Do You Know Your Business Rules?

Every business has a set of business rules that influence (maybe dictate?) how the business should operate. Sometimes they are written, sometimes just implied as a culture. Here are ones we at Digital Spark Marketing live by … at least, most of the time:

Survive in the short term, plan for the long term

Adapt as the rules sometimes change

Learn by trying new things; nothing replaces experience

To be really good, live it and breathe it … dive in

Go for positive expected value, not least risky

Those with most resilience and stamina usually win

Never stop learning things from life all around you

Have principles and stick with them

Hope is not a plan

Be nice, make friends, and have fun

Remember the terms “a burr under the saddle” or a “stone in your shoe.”  The principle is the same.  These small things that cause irritation or discomfort also lead to action—to alleviate the source of the discomfort. Even for a pearl to form in an oyster, a small grain of sand—an impurity—is required.  If the current products have small irritating flaws, that can lead to new, innovative products that address those flaws. 

One relatively recent example is a new measuring cup from Pyrex.  Pyrex has made measuring cups for decades. They have been largely the same, made of glass to withstand the rigors of hot liquids and more recently with a useful innovation of flexible lids for use in microwave heating.  In the past, it has been necessary to raise the cup to eye level or bend over to see if the contents were at the desired level, even with markings read from the outside of the cup. 

Now the new Pyrex measuring cups have tapered walls and measuring lines that are visible/readable from the inside.  Looking down directly into the cup without the need to raise it or to bend over, allows the user to see the level directly and much more conveniently. Incorporating this simple innovation in a glass measuring cup is an example of looking at things in a different way.  (Prior “direct view” measuring cups have been made of plastic and incorporated irregular shapes to accomplish the design.  Plastic is a much less desirable material in both heat resistance and microwave use.)  

The new tapered measuring cups are a result of deciding to change the shape and reading measurements from what has traditionally been the “wrong place”—but from a user standpoint, is clearly the “right place.”  The result is a simple innovation that creates a much more useful measuring cup for your kitchen needs. 

Here is another thought on business rules:

Thomas J. Watson, the iconic CEO of IBM, is often pilloried for observing in 1943 that “there is a world market for maybe five computers.” It’s a remark so foolish that PC World ranked it #1 on its list of the seven worst tech predictions of all time. The magazine implies that he failed to see the future because he didn’t imagine that computers would move beyond vacuum tubes.

It is a puzzling comment to be sure. What makes the observation even more curious was that he was supposed to have made it in 1943, three years before the first digital computer was introduced in 1946. How could Watson predict a market for five computers when none yet existed? To envision a market of any size would have been strange at the time.

Other facts make a comment seem out of character as well. Watson took a major risk when he established IBM Research in the depths of the Great Depression to ensure that his firm would be on the forefront of computing technology. He also went to the trouble to hire the legendary John von Neumann to help develop digital computing in the 50’s. IBM then went on to dominate the technology for decades.

The truth, as Kevin Maney points out in his definitive biography of Watson, is that he never said it. The source of the confusion is probably a comment that Watson made to his board in 1953 about a sales trip he took for one of IBM’s early computers, the 701. “As a result of our trip,” he said, “on which we expected to get orders for five machines, we came home with orders for 18.”

So the truth is vastly different than the myth that has been so widely peddled and the facts are easy to check. Why does the false story persist?

Need some help in finding ways to grow your customers?  Such as creative ideas to help the differentiation with potential customers? Or perhaps finding ways to work with other businesses?

Call today for a FREE consultation or a FREE quote. Learn about some options to scope your job.

Call Mike at 607-725-8240.

So what’s the conclusion? The conclusion is there is no conclusion. There is only the next step. And that next step is completely up to you. But believe in the effectiveness of collaborative innovation. And put it to good use in adapting to changes in your business environment.

It’s up to you to keep improving your learning and experience with innovation and creativity efforts. Lessons are all around you. In this case, your competitor may be providing the ideas and or inspiration. But the key is in knowing that it is within you already.

All you get is what you bring to the fight. And that fight gets better every day you learn and apply new lessons.

When things go wrong, what’s most important is your next step.

Try. Learn. Improve. Repeat.

When things are not what you want them to be, what’s most important is your next step. Call today.

Are you devoting enough energy to improving your continuous learning for yourself and your team?

Mike Schoultz is the founder of Digital Spark Marketing, a digital marketing and customer service agency. With 40 years of business experience, he blogs on topics that relate to improving the performance of your business. Find them on G+, Twitter, and LinkedIn.  

Digital Spark Marketing will stretch your thinking and your ability to adapt to change.  We also provide some fun and inspiration along the way. Call us for a free quote today. You will be amazed how reasonable we will be.

Check out these additional articles on business and its performance from our library:

The Business Intelligence Process Part 3 Competitive Analysis

Competitive Growth Strategy … the Story of In-N-Out Burger

10 Entrepreneur Lessons You Need to Know

Collaboration and Partnerships Are Key to Business Growth