Unplanned wake up calls may be coming at you now. If missed, the implications could be far worse than a missed call at a hotel.
What do wake up calls look like today for you personally, your business or employer? Wake up calls signify something important. In the past at a hotel – a business meeting or for me – get to the client. Today’s unplanned wake up calls most likely will carry greater sense of urgency or significance.
Your wake-up call may be internal to your company as a leader, employee or external from investors, shareholders, banks, government, customers, markets or industry competitors. The call may be about
- Revenues are flat or in decline.
- Overall profits are down, what are the trends for specific products?
- Stock price is down and trend continues.
- Expense trends are most likely up, increasing.
- Employee turnover, great resignation.
- Supply chain issues increasing, delays and or canceled orders increasing.
- Regulations.
- Competitors’ recent developments that will impact your business.
- Market share trends.
- Productivity is not where it needs to be.
- No clear sense of direction and more difficult to admit, our strategy was not on target.
- Invested $1.5 billion in R&D and nothing to show for it. I researched two companies and this is the case for each of them.
- What do you think, do you have others to add?
Ignoring any wake-up call could be an issue in the short-term or long-term. Missed wake-up calls have a negative impact on us. Important thing to do:
- Answer the call.
- Develop a response.
- Own it.
- Develop an action plan.
- Be decisive.
- Execute the plan.
- Review.
- Adjust accordingly.
Part of Innovation Advantage LLC overall analysis is to conduct a pivot analysis. The Pivot Analysis takes into account your existing business, its current state and asks the question, pivot to what is out there as an opportunity, how to leverage and gain momentum, improve results.
As leaders in business or employees, regardless of size, to miss your wake-up call could develop into something more serious. Your best path forward, answer the wake up call on the first ring and act.
All the best.