You need to be able to get to your bullets!

Isandlwana, January 1879....the problem = lots of Zulus, the proposed solution = lots of guns and ammunition. Implementation of solution = Poor!

Now some experts in military history reckon that the story of the British armies difficulty in opening their ammunition boxes at Isandlwana, because rather than being nailed shut they were screwed shut, is a myth....but whether it is true or not it does show you that you need think carefully about the user experience, try and put yourself in their shoes and deliver the most "fit for purpose" solution....

Imagine yourself in your finest tunic with an unloaded gun in hand as several thousand highly experienced war hardened Zulu warriors hurtle in your general direction wanting to make you intimately acquainted with their spears....would the design of the ammunition box show you that someone has considered how to benefit your working day?

Bloodthirsty Red Ocean or Tranquil Blue Ocean?

Bloodthirsty Red Ocean or Tranquil Blue Ocean? 

Most businesses compete in a crowded and bloodthirsty Red Ocean in a rapid race to the bottom! It becomes a lowest price game as similar businesses offering similar products compete for the same group of Customers. 

Trying to find a tranquil and lonely #blueocean where your business is all alone and can redefine the rules is difficult but very often the way to big success. 

How did Nintendo manage to out perform its competitors (with the Wii) without actually competing? How did Apple manage to enter an already aggressive phone market and music industry and change it forever? How did Cirque Du Soleil manage to create a new kind of Circus without a big top? How have Uber managed to disrupt the transport industry? 

#blueoceanthinking is how they did it. It is well worth spending the time looking into how this kind of thinking can help your #business 

Blue Ocean Strategy - 

https://amzn.to/2Jk2KEE

Blue Ocean Shift - 

https://amzn.to/2Oa1VPK

What Business Lessons Can We Learn From Baseball?

What business lessons can we learn from baseball?

I read “Moneyball” recently which charts the story of the Oakland Athletics baseball team. The A’s, one of the poorest teams in baseball, achieved something remarkable in the 2002 season...a record breaking 20 straight wins and a shot at the World Series. 

They used one key metric to help them identify the right type of players to sign. That metric was: 

How often the player got on base! 

The logic was that the more a player gets on base the more chance of scoring and an increased probability of winning games.

This simple strategy allowed the A’s to achieve things beyond everyone’s expectations. 

What can businesses learn from this? Well are there a few metrics, or maybe just one, that you can focus on to help drive your businesses success? 

I recently identified a metric in the business I work for.....the “Average Pieces per Order”. 

Focussing on just this metric and looking for ways to drive that average up will increase revenue and drive efficiency in the warehouse. 

What useful metrics are there that you can focus on that could help you to achieve amazing results? 

Get the Book - https://amzn.to/2OtirPC

Why Does Your Business Exist?

Why does your business exist? 

The Golden Circle (as mentioned in Simon Sinek’s book “Start with Why”) is a simple but effective way to keep the right kind of business focus and zoom in on why your business exists. 

The core of your business is not what you do or how you do it. Everything that your business does stems from why you do it. 

Do you sell phones or do you aim to bring people together? Do you make clothes or do you aim to make people love how they look? 

It is easy for really successful businesses to lose focus of why they do what they do. The day to day can easily be spent transacting product and watching the numbers rather than looking inward and strategising. 

Taking time every now and again to turn away from the day to day and measure your business against your “Why” is time well spent. 

Is the User First in Your Thinking?

Is the User first in your thinking?

I once joined a failing project for a large card payment provider who were trying to create an application system to allow SMEs to apply for a merchant account and card machine. 

The User was forced to go through a lengthy process of providing data about themselves and their business before they were told whether they had been accepted or not. Dozens of pages had to be completed only for the majority to then find out that they had been declined or referred. That is of course if the process didn’t crash or time out first!

I challenged the logic of this and queried why a quick check routine wasn’t included. A few key questions could have been asked upfront to determine the potential outcome before the user was asked to complete the application process. 

The powers that be had decided against this approach. They were focussed on what worked for them and not what was best for the user. 

Needless to say the project bombed. The whole solution was pulled after close to a million pounds had been spent. 

The User is the most important element of your system. If it isn’t designed for them then it is not going to be successful full stop. 

Just saw an advert for a new credit card. Quick check process! 

Message to BA Recruitment Companies!

Oi!

Stop telling people who are not BA's to change their job titles for their previous roles on their CV to "Business Analyst"

"So you have been working in catering for the last 20 years?"

"Yes"

"That involves understanding the quantity, filling and bread based requirements of a stakeholder right?"

"I suppose"

"Then I suggest that you change your job title at Barbara's Baps to Business Analyst and we put your CV forward for this exciting position!"

"What is a Stakeholder?"

Golf and Business Analysis?

Well I have been at the British Masters Golf today rather than doing my BA day job and been desperately trying to use golf as a metaphor or analogy. 

To be honest I have just been enjoying chilling but still here are some thoughts...

Like a project you need a starting point (the tee off)...,oh you know what.....here is a picture of Jimenez....Make your own analogy :-)