Red Ocean Strategy

Every once in a while someone writes a book that attempts to change the way we think of business or some aspect of it. I imagine W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne fit this position. Their book "Blue Ocean Strategy" aims to change the way we think about competition.

Without taking anything away from their submissions (it's true for the generality of the population) I think the more accurate position about the competition that threatens your market share the most is the one taken by theory of the "Red Ocean Strategy".

Red Ocean Strategy: To gain greater market share, kill self! You are your own most powerful competition. If anyone can stop you from getting ahead and arriving at your destination, that person has to be you. Paul of Tarsus said "...part of me covertly rebels..." .

Our own internal contradictions are the most powerful competition we have got. It's extremely hard to get ahead without internal concensus; whether you are a person or an enterprise, a house divided against itself will fall.

Thinking inside the Book

When you really think about it, there's nothing like thinking outside the box. When you get out of the box, you are simply getting into another box; getting out of the box of tediuos conservatism puts you in the box of tedious irreverence (read Branson). Whatever it is you decide to do, the population sample is so huge that the possibility for absolute originality is nil. Soon enough even being unpredictable means people simply don't know what to expect from you. isn't that being predictable?

We can continue to chase an unreachable ideal or we can simply decide which box suits us fine and just think inside that one. I have found one box that gives me all the originality that I can use in 200 lifetimes; it's the Book (read bible).

Making a kill VS Squandering goodwill

when you sell a bottle of coke for thrice the standard retail price just because you can - that sounds a lot like impunity to me.

I went to the galleria last night to see a movie (it was a wonderful movie by the way titled 'the blind side') and had to buy a bottle of coke for N300. The only reason I or most other people just pay and get their drink is because there is simply no where else to buy it cheaper in the galleria. Essentially, it is a monopoly and it simply fixes whatever price that suits it for a basic retail commodity - not some designer item. This pricing model is also very popular at the airports but am not sure even they carry their extortion this far.

Shall we charge an amount for a product simply because we can (make a kill) or shall we take care of our costs and then charge a decent profit? Perhaps this is not one of those dilemas that one can find a trite verse for but where that is the case how about the golden rule? Would you like to buy that product at the price that you are offering it for sale? Just switch places with the customer or client and see how you feel about things.

when you have a pricing model that says 'get as much as you possibly can' you progressively squander goodwill. All it will take to topple you is just another shop opening down the block.

If you wanna be great

It's great to know all the business buzz words; strategy, TQM, B2C, ROI, Innovation, ROE, etc. (no that's not a business buzz word it's good old et cetera), but building a great enterprise boils down to one simple word - SERVICE.

Enterprise is not built on a series of transactions but on a collection of relationships and relationships can only be sustained by continuous satisfactory service.

Jesus puts it unequivocally: "if you want to be great... you have to be the servant of all". Typically, we are averse to the thought of being servants. No doubt it connotes several realities that most people would rather not have and I guess that's why we don't have that many great people or enterprises. In reality, to offer service is not equal to being servile, the first is an attitude the other is a personality.

The human soul is embedded with a programme that expects service; everyone wants to be treated with respect and given honour. If your enterprise continuously meets this intrinsic human need, you are on the path to greatness.

PPP 101

I was in Lagos sometime ago and attended a basic course in structuring Public Private Partnership projects.

Getting from Ayobo to Igando (don't worry, these are at the unglamorous backsides of eko) can be a 2 hour nerve racking bus ride through mud filled craters and bumper bumper crawling traffic or it can be a short few minutes bike ride across a wooden bridge over a swampy canal.

The sign board at the toll gate reads "Road Link Ventures" we paid a toll (not too sure how much now, perhaps 5o buck or so) and pronto, we were within strolling distance of Igando. I don't know if these guys had an MBA but they sure thought me the basics in structuring a PPP project. Here's what I learnt;

1. A viable opportunity has to provide consumers a preferable (better, faster or cheaper) alternative.
2. Every failing of government is an opportunity; if they can't provide power, health, security, you can.

Make room - here comes the gift.

I am mid-level management; I conduct dozens of interviews. I meet all kinds of people: those who think their affected diction and the country of origin of their educcational certificates equates competence, and the ones who think the scribbled note on the powerful complimentary card is enough qualification. I also meet the ones who clearly have a gift and it is to them that I am not only willing to engage but to bend backwards and if possible a few rules to secure their services.

Many things can open doors for you, but it is only your own demonstrated gifting and competence that will keep the door open.

When a gifted man begins to make his way everyone shouts 'make room - here comes the gift'.

Carbon Heartprint

Carbon Footprint is "the total set of greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions caused by an organization, event or product.

Although I am concerned about your enterprises' carbon footprint, my real worry is the moral equivalent of your carbon footprint. It's typically human to worry about the ozone layer depletion and the threat that it presents to our physical existence while we indifferently go on ignoring the damage to our non-physical existence by all the pollutants around.

Does you enterprise produce content for media? What self censorship procedures have you got in place. My observation is that society has degenerated to the extent that 'if it's not lewd, it's not viewed'.

Here's a fail proof test for self censorship... just click here