How do you compete? (Part 1)
The first three newsletters I shared walked through methods for articulating the organization’s core purpose, who the business is for, and the brand promise. The basis we are continuing to build on:
Healthy organizations are ALIGNED organizations.
Our next step in building alignment involves taking a good, honest look at competitive advantages. The best of how organizations do things. And we will try to keep it simple in the process. Welcome to part one!
Right out of Texas A&M University, I had the opportunity to meet a serial entrepreneur turned venture capitalist for the first time. In our conversation he shared the Jack Welch quote “if you don't have a competitive advantage, don't bother.”
What a strong statement. Somehow it was my first time hearing it (or it did not sink in up to that point!). I wondered how people really know what their competitive advantages are. And how likely it is that companies have ones that they are not aware of. Or worse, thinking they have one when in fact they don’t.
There are an overwhelming number of different ways out there to categorize and analyze competitive advantages. If you need evidence, all you have to do is a quick Google search for “ways to identify competitive advantage” or “types of competitive advantage” and glance down the page at the results. It’s a mixed bag.
Many suggestions are either highly ambiguous or are offered through a specific lens (i.e. marketing). The reality is that competitive advantages can reside in any aspect of the organization - from Leadership, to Operations, to Supporting Activities.
Today’s exercise is a short primer for this multi-week series on competitive advantages.
List out your competitive advantages. The ones you think you have, the ones you have been told you have, etc.
Make some notes about why you think they are competitive advantages.
If you do not know them, no problem. The idea is to know your starting point. You will have a solid working list to explore by the end of this series!
Here are some things to keep in mind as we move forward:
If you find it difficult to objectively walk through these exercises (we all carry biases*), seek guidance from a credible advisor. Receiving alternative perspectives from individuals that you respect is always worthwhile.
Approach the process with an open mind. Sometimes “...it’s not what you don’t know that worries me, it’s what you do know that just ain’t so...” A special thanks to my long-time mentor Dr. Danny Klinefelter for this gem!
Competitive advantages tend to evolve as business variables evolve.
If you already have a reliable system in place for these thought exercises in your organization - that’s excellent! And uncommon.
At a minimum, my intention is to offer you some practical guidance for identifying competitive advantages that you may have not previously considered. Thanks for going on this journey with me.
Wishing you a great weekend,
Courtney
*Daniel Kahneman: Thinking Fast vs. Thinking Slow | Inc. Magazine
