Find Your Blind Spots, Make It to September

My instincts tell me that if your business (or your division, department, project, team or group) makes it through the end of September, you'll make it through this downturn*.

My experience tells me that if you have got this far, the main threat to you (or your division, department, project, team or group) making it to September will not arise from the challenges you can see, but from those you can not - your blind spots.

If you've got this far, you've proved you can face up to the challenges you see. To make it to the other side, you now need to identify the challenges that are out there, but for whatever reason, you're not seeing them.

I call them UN-Challenges, and here are the 40 most common. Are any of them your blind spots?:

For Business Owners and C-Level Execs:

1. What Have You Left Un-Done That Needs to Be Done?

The simplest 'un-'s to spot are those hard decisions that you know need to be implemented, but have shied away from. It might be as big as a plant or shift closing, it might be trimming your product line or service offering, it might be making those final cost savings, or letting go that favored employee or team member.

Whatever it is, now is the time to do what you have heretofore left undone. I'm not promulgating doom and gloom, and I'm not suggesting you make any cuts you don't need to make - but if there are decisions you have already made, but have been putting off implementing, now is the time to act. Here are the top 10 'Un-Done's' that could leave your businesses undone: [Click here to view the top 10 blind spots in this UN-Challenge]

1. What Have You Left Un-Done That Needs to Be Done?

Top 10 Areas For Consideration

01 Layoffs
02 Plant closures or mothballing
03 Shift closures or reductions
04 Reduction in product / service offering
05 Operating cost savings
06 Asset divestiture
07 Compensation plan adjustments
08 Supplier negotiations to reduce costs
09 Customer negotiations to increase revenue or margin, or reduce service costs
10 Sale or merger of all or some of the business

2. What Have You Left Un-Changed That Needs to Be Changed?

A high percentage of businesses that don't make it through severe downturns fail because the key decision-makers don't adequately rethink their structure, systems and processes in the light of new realities. If you want to make it out the other side of this downturn, well, as Marshall Goldsmith put it "What got you here won't get you there". Here are the top 10 areas you need to ask yourself hard questions about: [Click here to view the top 10 blind spots in this UN-Challenge]

2. What Have You Left Un-Changed That Needs to Be Changed?

Top 10 Areas For Consideration

01 Marketing model
02 Sales channels
03 Distribution method
04 Pricing structure
05 Outsourcing options (Sales function, purchasing activities and operating processes)
06 Compensation structure
07 Organization chart
08 Decision-making process
09 Financing structure
10 Performance assessment process (how are you measuring success right now?)

For Managers and Individual Contributors:

How many times have you heard someone say "If only they'd listened to me, we could have made this work"? Here's how to make sure you're not that person:

3. What Have You Left Un-Challenged That Needs to Be Challenged?

If you don't see changes happening in a system, process or model that you know would improve efficiency and/or effectiveness, make sure you challenge it. Essentially, if you don't see your senior managers working on the list above ("What Have You Left Un-Changed That Needs to Be Changed?"), you need to be the one who triggers their consideration: [Click here to view the top 10 blind spots in this UN-Challenge]

3. What Have You Left Un-Challenged That Needs to Be Challenged?

Top 10 Areas For Consideration

01 Marketing model
02 Sales channels
03 Distribution method
04 Pricing structure
05 Outsourcing options (Sales function, purchasing activities and operating processes)
06 Compensation structure
07 Organization chart
08 Decision-making process
09 Financing structure
10 Performance assessment process (how are you measuring success right now?)

4. What Have You Left Un-Said That Needs to Be Said?

You might work in an organization that encourages statements such as those below. Sadly, it's more likely that you don't. Either way, it's your call - do you want to speak up now, and take a chance of making real change, or hunker down and hope someone else figures it out? My guess is that whichever of these apply to you are better said now than in an exit interview:[Click here to view the top 10 blind spots in this UN-Challenge]

4. What Have You Left Un-Said That Needs to Be Said?

Top 10 Areas For Consideration

01 We need to be leaner
02 We need to be more flexible/faster to respond
03 We need to be more creative
04 We need to communicate better
05 We need to be ________ [Fill in the blank]
06 I need to be clearer on your expectations
07 I need to be more motivated than I am at present (and here's how...)
08 I need to be involved more in key decisions (for example:...)
09 I need to be doing more of ______ and less of _______.
10 I need to be ________ [Fill in the blank]

Comments? Questions?

If so, great! - I'd love to hear your comments. If you have a specific question, then include your email address and I'll get back to you within 2 business days with an email response. (Your details will not be added to any list or database.)