Fortune 500 companies. As an young entrepreneur, he was a co-founder of a software company that developed one of the first personal information management software products.

Matt has launched new products such as software applications, wireless devices, and websites. In addition, he has helped clients in a diverse number of industries that include photography equipment, auto accessories, soy candles, children's clothing, sporting goods, digital art, and home décor. Matthew is the author of several articles, eBooks, kits, and the popular book Product Idea to Product Success: A Complete Step-by-Step Guide to Making Money from Your Idea .

Matt’s mission is to help inventors, entrepreneurs, and everyday people with ideas. He Says, “You might have an invention that can benefit society and make our lives easier. No one can do it alone. If you haven't taken a product to the market before, you need a coach to help you get over the hurdles and past the many pitfalls. Be persistent, be smart, and gather the right information before you make your next move”. Mark can be found at http://productcoach.com.

Related Information:

Prototyping into a Working Form

Prototypes provide a Pathway for Connecting with Customers

Your First Prototype is with Pen and Paper

Why Prototype? Customer Interactivity is the Most Meaningful Part of Design

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..is technology managing them? What about innovation? What about marketing? As organizations continue to get flatter and flatter, we continue to put more and more pressure on the few left in middle management. It’s not just the personnel either. That may be the easy part. Now, we are being faced with everyone becoming customer facing, the depth of customer penetration within in the ranks is increasing at a rapid wait. The one answer that so many of us fallback to is technology. And, that is also changing at a rapid rate. So what does a manager have to do?

Terri Griffith answers that in her new book,The Plugged-In Manager. The cornerstone of Dr. Griffith's work is an easy-to-understand framework for plugging in, explained through three core practices:

1. Stop-Look-Listen: What do your data say? What do you already know that will help you with this project?
2. Mixing: How do you balance your available resources?
3. Sharing: How can you achieve better results by integrating your choices with other team members?

I found the book practically written from a Lean/Kaizen perspective.  It is a well written book that you can read cover to cover without stopping. What you will do, is bookmark or crimp many of the pages in it and start tackling her suggestions. She includes a few exercises to get you started and improve one thing at a time. She discusses an evolution for managers, not a revolution. Great insight and the podcast with Terri was excellent. I hope you enjoy, I did.

About: Terri Griffith, Ph.D. helps people and organizations work with technology. As a Professor of Management at Santa Clara University (Silicon Valley), Terri helps mix together the technology of work (everything from telepresence to the size and type of tools a crew would use to build a fence), the way we organize to do this work (virtual teams, collaborative leadership, hiring and pay plans), and the knowledge, skills, and abilities of the people we work with.

Related Information:

Inspiring Innovation thru Standard Work

Who Really Determines the Success of Your Business

In your Organization, who is responsible for Demand?

Even Seinfeld used Standard Work

The SDCA Cycle Description for a Lean Engagement Team

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Joe Pine: “What you're doing is that you're shifting from thinking of them as constraints to thinking of them as resources. When you say that time is an element that costs our customers that's a constrained view, instead of recognizing that customers have time that they want to spend inside of experiences.” – excerpt from today’s podcast.

Joe has 2 new books out this summer, Infinite Possibility and The Experience Economy, Updated Edition. The Experience Economy identifies a shift in the business world and many of the items discussed are just being realized today. In fact, the idea of staging experiences to leave a memorable and lasting impression is now more relevant than ever. In Infinite Possibility, Pine and Korn provide a new tool The Multiverse™ that helps your organization to search the infinite possibility of value creation that lies on the digital frontier. The Multiverse consists of eight different realms: Reality, Virtuality, Augmented Reality, Alternate Reality, Warped Reality, Augmented Virtuality, Physical Virtuality, and Mirrored Virtuality. You may want to watch this short video on on the Multiverse before listening, Value on the Digital Frontier.

B. Joseph Pine II is an internationally acclaimed author, speaker, and management advisor to Fortune 500 companies and entrepreneurial start-ups alike. He is cofounder of Strategic Horizons LLP, a thinking studio dedicated to helping businesses conceive and design new ways of adding value to their economic offerings. In his speaking and teaching activities, Mr. Pine has addressed both the World Economic Forum and TED, and is a Visiting Scholar with the MIT Design Lab. He has also taught at Penn State, Duke Corporate Education, the University of Minnesota, UCLA's Anderson Graduate School of Management, and the Harvard Design School. He serves on the editorial boards of Strategy & Leadership and Strategic Direction and is a Senior Fellow with both the Design Futures Council and the European Centre for the Experience Economy, which he co-founded.

If the Multiverse is formed around the concepts of

1. Space, No Space
2. Time, No Time
3. Matter, No Matter

Would the Multiverse of PDCA consists of

1. Plan, No Plan
2. Do, No Do
3. Check, No Check
4. Act, No Act

I apologize Dr. Deming, it was just a thought.

Related Information:

Successful Lean teams are iTeams

The importance of PDCA in Marketing

Scaling the Customer Decision Making Process

Can the customer be front stage in your organization?

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Bahadir Inozu, Ph.D., the Chief Executive Officer and Dan Chauncey, the Director of Deployment Services for NOVACES joined me in this podcast to discuss an integrated approach for using three industrially based methods, Lean, Six Sigma, and Constraints Management to transform hospital operations. They have just published a book, Performance Improvement for Healthcare that explains how using the right tool for the right problem at the right time from a systems perspective, the authors show how to deliver faster results and greater return on investment.

• Scales to any size organization and aligns easily to varying needs
• Shortens traditional execution time from adoption to results
• Optimizes the utilization of resources required to accomplish the desired goals
• Breaks organizational constraints and maximizes organizational efficiency
• Sustains the gains and defines a path to self-sufficiency
• Achieves a global impact through strategy alignment and focused project selection
• Shows how to integrate Constraints Management with Lean and Six Sigma to create a “best of breed” approach
• Explains how hospitals can deploy or re-energize their performance improvement program specifically for what’s most important for their particular organization

About Novaces: A management consulting firm that provides performance management, continuous process improvement (CPI), and project management services to both public and private sector organizations. NOVACES helps its clients build capabilities in today's most effective methodologies to achieve breakthrough operational and financial results.

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USERS, NOT CUSTOMERS

Forrester predicts that by 2012 half of all consumer purchases will either be transacted online or driven by online research and word of mouth. To succeed in the digital marketplace, it’s no longer customers that matter most, but users—anyone who interacts with your company digitally. Keep users happy, and customers follow.

The Business901 Podcast guest, Aaron Shapiro CEO of digital agency HUGE in Users, Not Customers: Who Really Determines the Success of Your Business, shows why today’s most critical driver of success is usability excellence.

"Today’s most successful companies organize their business around users and building user satisfaction," writes Shapiro. To make users your growth engine for your customer base and for your entire organization, Shapiro introduces a comprehensive approach to refocusing every aspect of your operations on users including sales, marketing, HR, and organizational structure.

Based on his experience helping some of the world’s biggest brands evolve to meet the challenges of rapidly changing technology and evolving consumer habits, Shapiro outlines the seven things every company needs to change in order to survive in a digitally driven economy. Shapiro's analysis also includes a study of the Digital Leadership Set - companies in the Fortune 1000 that most effectively utilize digital across all aspects of their business. These companies, including Best Buy and Zappos, attract customers by providing appealing digital experiences. And they're rewarded with rising stock price and performance. You'll learn how digital leadership has brought huge profits to companies large and small including:

You don’t need to be a techie to master a user-first management philosophy. You just need to accept that the people who interact with your company online are what's most important.

Related Information:

It’s the Who, not the Why @simonsinek

It’s not about the things we make, it’s how we use the things we make

The Zappos Culture Defined!

Do you understand where demand comes from?

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One million new users per month. Twenty-three check-ins per second. Millions of people—in every city, in every country, on every continent, and even from the Space Station—are vying to become mayors of their favorite shopping locations. What is foursquare and why has it become the hottest customer magnet ever conceived? Internationally bestselling author Carmine Gallo not only has had unprecedented first-hand access to foursquare’s founders, he also has interviewed dozens of business owners and marketers who have revolutionized their businesses through The Power of foursquare: 7 Innovative Ways to Get Your Customers to Check In Wherever They Are.

About: CARMINE GALLO is the communications coach for the world's most admired global brands. A former anchor and correspondent for CNN and CBS, Gallo has addressed executives at Intel, Cisco, Google, Medtronic, Pfizer, and many others. Gallo writes My Communications Coach, a regular column for Forbes.com. He has written several internationally bestselling and award-winning books, including The Innovation Secrets of Steve Jobs and The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs.  Carmine Gallo may be found online at www.carminegallo.com.

Related Information:

Carmine Gallo's Books

Developing a winning Culture the Zappos way!

Spontaneous Marks help you think – Doodling

Five Secrets of Finding Clients

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My guest on the podcast Joseph Michelli takes you through the Zappos company culture now and maybe the future. Joseph’s latest book, The Zappos Experience: 5 Principles to Inspire, Engage, and WOW has generated my interest on the relationship of employee and customer experience as demonstrated in my blog post, Is Zappos the Next Toyota?. We discussed this and the Zappos approach that Michelli breaks into five key elements:

1. Serve a Perfect Fit—create bedrock company values
2. Make it Effortlessly Swift—deliver a customer experience with ease
3. Step into the Personal—connect with customers authentically
4. S T R E T C H—grow people and products
5. Play to Win—play hard, work harder

Against all odds this online business (known primarily for selling shoes in a playful and emotionally engaging ways) has revolutionized social media strategies, developed an environment which has earned it a consistent spot in the top ten of Fortune Magazine’s best places to work, created zealous fans, and attracted Amazon.com as a purchaser for more than 1.2 billion dollars. It’s time to integrate (not balance) work and fun. It’s time to benefit from the unique and effective customer employee and customer engagement techniques of Zappos!

Joseph A. Michelli, Ph.D., is an internationally sought-after speaker, author, and organizational consultant who transfers his knowledge of exceptional business practices in ways that develop joyful and productive workplaces with a focus on the total customer experience. His insights encourage leaders and frontline workers to grow and invest passionately in all aspects of their lives. Dr. Michelli has been recognized by Focus as “one of the top five Customer Service Influencers to Track in 2011.”

Related Information:

What is your iCustomer Level?

Does the Customer Experience mimic the Employee Experience?

When Efficiencies and Innovation no longer work, is Customer Centricity the answer?

Job-Centric Innovation is Rethinking Customer Needs

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David J. Anderson is credited with the first implementation of a Kanban process for software development, in 2005. David leads a management consulting firm focused on improving performance of technology companies. He has been in software development nearly 30 years and has managed teams on agile software development projects at Sprint, Motorola, Microsoft, and Corbis.

David was a founder of the Agile movement through his involvement in the creation of Feature Driven Development. He was also a founder of the Agile Project Leadership Network (APLN), a founding signatory of the Declaration of Interdependence, and a founding member of the Lean Software and Systems Consortium. He moderates several online communities for lean/agile development.

He is President of David J. Anderson & Associates, based in Sequim, Washington, a management consulting firm dedicated to improving leadership in the IT and software development sectors. Last year he authored the defining book on Kanban: Successful Evolutionary Change for Your Technology Business.

Kanban is becoming a popular way to visualize and limit work-in-progress in software development and information technology work. Teams around the world are adding kanban around their existing processes to catalyze cultural change and deliver better business agility. This book answers the questions: What is Kanban? Why would I want to use Kanban? How do I go about implementing Kanban? How do I recognize improvement opportunities and what should I do about them?

As a pioneer in the agile software movement David has managed teams at Sprint, Motorola and Corbis delivering superior productivity and quality. At Microsoft, in 2005, he developed the MSF for CMMI Process Improvement methodology – the first agile method to provide a comprehensive mapping to the Capability and Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) from the Software Engineering Institute (SEI).

His first book, Agile Management for Software Engineering: Applying the Theory of Constraints for Business Results, published in 2003 by Prentice Hall, and introduced many ideas from Lean and Theory of Constraints in to software engineering. David can be found at AgileManagement.net

Related Information: Kanban, could we call this podcast anything else? Lean Kanban lessons from a Software Developer Marketing Kanban Kanban too simple To be Effective?

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In the Business901 podcast, What Political Campaigns can teach business, part 1 of 2 we looked at a more strategic view. In today's podcast, we looked at the more tactical practices and how they related not only to a political campaign but to a typical marketing campaign.

Derek A. Pillie has served public and political candidates for over 15 years. He has served on the staff of Indiana’s Third Congressional District, most recently as District Director for just over a decade. In that role, he oversaw Indiana operations of the office; including constituent outreach and helping taxpayers solve problems with federal agencies. He also worked on crucial economic development projects and was heavily involved with advising the office on online media and marketing decisions.

After his federal service expired Derek started working at Cirrus ABS, an online marketing and technology development company. He currently manages their business development efforts. Cirrus ABS has added political campaigns to the portfolio of industries they serve since Derek joined the team, and he continues volunteer efforts on behalf of candidates he supports.

Related Information: Preview of Political Campaign Marketing Podcast Political Campaigning – Strategy Update What political campaigns can teach business Lean Six Sigma for Government

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Looking for immediate business? Is it taking too long to build a brand? Many of us look toward marketing to be our silver bullet, but seldom is it. We sometimes tire waiting for that marketing message to take hold and search for the latest and coolest gimmick to grab our prospects attention. Though I consider myself on the leading edge of these trends, I have come to appreciate that slow and steady wins many of the times. Driving home that consistent message is far more productive than being on the leading edge of every new marketing angle.

In my research I have also come to appreciate, What political campaigns can teach business. Few marketing processes do a better job of creating immediate business. With these thoughts in mind, I pursued Derek A. Pillie a leading political analyst for a Business901 Podcast. The interview lasted over an hour, as a result I split it in two parts. Part 1 is a strategic view of political campaigning and part 2( Will post tomorrow) is from a tactical viewpoint.

Derek has served public and political candidates for over 15 years. He has served on the staff of Indiana's Third Congressional District, most recently as District Director for just over a decade. In that role, he oversaw Indiana operations of the office; including constituent outreach and helping taxpayers solve problems with federal agencies. He also worked on crucial economic development projects and was heavily involved with advising the office on online media and marketing decisions.

After his federal service expired Derek started working at Cirrus ABS, an online marketing and technology development company. He currently manages their business development efforts. Cirrus ABS has added political campaigns to the portfolio of industries they serve since Derek joined the team, and he continues volunteer efforts on behalf of candidates he supports.

Related Information:

Preview of Political Campaign Marketing Podcast

Political Campaigning – Strategy Update

What political campaigns can teach business

Lean Six Sigma for Government

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