Jeroen Kraaijenbrink’s Post

In 3 days, on July 11 we close early-bird registration for the Certified Strategy & Implementation Consultant (CSIC) program. If you want to take one of the last spots, this is the time to register. In case you missed earlier calls, here’s the blurb: This is for you, if you meet the following requirements: - Intend to enhance your strategy & implementation skills - Have 10y+ experience and 5y+ coaching/facilitation  - Are available Wednesdays September 2024 - January 2025 - Can apply what is learned throughout the next 6 months - Aspire to become certified as evidence of your skills To summarize the uniqueness of the program: - Deeply human-centered whole-person approach - Integrates strategy and implementation - Non-traditional short-cycle approach - Practice and skill-oriented, not just theory - Full disclosure of how we work with our clients - Work with a global and community of like-minded peers To facilitate strong peer-learning, we explicitly target a diverse cohort consisting of: - Internal and external consultants - For-profit, non-profit, public, and academic organizations - Small startups to large corporates  - Any nationality or cultural background If this is not enough reason, here’s a last teaser… for the next three days, the 20% early-bird discount is still applicable—until July 11. If you want this, don’t hesitate to register now or book a call with our enrollment advisor. All information about the program, including a recorded webinar, contact information and registration is available on our website, Strategy.Inc. Take a couple of days, perhaps, to give it a thought, but don’t wait too long. Looking forward to seeing you in our program! #strategyconsultant #strategicexcellence #selfdevelopment

Many strategies today are business, growth, and profit-centered. This is a dead end. It is time for human-centered strategy. Why? Because the old approach to strategy and business has led to exhaustion: ❌ Lots of people with burnout and stress complaints, to the extent that they have to take a sick leave, quit their jobs, and need treatment ❌ Employee shortages across industries, high turnover rates, and people dissatisfied with their working environment ❌ New generations looking for a better work-life balance, more flexibility and freedom, and more sensegiving to their lives ❌ Geopolitical anxiety and polarization in and between countries across the globe—with war as its most extreme exponent ❌ A planet under severe pressure in terms of climate change, pollution and resource consumption People are exhausted and the planet is exhausted. And when there is exhaustion, there is a need for change. It’s a sign that things cannot go on as they have been going on. Human-centered strategy is strategy that puts human beings, with all their traits and characteristics, center-stage—and not the economy, financials, or business success. More specifically, it is strategy that embraces the following five aspects of being human: HUMAN SKILLS.  We are not just rational calculating machines or hands that execute. Human-centered strategy also taps our creativity, imagination, emotions, gut feeling, and judgment. HUMAN RELATIONSHIPS Work involves personal relationships. Human-centered strategy acknowledges these relationships and takes into account the profound impact it can have on them. HUMAN VALUES We share fundamental values such as integrity, empathy, and caring for each other and our environment. Human-centered strategy starts from these foundations. HUMAN NEEDS We all like to be seen and heard, contribute, grow, and be meaningful. Human-centered strategy takes these needs seriously as a basis for what an organization should do. HUMAN CONDITIONS To flourish, we need the right balance between challenge and support, pressure and safety, and direction and kindness. Human-centered strategy creates such conditions. At a higher level of abstraction, human-centered strategy changes the metaphor of organizations as machines to organizations as social networks. Instead of merely being efficient means of production, organizations are places where people join and collaborate. See the comment for how to join me in making human-centered strategy a reality! #humancentered #strategyplanning #humanity

Many people resist meetings because there are too many, with too many participants and too little focus. Remembering these six tips upfront will boost your meeting effectiveness. Meetings can be effective and efficient ways of communication because they enable lively interaction between two or more people. The unfortunate fact, though, is that many meetings are not at all effective or efficient. To boost your meetings' efficiency and effectiveness, answer these six questions BEFORE every meeting. 1. What to talk about?  If there is nothing to talk about, there is no need for a meeting. Focused attention is key. Make sure there is an agenda and send it out in advance so that everyone knows the purpose and content of the meeting. Stick to it and don’t end up in broad discussions. 2. Who should be there?  Everyone necessary for making a decision or taking action should be there. No more and no less. Additional people will lose interest, while meetings with fewer people will remain inconclusive. It’s not always required to habitually meet with the entire team. 3. When should it be?  The timing of meetings is important. If held too early, not all necessary information might be available and, if held too late, much of the usefulness of the meeting is lost since decisions have already been made elsewhere. So, time well and plan ahead. 4. How long does it last?  Decide upfront how long the meeting will last and stick to it. Manage time well, and preferably don’t plan meetings longer than one hour because you’ll lose focus and pace. 5. What to deliver?  Make sure every meeting ends with clear action points with a date and designate someone to be responsible. In the end, the purpose of the meeting is not meeting, but doing something. 6. When to meet next? Every meeting requires follow-up and usually that is done in a next meeting. Make sure you have that meeting planned (thereby keeping the previous five points in mind!) It’s primarily the meeting organizer’s job to make sure that these guidelines are followed. However, it’s everyone’s responsibility that this way of having meetings becomes the normal way of working. Which question is bothering you most? Do something about it! [Featured in The Strategic Leadership Playbook. Originally published in September, 2023] More of this? For 63 more tools like this, plus step-by-step instructions for using them, get The Strategic Leadership Playbook. See link in the comment below. #peoplemanagement #teamspirit #communicationskills

Many strategies today are business, growth, and profit-centered. While seemingly successful at the surface, in the long-term, this focus is a dead end. We’re witnessing all around us that this approach to strategy has reached its expiry date a while ago. Time for a more human-centered approach to strategy.  #humancentered #strategicexcellence #peoplemanagement

Some products meet all customer expectations but don’t really sell. Others excite and delight while being imperfect. How can this be? The KANO model helps you understand. The KANO model was developed by Noriaki Kano in the 1980s. It is a powerful model that helps us understand how customer satisfaction works. Several variations exist with a variety of terms used. But their essence is the same. Here is my take on it. The basis is two dimensions. The first, horizontal one is functionality. On a five-point scale, functionality ranges from none, to some, to basic, to good, to best. The second dimension is satisfaction, which ranges from frustrated, to dissatisfied, to neutral, to satisfied to delighted. Based on these dimensions, there are five types of features, or qualities, that any product or service can have and that explain how satisfied or dissatisfied a customer is. ATTRACTIVE qualities The unexpected features that, if present, cause a (very) positive reaction. They are the surprises that delight and excite the customer. Examples: the first touch screen of an iPhone, or your first experience with the Google search engine a while ago. PERFORMANCE qualities For these features, the rule ‘more is better’ applies. There is a proportional and sometimes even linear relation between functionality and satisfaction. Examples: range of an electric car or storage space on your hard disk. More is generally better (of course up to some level) MUST-BE qualities Also called ‘qualifiers’ these features simply meet expectations. If they are not there, this frustrates customers, while at best customers simply expect them. Examples: a hotel room that is clean, a hair dryer that works, or an insurance company that pays out when there is damage. INDIFFERENT qualities Qualities that don’t really matter because the customer doesn’t care about them. Whether they are absent or present doesn’t make a difference. Examples: design of the back of a wall-mounted TV, price of an exclusive supercar, working conditions in parts of the value chain out of sight   REVERSE qualities Some qualities make a product or service less attractive when added. For these qualities, less is more, and customer satisfaction goes down when adding more. Examples: extra technical features and buttons on a device, overly eager sales personnel in a shop, jargon used at a helpdesk. These are not objective categories. While some customers could be indifferent to some qualities, others would find them important, and so on. But, altogether they offer important insights in why some products excite customers and others do not. Time to have a look at your products and services! === Want more freedom, community and purpose as part of a community of like-minded people? Join The Strategy Circle for free at thestrategycircle.mn.co and jumpstart your learning journey. #customersatisfaction #businessanalysis #marketingresearch

Did you know there are three ways to design and describe a value proposition? And that there’s a best and a worst way of doing so? This is how to create an irresistible, sticky value proposition. A value proposition describes the value an organization offers to its customers through its products and services. It indicates what a product or service does for the customer so that it addresses the customer’s need or problem. Some companies are great at designing irresistible value propositions. Indeed, think of Apple, Coca Cola, Nike and the like. What are these companies doing differently than most companies? They have sticky value propositions. A sticky value proposition is one that is simple and resonates, preferably for a long time (otherwise it isn’t really sticky…).    According to Anderson, Narus and van Rossum, in their 2006 HBR article, “Customer Value Propositions in Business Markets”, there are three ways to design and describe a value proposition: ALL BENEFITS What it means: List all the features and benefits a customer might be interested in. Main orientation: Product orientation Scope: Broad Difficulty: Easy Stickiness: Low Examples: "This laptop has a 12-inch screen, 64 GB of memory, 2 TB hard drive, a Retina screen and 12 hours of battery life" "Our accountancy firm offers Audit & Assurance, Consulting, Financial Advisory, Legal, Risk Advisory and Tax Services" FAVORABLE POINTS OF DIFFERENCE What it means: Describe the points where your offering is better than your main competitors Main orientation: Competitor orientation Scope: Medium Difficulty: Medium Stickiness: Medium Examples: "This cart of groceries costs € 34,78 with us and € 41,32 with competitor X" "How we are different: quality, technology, hospitality" RESONATING FOCUS What it means: Emphasize the one or two points the customer will be most thrilled about Main orientation: Customer orientation Scope: Focused Difficulty: Hard Stickiness: High Examples: "Anything for a smile" "Incredibly light" Only the last one of these three is sticky, resonating focus. It’s not easy but if you manage to create a sticky value proposition, the rewards can be high. Is your value proposition sticky? === The value proposition is one of ten elements of a complete strategy. If you aspire to a career in strategy, then our Certified Strategy & Implementation Consultant (CSIC) program may be something for you. September registrations have opened with a 20% early-bird discount. See our website Strategy.Inc for more information and registration. #valuecreation #businessdevelopment #businessanalysis

There’s the 4Ps of marketing and the 7S model of organizational effectiveness. But do you already know the 6Ms of strategy? You should. The question of what is inside strategy is an essential one. Because, without it, strategy remains a hard-to-grasp and impossible-to-manage blackbox. We need to look inside to understand and manage strategy effectively. Eight years ago, I developed the Strategy Sketch for this; a model containing the 10 key ingredients of strategy. While structured and complete, 10 elements can sometimes be too much to start with. Therefore, I developed a new and simplified model, consisting of 6 instead of 10 elements: the 6M Model. The 6Ms capture the same content, but in a simplified manner. They are: M1: Magic. The products and services that we offer and what they do for our customers. M2: Market. The customers whose needs we serve and the alternatives we compete against. M3: Means. The assets and capabilities that we and our partners can bring to the table. M4: Money. The way and amount of revenues we generate versus the costs and risks we have. M5: Meaning. The things that we find most important and to which we most aspire. M6: Momentum. The factors outside our control that help or hinder us in what we do. Together, these six elements contain the essence of strategy. They cover what you offer (Magic), to whom (Market), how (Means), what you get in return (Money), why you do it (Meaning) and in what context (Momentum). Have them all clear and aligned, and you have your 6M Strategy! [Featured in The Strategic Leadership Playbook. Originally published in February, 2023] More of this? For 63 more tools like this, plus step-by-step instructions for using them, get The Strategic Leadership Playbook. See link in the comment below. #strategyexecution #selfdevelopment #businessdevelopment

If you are seeking for a non-traditional, human-centered program on strategy and implementation, then now is the time to join our Certified Strategy & Implementation Consultant (CSIC) training and mentoring program. After an invigorating start with our first two cohorts in Fall 2023 and Spring 2024, the time has come for our third, Fall 2024 cohort to register. If you do so before July 11, you get a 20% early-bird discount. To facilitate strong peer-learning, we explicitly target a diverse cohort consisting of: - Internal and external consultants - For-profit, non-profit, public, and academic organizations - Small startups to large corporates  - Any nationality or cultural background This is for you, if you meet the following requirements: - Intend to enhance your strategy & implementation skills - Have 10y+ experience and 5y+ coaching/facilitation  - Are available Wednesdays September 2024 - January 2025 - Can apply what is learned throughout the next 6 months - Aspire to become certified as evidence of your skills To summarize the uniqueness of the program: - Integrates strategy and implementation - Non-traditional short-cycle approach - Deeply human-centered whole-person approach - Practice and skill-oriented, not just theory - Full disclosure of how we work with our clients - Work with a global and diverse community of peers If this is not enough reason, here’s a last teaser… until July 11th, 2024, there is a 20% early-bird discount. If you want this, don’t hesitate to register now. All information about the program, including a recorded webinar, contact information, registration, and booking a call with our enrollment advisor is available on our website, Strategy.Inc. Take a couple of days, perhaps, to give it a thought, but don’t wait too long, since we have only 20 spots available. #strategyplanning #strategyexecution #consultant

What is a revenue model? There’s a lot of talk about it and it sounds interesting, but what is it? These 5 questions help you understand and improve. A revenue model is a description of how an organization generates revenue. An example is selling a product. You pay an amount of money and in return you obtain the product. Other examples are subscription, pay-per-use, no-cure-no-pay, or an auction. To bring structure to the concept of a revenue model, I find this framework by professor Ron Meyer insightful. It decomposes a revenue model into 5 questions: WHO pays? From whom does the money flow? While often users, others may be paying the bill, like a kid’s parents or an engineer’s boss. Examples are:  • Advertiser. Paying for the opportunity to promote something else • Sponsor. Paying to support something/someone unable to generate enough funds • Insurer. Paying out some risk covered by insurance WHAT is paid? Can the client pay with something different than money?  People and organizations can “pay” with different currencies than money, for example:  • Data. Paying by giving (personal) data to the supplier • Activities. Paying by performing (small) services for the supplier • Shares. Paying by giving a part of future revenue streams to the supplier FOR WHAT is paid? What does the client get for the payment?  Other than a product or service itself, customers may receive something else. Typical examples are:  • Per use. Paying only for the actual times or intensity of usage • Per result. Paying only for the outcome achieved • Per add-on. Paying only for the extras on top of the base product HOW is paid? By what means does the payment take place?  The standard is to pay the full price at once. But also here there are many alternatives, such as:  • Lease. Paying for exclusive use of a product for a certain period  • Credit. Paying for a product/service in installments over a certain period of time • Subscription. Paying for access to a shared product/service for a certain period HOW MUCH is paid? By what method is the price to be paid determined? Pricing level and mechanism can vary as well. Typical examples are:  • Auction. Paying the price set in a multi-party bidding process • Volume discount. Paying a price calculated by the volume of products purchased • Dynamic pricing. Paying a price calculated by time, place, demand and availability What’s your revenue model? === The revenue model is just one of ten elements of a complete strategy. If you aspire to a career in strategy, then our Certified Strategy & Implementation Consultant (CSIC) program may be something for you. September registrations have opened with a 20% early-bird discount. See our website Strategy.Inc for more information and registration.