The 11 Best Practices for Attacking Low Cost - High Margine Opportunities

Drill down from 8 JUL 09 blogtalkradio show

1. Digital Infrastructure: use technology as the core organizing theme for the business; reduction in waste and repetition of tasks, reduce the knowledge pools or incompetence and increase the knowledge pools of excellence
2. Networked Organizational Structure: reduction of hierarchy and layers of management (or prevent it from occurring organically), use technology to increase dialog and collaboration - think twitter or facebook
3. Self-Managed Cost Centers: make every department, function, work group carry all of its true costs; if you aggregate costs - you don't know the true cost or profit of anything and therefore can't manage it
4. Run Inside like Outside: outlaw monopolies - everything is interconnected, internal support departments must run with the efficiency of the "for-profit' parts of the company, if they can't or won't - outsource the function
5. Markets Inside the Firm: big corporations are welfare states - especially in budgeting, there are no guaranteed budgets or use of last years numbers, everyone presents a business case for the requested budget and competes for dollars - owner/executives function as venture capitalists and invest accordingly
6. Turn Cost Centers into Profit Centers: all internal departments and functions have portfolios of internal and external customers, support/internal departments sell excess capacity externally to generate revenue
7. Only the Best - Marquee Customers, Marquess Suppliers: enhance brand through associating with recognized leaders, collaborate and co-develop new products, services, and internal processes with the best, use their expertise and infrastructure to reduce costs and improve your offer
8. Executive Management of Continuous Improvement & Reinvention: the top priority of the owner/executive team is constantly improve the offer while reducing costs at the same time, "competing in advance or go to where the puck will be" - anticipating future threats and opportunities
9. Organic Growth and Acquisition: mix between building it your self and buying it, when creating something new - go organic, when looking for capacity or sales - acquire if there is a good deal available
10. Multiple Product Lines - Service Offers: each component of your offer is both a revenue stream and a continuous improvement opportunity to learn and enhance your competitive advantage

If you want the full article and presentation, go to my personal blog and our radio show page and download the MP3.

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