MarketBusting with Rita Gunther McGrath
Rita Gunther McGrath
2014 VACEOs Annual Retreat Opening Keynote
It’s not every day you get to hear one of the world’s top experts on strategy and innovation speak, but that’s exactly how we began our 2014 Annual Retreat. If you missed the event this year, you missed an incredible opportunity.
Rita Gunther McGrath, nationally known speaker and Columbia Business School professor, inspired us with examples of “MarketBusters” – strategic moves companies made that allowed them to capitalize on significant strategic growth opportunities.
Here are a few takeaways I gathered from her session. What lessons did you learn?
Eight Takeaways: Rita Gunther McGrath on “MarketBusting: Finding Opportunities in Surprising Places”
1. GET the big picture: Innovation and strategy are more integrated than ever. The new strategy playbook involves continuous reconfiguration of your business. Seek out disruption. Small changes can add up to big results!
2. ASK, “How do I make sure I don’t stay in my existing model? How do I accumulate new ideas and get them into my business processes?”
3. AVOID defining yourself out of an opportunity (Q coin collection story). “We assumed that our customers would want this service for free. We categorized it as a cost to avoid.”
4. LOOK for new opportunities inside and outside of your marketplace. Start with reevaluating your customer segments. (Remember the elevator story?) Ask, “What do my customers really need? How are they solving problems? What other business spaces do I need to play in?”
5. KNOW your customers’ experience, know what EXCITES or enrages them or keeps them up at night, and then FIND the next beverage cup holder or aircraft brake shoe!
6. CONSIDER how you’ll retain and reward your employees. Employees of the future are moving away from wanting a stable career path to pursuing a “series of gigs.”
7. REMEMBER, your people are watching. As CEO, your actions signal to your people what is important and how they should channel their energy.
8. MAINTAIN your discovery-driven mindset. Think about how a change in one or more industries could dramatically impact your business, like it did for the shipping company Rita told us about. Above all, make time for thinking space!
About Rita Gunther McGrath
Rita Gunther McGrath is regarded as one of the world’s top experts on strategy and innovation, with a particular emphasis on developing sound strategies in uncertain and volatile environments. Her teachings are followed by leading organizations around the world, and her thinking has been described as “sometimes provocative, but unfailingly stimulating.” She is the author of three books, including MarketBusters: 40 Strategic Moves That Drive Exceptional Business Growth.
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