The fastest way to grow a business is to significantly increase all job position descriptions and hiring criteria.

1. Current products and services

2. New products and new services

3. Account relationships and value added partnering

4. Marketing, sales and promotions

5. Expanding into other market niches

6. Expanding to meet more important needs of customers, clients and markets

7. Expanding capabilities that are meaningful and valuable to customers and markets

8. And more

All of these need ‘creativity’, ‘out of the box thinking’, and ‘innovation’.

I just do not see much of this happening and yet this is important for businesses to survive and grow; and for the economy to improve.

As I have often discussed; for a business to survive and grow, it is important to recruit, hire and retain the highest level of skills and knowledge that can be found both within their industry/market and outside of it.

This will bring in expertise, knowledge, fresh ideas and thoughts.

A major issue and problem is that there is a natural tendency for individuals in business organizations who are doing the recruiting and hiring to:

1. Hire those individuals below their own skills and knowledge

2. Hire only those from their own market and from their competitors

3. Hire only those with skills and knowledge that do not exceed the position opening

This ‘tunnel vision’ is actually harming the business organization and contributing to business struggles and decline.

For a business to survive and grow, they must break out of this mindset.

They need to seek out the highest skilled and most knowledgeable individuals from a variety of markets and industries that they can find and hire them for all positions no matter of the level of position.

Job position descriptions with designated skills and knowledge requirements need to represent the Minimum of skills and knowledge; Not the Maximum.

All job descriptions and skill requirements need to include;

1. Creativity

2. Innovative

3. Problem solving

4. Out of the box thinking

When individuals are found that exceed the designated minimum requirements and can contribute to business growth with ‘creativity’, ‘innovation’ and ‘out of the box thinking’, these should be viewed as highly desirable superior candidates to all others.

Be professional and creative to make the relationship reasonable and rewarding for both the business organization and the individuals.

To help grow the business, you must eliminate the bad attitude of individuals being viewed as ‘over-qualified and not a good fit’.

Such poor attitudes and mindsets are a strong indicator of a business struggling.

‘Creativity’ and ‘out of the box thinking’ must be utilized in recruiting and hiring individuals outside ones own industry and markets.

Closely related markets and other markets/industries that have some things in common can be a great place to find individuals with higher levels of skills and knowledge, bringing in fresh ideas and thoughts that can be utilized to help grow your business.

You will be surprised to know that many ‘improvements’, ‘advancements’, ‘creativity’, ‘innovations’, ‘out of the box thinking’ and break-though new discoveries, tend to come from outside ones own market or industry.

This is a critical factor for business development.

If you are not recruiting and hiring from outside your market and industry, you will not have as much of a chance to acquire these critical things.

Whether within ones own market or outside of it, it is critical to hire those individuals with the higher skills, knowledge, ‘creativity’ and ‘out of the box thinking’.

For a business organization to grow, there cannot be any bad attitudes of ‘over-qualified and not a good fit’.

This needs to be a priority.

Currently, this does not seem to be happening very much.

There are many reasons for this.

 
1. Senior leadership and senior management lacks knowledge and skills to know better

2. Management at all levels hiring far below their own skills and knowledge level to protect their own jobs due to insecurities especially during these challenging and struggling times

3. The bad mindset of job position description with skills and knowledge requirements being the maximum acceptable skills and knowledge instead of being the minimum level

These reasons are significant factors in holding businesses back from surviving and growing.

There is another common thing that will hinder business growth.

It is the ‘false belief’ that business growth comes from hiring individuals from competition.

This ‘false belief’ goes on to mislead everyone to think that these new hires from competition will bring you business and customers from your competition and that their knowledge of products and services is your cure all.

The fact is that rarely do customers and clients switch to another supplier because the account managers or sales/marketing staff went to a new organization.

Accounts and clients switch to new suppliers or vendors due to serious issues and problems unresolved or for significant price reductions.

In today’s competitive world, these situations are becoming far less.

All business organizations need to know their market and potential accounts, and be aggressively communicating with such. 

Any business organization or company not doing this will decline and fail.

Attempting to do this by hiring staff from competitors does not remedy such a large fault in a business organization.

Regarding product and service knowledge, rarely are individuals in any market are as knowledgeable as they think they are or you think they are and often they lack knowledge. 

Product and service knowledge can easily be learned quickly compared to the other critical skills, knowledge, creativity and out of the box thinking that are needed and require far more time and efforts to learn and internalize.

Often, bringing in new staff with fresh new ideas and thoughts, higher level business development, sales and marketing skills, open minds with no bad habits or prejudices, is very productive and produces business growth.

These things can be easily improved upon to help grow a business.

You can select to be better than most others and grow the business in spite of tough business/economic conditions and challenges.

Many business organizations that think they do not qualify for higher skilled staff need to utilize ‘creativity’ and ‘outside the box thinking’.

In such situations, you must get creative and quit thinking that you are not deserving of such individuals and possible business development.

Ask these higher skilled and knowledgeable individuals about what could be a reasonable arrangement that could bring them into the business organization to help contribute to growth.

Then find ways to coordinate such.
 

Do not allow the bad mindset of hiring only those with lower level skills and knowledge that is below your current staff.

Just like parents that want their children to be more educated and better than themselves; business organizations, management, and leadership need to think and feel the same about recruiting and hiring others.

When a business organization does this, there is a higher chance to see business development and improvement.

Until this happens, businesses will continue to struggle and decline.

Current business struggles and decline are not motivating businesses to improve in this critical area.

I think more awareness of these issues will be the stimulating factor.

Since continual education and advanced training of management and leadership level is declining, I do not see this approach being effective to educate the many.

Educating the business environment on these issues is the major challenge.

A major communications campaign of some type is needed.

Let me summarize just a few of the key elements that I utilize to help grow a business.

1.Quickly gain an understanding of the organization’s products, services, capabilities, strengths, weaknesses, internal and external challenges & issues

2.Quickly gain an understanding for the needs of the customers, clients and market niches, both those things known and most importantly those not currently known or recognized

3. Quickly gain an understanding of markets, size and potential, competition and where the organization stands with all of this

4. Quickly gain an understanding of the business organization’s internal social and psychological aspects, culture and attitudes that have both wonderful potential capabilities and possibly areas that are hindering business growth and can be advanced

5. Quickly gain an understanding of the organization’s good core business fundamentals already in place and those that need advancing and putting in place

6. Quickly establish a team approach with good working relationships both internally and externally

7. Quickly gain progressive and invigorating relationships with current customers and clients

8. Quickly research, investigate and uncover potential sources of new business with both current and new customers/clients, and market niches

9. Quickly uncover opportunities to expand referral networks

10. Quickly obtain an understanding of the organization’s true differentiation with competition and importance to customers and clients; and expand on this

11.Quickly uncover areas to improve efficiency and customer service and save money.  Cost savings to be used to help fund improvements and advancements needed

12. From a team approach; establish strategies, plans, objectives, action items and
time lines; then implement

13. Quickly review and analyze all marketing communications and advance all into an updated progressive integrated approach based on all of the above

14. Utilize ‘Creativity’, ‘Innovation’ and ‘Out of The Box Thinking’ with everything

 
There are additional important things that I do but the above are some of the first things needed that are critical for growing the business.

About how I accomplish all of this quickly; I have the skills, knowledge, ‘creativity’, ‘out of the box thinking’ and experience of these things. 

I roll up my sleeves, work hard but smart, and go out into the marketplace to make it all happen.

Many things that I discover appear to be a surprise to senior leadership in the business organizations.

Some are obvious major surprises and revelations to them.

This raises the question on how they can be leading a business and not be aware of such.

It does help to understand why the business may be struggling and not growing

It also raises the question why their previous or current management team has not picked up on these things and acted upon them to improve.

I may also uncover how senior leadership knew of such important things but seemed
to deny or dismiss the facts and have thought such things had no affect on their business.

This amazes me but my psychology background leads me to classify this as classic denial or rationalization type behavior.

Such behavior and thinking will harm the business

As I stated earlier, the fastest way to grow a business is to increase all job position descriptions and hiring criteria, significantly.

Double the hiring criteria of higher education and trainings, higher level skills and knowledge, experience and most importantly include ‘creativity’, ‘innovation’ and ‘out of the box thinking’.

Expand recruting and hiring to include markets and industries outside ones own, to uncover break-though new ideas and new innovative thinking.

This will have positive effects fairly quickly.

 
This information should be helpful for some of your organization’s needs and business development.

If you have further questions or need some help, you can give me a call or email.

 
Michael P. Marshall, PhD
Senior Specialist and Advisor for Business Development, Marketing and Sales
Tele. 920-734-8678
Email:  michaelmarshall@new.rr.com
www.AskTheBusinessDoctor.com
Michael has more than 30 years of business experience focusing on business development utilizing extensive skills in marketing, sales, and communications; both national and international.

This experience comes from starting at field staff level positions and then progressing up to senior level Director and Vice President positions in several industries and markets.

His expertise is also utilized in special advisory and consulting situations, as well.

As a youth, he was a Boy Scout and achieved the Eagle Scout Rank that instilled ethics and high ideals.

Prior to his extensive 30-year business career, he studied advanced engineering and then transitioned to psychology and social human behavior.

He was a mental health counselor for several years in some major medical institutions prior to a business career.

In these endeavors he learned what makes people do what they do, what influences others, how to motivate positive behavioral change; and the importance to a strong foundation and the individual components in a structure.

Among the senior level positions held during his 30-year career, Michael has held director and vice president level positions in marketing, sales and business development in several industries and markets including medical.

Michael’s education and trainings include a PhD in business concentrating in marketing and business development, an MBA, bachelor degrees in psychology and social human behavior, advanced post graduate certification in marketing from UCLA, formally trained in ‘Creativity and Out of The Box Thinking’, federally certified in international business, and being an alumnus of six universities.

He has over 35 formal trainings and certifications covering the fundamentals of business development, marketing, sales, communications, management and leading a business to significant sales and profit growth.

 
INTERVIEWER:

Businesses and companies of all types and sizes seem to be struggling more during these tough economic times.

 
What are your observations with this and what are your suggestions?

REPLY:

Yes, businesses and companies are struggling even more in these economic times but in many cases the severity of their struggles do not need to be as severe.

INTERVIEWER:

What do you mean with ‘in many cases the severity of their struggles, do not need to be as severe’?

REPLY:

It amazes me how many businesses and companies are in a mindset rut of ’same o’,  ’same o’. 

This will not help them survive in these challenging economic times.

Often, they lack ‘creativity’, ‘out of the box thinking’, ‘innovation’ in most critical business functions:

1. Current products and services

2. New products and new services

3. Account relationships and value added partnering

4. Marketing, sales and promotions

5. Expanding into other market niches

6. Expanding to meet more important needs of customers, clients and markets

7. Expanding capabilities that are meaningful and valuable to customers and markets

8. And more

All of these need ‘creativity’, ‘out of the box thinking’, and ‘innovation’.

I just do not see much of this happening and yet this is important for businesses to survive and grow; and for the economy to improve.

INTERVIEWER:

Why are so many businesses deficient in this if it is so important?

REPLY:

As I have often discussed; for a business to survive and grow it is important to recruit, hire and retain the highest level of skills and knowledge that can be found both within their industry/market and outside of it.

This will bring in expertise, knowledge, fresh ideas and thoughts.

A major issue and problem is that there is a natural tendency for individuals in business organizations who are doing the recruiting and hiring to:

1. Hire those individuals below their own skills and knowledge

2. Hire only those from their own market and from their competitors

3. Hire only those with skills and knowledge that do not exceed the position opening

This ‘tunnel vision’ is actually harming the business organization and contributing to business struggles and decline.

For a business to survive and grow, they must break out of this mindset.

They need to seek out the highest skilled and most knowledgeable individuals from a variety of markets and industries that they can find and hire them for all positions no matter of the level of position.

Job position descriptions with designated skills and knowledge requirements need to represent the Minimum of skills and knowledge; Not the Maximum.

All job descriptions and skill requirements need to include;

1. Creativity

2. Innovative

3. Problem solving

4. Out of the box thinking

When individuals are found that exceed the designated minimum requirements and can contribute to business growth with ‘creativity’, ‘innovation’ and ‘out of the box thinking’, these should be viewed as highly desirable superior candidates to all others.

Be professional and creative to make the relationship reasonable and rewarding for both the business organization and the individuals.

To help grow the business, you must eliminate the bad attitude of individuals being viewed as ‘over-qualified and not a good fit’.

Such attitudes and mindsets are a strong indicator of a business struggling.

INTERVIEWER:

Why should businesses seek out higher skilled individuals over the minimum requirements from outside their own industry or market?

REPLY:

This is a great question.

‘Creativity’ and ‘out of the box thinking’ must be utilized in recruiting and hiring individuals outside ones own industry and markets.

Closely related markets and other markets/industries that have some things in common can be
a great place to find individuals with higher levels of skills and knowledge bringing
in fresh ideas and thoughts that can be utilized to help grow your business.

You will be surprised to know that many ‘improvements’, ‘advancements’, ‘creativity’, ‘innovations’, ‘out of the box thinking’ and break-through new ideas and thoughts tend to come from outside ones own market or industry.

This is a critical factor for business development.

If you are not recruiting and hiring from outside your market and industry you will not have much of a chance to acquire these things.

INTERVIEWER:

Are you saying that recruiting and hiring outside of ones own market is the only way to get improvement, break through ideas and grow?

REPLY:

What I am saying is that this is one of the important ways to obtain the innovative ideas and improvements that are needed to grow a business.

I am also saying that whether within ones own market or outside of it, it is critical to hire those individuals with the higher skills, knowledge, ‘creativity’ and ‘out of the box thinking’.

For a business organization to grow, there cannot be any bad attitudes of ‘over-qualified and not a good fit’.

This needs to be a priority.

Currently, this does not seem to be happening very much.

INTERVIEWER:

If this is so important, why do so many business fail to do this.

REPLY:

There are many reasons.

1. Senior leadership and senior management lacks knowledge and skills to know better

2. Management at all levels hiring far below their own skills and knowledge level to protect their own jobs due to insecurities especially during these challenging and struggling times

3. The bad mindset of job position description with skills and knowledge requirements being the maximum acceptable skills and knowledge instead of being the minimum level

These reasons are significant factors in holding businesses back from surviving and growing.

INTERVIEWER:

What do you say about businesses thinking that they need to hire people from their competitors to increase sales?

REPLY:

This is another common thing that will hinder business growth.

It is a ‘false belief’ that business growth comes from hiring individuals from competition.

This ‘false belief’ goes on to mislead everyone to think that these new hires from competition will bring you business and customers from your competition and that their knowledge of products and services is your cure all.

The fact is that rarely do customers and clients switch to another supplier because the account managers or sales/marketing staff went to a new organization.

Accounts and clients switch to new suppliers or vendors due to serious issues and problems unresolved or for significant price reductions.

In today’s competitive world, these situations are becoming far less.

All business organizations need to know their market and potential accounts and be aggressively communicating with such. 

Any business organization or company not doing this will decline and fail.

Attempting to do this by hiring staff from competitors does not remedy such a large fault in a business organization.

Regarding product and service knowledge, rarely are individuals in any market are as knowledgeable as they think they are or you think they are and often they lack knowledge. 

Product and service knowledge can easily be learned quickly compared to the other critical skills, knowledge, creativity and out of the box thinking that are needed and require far more time and efforts to learn and internalize.

Often, bringing in new staff with fresh new ideas and thoughts, higher level business development, sales and marketing skills, open minds with no bad habits or prejudices, is very productive and produces business growth.

These things can be easily improved upon to help grow a business.

You can select to be better than most others and grow the business in spite of tough business/economic conditions and challenges.

INTERVIEWER:

What would you say to businesses that think that they are not a big enough organization to hire such higher skilled and knowledgeable individuals with ‘creativity’ and ‘outside the box thinking’ or the position is below these individuals’ experience and career level?

REPLY:

This is where ‘creativity’ and ‘outside the box thinking’ are needed.

In such situations, you must get creative and quit thinking that you are not deserving of such individuals and possible business development.

Ask these higher skilled and knowledgeable individuals about what could be a reasonable arrangement that could bring them into the business organization to help contribute to growth.

Then find ways to coordinate such.
 

Do not allow the bad mindset of hiring only those with lower level skills and knowledge that is below your current staff.

Just like parents that want their children to be more educated and better than themselves; business organizations, management, and leadership need to think and feel the same about recruiting and hiring others.

When a business organization does this, there is a higher chance to see business development and improvement.

Until this happens, businesses will continue to decline and struggle.

INTERVIEWER:

Do you see any improvement or progress with businesses and these issues?

REPLY:

No, I do not.

Business decline and struggles are not motivating businesses to improve in this critical area.

I think more awareness of these issues will be the stimulating factor.

Since continual education and training of management and leadership level is declining, I do not see this approach being effective to educate the many.

Educating the business environment on these issues is the major challenge.

A major communications campaign of some type is needed.

INTERVIEWER:

When you are hired to take on a position with a new company or business organization; what do you do to help grow the business?

REPLY:

Let me summarize just a few of the key elements that I utilize to help grow a business.

1. Quickly gain an understanding of the organization’s products, services, capabilities, strengths, weaknesses, internal and external challenges & issues

2. Quickly gain an understanding for the needs of the customers, clients and market niches, both those things known and most importantly those not currently known or recognized

3. Quickly gain an understanding of markets, size and potential, competition and where the organization stands with all of this

4. Quickly gain an understanding of the business organization’s internal social and psychological aspects, culture and attitudes that have both wonderful potential capabilities and possibly areas that are hindering business growth and can be advanced

5. Quickly gain an understanding of the organization’s good core business fundamentals already in place and those that need advancing and putting in place

6. Quickly establish a team approach with good working relationships both internally and externally

7. Quickly gain progressive and invigorating relationships with current customers and clients

8. Quickly research, investigate and uncover potential sources of new business with both current and new customers/clients, and market niches

9. Quickly uncover opportunities to expand referral networks

10. Quickly obtain an understanding of the organization’s true differentiation with competition and importance to customers and clients; and expand on this

11. Quickly uncover areas to improve efficiency and customer service and save money.  Cost savings to be used to help fund improvements and advancements needed

12. From a team approach; establish strategies, plans, objectives, action items and
time lines; then implement

13. Quickly review and analyze all marketing communications and advance all into an updated progressive integrated approach based on all of the above

14. Utilize ‘Creativity’, ‘Innovation’ and ‘Out of The Box Thinking’ with everything

There are additional important things that I do but the above are some of the first things needed that are critical for growing the business.

About how I accomplish all of this quickly; I have the skills, knowledge, creativity, out of the box thinking and experience of these things. 

I roll up my sleeves, work hard but smart, and go out into the marketplace to make it all happen.

 
INTERVIEWER:

After a short time to understand the customers, clients, markets, products, services, capabilities, opportunities, etc., what do you normally discover ?

REPLY:

This is another great question that leads to a very interesting subject and issue.

What I often discover and uncover with all of these things appear to be a surprise to senior leadership in the business organizations.

Some are obvious major surprises and revelations to them.

This raises the question on how they can be leading a business and not aware of such.

It does help to understand why the business may be struggling and not growing

It also raises the question why their previous or current management team has not picked up on these things and acted upon them to improve.

I have also uncovered how senior leadership knew of such important things but seemed
to deny or dismiss the facts and has thought such things had no affect on their business.

This amazes me but my psychology background leads me to classify this as classic denial or rationalization type behavior.

Such behavior and thinking will harm the business.

 
INTERVIEWER:

What would you say is the fastest way for a business organization to grow sales and profits?

 
REPLY:

Increase all job position descriptions and hiring criteria, significantly.

Double the hiring criteria with higher education and trainings, higher level skills and knowledge, and most importantly include ‘creativity’, ‘innovation’ and ‘out of the box thinking’.

Expand recruiting and hiring to include markets and industries outside ones own to uncover break-through new ideas and new innovative thinking.

This will have positive effects fairly quickly.

 
INTERVIEWER:

 
Thanks again for the insightful information.

Business organizations, companies and corporate attorneys can take the proactive approach that preventing legal issues is good business just like; medical doctors taking the approach that preventative medicine is good medicine
 
By Michael Marshall, PhD

Most business organizations and companies have a retained corporate attorney but rarely are these attorneys utilized proactively; the big ‘P’ for ‘proactive’.

Most often these corporate attorneys are only used for;

 
1. Defending the organization in a law suite

 
2. Defending the organization for federal and state laws and regulations, non compliance

 
3. Filing a law suite

 
These situations may have been preventive with a more proactive approach, saving much money and troubles.

 
I suggest that business organizations and companies ‘proactively’ utilize corporate attorneys in the following ways;

1. Have your corporate attorney tour your organization to learn your business and capabilities

2. Arrange for every department and function to have personal time with the attorney to briefly discuss the department, functions, and challenges. 

At this time the department managers and supervisors should ask any legal questions regarding the department, function or general business. 

The attorney to ask questions as well to probe for possible legal questions and issues.

Any potential issues or problems to be identified with follow-up action to resolve.

3. Each department or function area to have a training session from the attorney
on applicable laws and regulations that pertain to the departments/functions

4. All of this to be repeated annually just like an annual physical exam to keep good personal health

The above proactive approach will reduce the potential of costly legal situations and help improve the business as well.

 
You will be amazed how often employee and staff ignorance is creating significant legal issues.

All departments and functions need this review and training;

 
1. Accounting & Finance

2. Customer Service

3. Engineering, Research and Development

4. Human Resources and Recruitment

5. Manufacturing

6. Marketing, Advertising and Public Relations

7. Sales

8. Purchasing and Material Procurement

9. Quality Control

10. Shipping and Receiving, Logistics

11. All Other Departments and Functions

Corporate attorneys are capable of teaching fundamental business law and regulations to employees and management staff; especially how it applies directly to the employees’ job, department/function and specific business organization that they work for.

This would be highly beneficial to all, especially to the business organization.

Often, business organizations and companies are Not Compliant with all laws and regulations and find out about this after they have a serious issue.

This then can cause serious problems and significant costly expenses to remedy the situations.

Most management are not as skilled, educated and knowledgeable as they could be.

This is fact.

There is also the common situation that most management recruit and hire those individuals below their own skills and knowledge level.

Of course, this is Not good for the business but this is natural occurring.

I have numerous actual stories and business incidents that I personally know and could share with you that illustrate clearly how employees, staff and management are doing things that place business organizations in serious legal issues that are quite costly.

After the legal issues have escalated where the corporate attorneys have to be involved, often one hears from the attorneys about their amazement to the massive ignorance and arrogance of staff at all levels and even well into senior management.

 
A more educated and trained staff can help an organization avoid costly legal issues and assure healthy business development.

You may be asking; “Since this proactive approach seems so common sense, why are so many business organizations and companies not doing this?”.

There are some possible reasons even though they are Not good ones:

 
1. Senior management has not thought of this

 
2. Senior management do not see value in this approach

 
3. Senior management do not want their staff and employees knowledgeable

 
4. Senior management do not want to spend money on this training & review

 
5. Senior management believing that ignorant employees are good employees

 
6. Senior management believing that the more ignorant employees and staff are the more control they have over them

 
7. Senior management knows of legal issues needing improving with the organization and wants to hide them

 
8. Senior management are fearful that this knowledge could uncover issues that they would need to improve on

 
9. Senior management fearful of uncovering legal issues that they may have to spend money on their corporate attorney to help improve and remedy

 
10. Corporate attorney has not thought of this

 
11. Corporate attorney does not want to promote this proactive approach because they would rather get the legal issues that they can bill considerable amounts for

The benefits from well-trained and knowledgeable employees out-weigh these concerns.

As stated earlier, business organizations and companies struggle to have staff with high level of competency and this proactive approach utilizing the corporate attorney can significantly help avoid costly legal matters.

If medical doctors can take the approach that preventative medicine is good medicine; business organizations, companies, and corporate attorneys can take the proactive approach that preventing legal issues is good business.

This information should be helpful for some of your organization’s needs and business development.

If you have further questions or need some help, you can give me a call or email.

Michael P. Marshall, PhD
Senior Specialist and Advisor for Business Development, Marketing and Sales
Tele. 920-734-8678
Email:  michaelmarshall@new.rr.com
www.AskTheBusinessDoctor.com
Michael has more than 30 years of business experience focusing on business development utilizing extensive skills in marketing, sales, and communications; both national and international.

This experience comes from starting at field staff level positions and then progressing up to senior level Director and Vice President positions in several industries and markets.

His expertise is also utilized in special advisory and consulting situations, as well.

As a youth, he was a Boy Scout and achieved the Eagle Scout Rank that instilled ethics and high ideals.

Prior to his extensive 30-year business career, he studied advanced engineering and then transitioned to psychology and social human behavior.

He was a mental health counselor for several years in some major medical institutions prior to a business career.

In these endeavors he learned what makes people do what they do, what influences others, how to motivate positive behavioral change; and the importance to a strong foundation and the individual components in a structure.

Among the senior level positions held during his 30-year career, Michael has held director and vice president level positions in marketing, sales and business development in several industries and markets including medical.

Michael’s education and trainings include a PhD in business concentrating in marketing and business development, an MBA, bachelor degrees in psychology and social human behavior, advanced post graduate certification in marketing from UCLA, formally trained in ‘Creativity and Out of The Box Thinking’, federally certified in international business, and being an alumnus of six universities.

He has over 35 formal trainings and certifications covering the fundamentals of business development, marketing, sales, communications, management and leading a business to significant sales and profit growth.

MANAGING CHANGE, IMPROVEMENTS and ADVANCEMENTS
What is it?

Why would this be needed?

What are the challenges?

The Top Ten Keys to successful change management

By Michael Marshall, PhD    ‘TheBusinessDoctor’

‘Change management’ simply explaining is managing change.

 
In the business environment, change can be many things including:
- Organizational
- Processes
- Procedures
- Production & manufacturing
- Internal technology enhancements
- Products
- Services
- New markets
- Attitudes of all types
- Behaviors of all types
- Customer relations
- Employee relations
- Customer service
- Marketing
- Sales
- Branding
- Communications of all types
And More

New business competition is emerging, technologies and products are quickly advancing, business practices are advancing.

 
Customer needs and markets are fast changing.

 
To address these fast-changing needs and to stay competitive, businesses must be progressive with managing their own changes and advancements.

 
Managing change and advancements is important for business organizations to assure business development.

 
Those business leaders and management level that are responsible for ‘change management’ and managing change; often need additional education, trainings and
skills to be successful.

 
Outside professional consultants can be utilized to help.

 
Challenges to successful ‘change management’ include:

 
- Lack of senior leadership support

 
- Lack of skills of management level in ‘change management’

 
- The ‘Nay Sayers’ of employees and management level that can sabotage efforts

 
- Individuals with selfish self-serving ideas and egos creating obstacles

 
- Lack of employee understanding of the need for change

 
- Obtaining full cooperation of all staff for change

 
- Having a well thought out plan for implementing with time lines

 
- Timing of change needed to be proactive to avoid business decline

 
- Having a thorough understanding to the changes needed, their importance and
      the negative consequences if the change does not happen now

There are more challenges but these are some of the more common ones.

The Top Ten Keys to successful Change Management include:

 
1. Have a thorough understanding to the changes needed, their importance and
      the negative consequences if the change does not happen now.
      This information to communicated to all staff and employees.

 
2. Have strong support from senior leadership

 
3. Coordinate current training in Change Management for all management and employees

 
4. Have a well thought out plan for implementing with time lines

 
5. Prior to implementing changes create employee teams to investigate changes needed and how to implement

 
6. Have creative incentive programs for employees to help gain cooperation and personal initiatives

 
7. Coordinate continual formal company wide celebrations for progress and successes

 
8. Significant communications internally with all employees as to teams progress and changes being implemented

 
9. Continual formal acknowledgment of both individuals and teams efforts for progress with change

 
10. Willingness to modify changes if needed for good business reasons

 
Many ask: who are more difficult to obtain understanding and cooperation for the changes needed; senior leadership, management level or employees?

 
It is a mix.

 
When I am pressed to commit which group is most difficult, I would say senior level leadership due to the financial support and operational changes that may be needed.

 
I am also often asked about how to handle individuals that are ‘The Nay Sayers’ and those that are creating obstacles to progress with changes.

 
This subject is important.

 
With such individuals, it is important to have them explain their personal thoughts as to why the changes are harmful or not productive and ask them for their ideas about what are possible alternatives.

 
Everyone’s ideas, thoughts and insights are important.

 
If their thoughts, ideas and concerns are valuable and valid, utilize them and incorporate them.

 
Of course show appreciation for their contributions of such.

 
This approach normally is effective in most situations.

 
Occasionally, individual’s lack of cooperation for change management is a negative self-serving issue.

 
Such instances need to be recognized for what it is immediately.

 
In such cases, a strong discussion of the need for their full cooperation and contributions is needed with the alternative being to immediately leave the organization to seek employment in another organization.

 
Then keeping close observation of the situation is needed to determine what the next step must be.

 
If the situation needs to progress onto the individual leaving the organization, keep it professional but move on with the situation immediately to avoid negative impact on
the organization and progress.

 
This information should be helpful for your organization’s needs and business development.

 
If you have further questions or need some help, you can give me a call or email.

Michael P. Marshall, PhD
Senior Specialist and Advisor for Business Development, Marketing and Sales
Tele. 920-734-8678
Email:  michaelmarshall@new.rr.com
www.AskTheBusinessDoctor.com

 
Michael has more than 30 years of business experience focusing on business development utilizing extensive skills in marketing, sales, and communications; both national and international.

This experience comes from starting at field staff level positions and then progressing up to senior level Director and Vice President positions in several industries and markets.

His expertise is also utilized in special advisory and consulting situations, as well.

Prior to his extensive 30-year business career, he studied advanced engineering and then transitioned to psychology and social human behavior.

He was a mental health counselor for several years in some major medical institutions prior to a business career.

In these endeavors he learned what makes people do what they do, what influences others, how to motivate positive behavioral change; and the importance to a strong foundation and the individual components in a structure.

Among the senior level positions held during his 30-year career, Michael has held director and vice president level positions in marketing, sales and business development in several industries and markets including medical.

Michael’s education and trainings include a PhD in business concentrating in marketing and business development, an MBA, bachelor degrees in psychology and social human behavior, advanced post graduate certification in marketing from UCLA, formally trained in ‘Creativity and Out of The Box Thinking’, federally certified in international business, and being an alumnus of six universities.

He has over 35 formal trainings and certifications covering the fundamentals of business development, marketing, sales, communications, management and leading a business to significant sales and profit growth.

OF

ATTITUDES, MINDSETS AND THE ORGANIZATON

2009

WARNING

 
If you are not introspective and willing to advance and improve, do not take this test.

 
If you are egotistical, self-serving and self-delusional about the actual business or organization, do not take this test.

 
If you lack integrity and honesty, do not take this test.

 
If you lack respect for people, customers, clients and employees, do not take this test.

When taking the test, any of the above conditions can cause distress, discomfort,
extreme denial, irritability, anger and other uncomfortable feelings.

 
Rate yourself and your organization

 
0 to 10 points on each topic/subject with 10 points being the highest score

 
Add up the scores at the end and view the ratings comments

_____0 to 10 points
Senior executive level in the organization has good business attitudes that include honesty and integrity

 
_____0 to 10 points
Senior executive level actively seeks out the facts and truth about the organization’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats, (SWOT) and competition; and then uses this information to grow the organization

 
_____0 to 10 points
Senior executive has had an outside professional service conduct some skills inventory assessments in all departments and functions to determine level of skills and knowledge.
With this information a true base line has been established, additional trainings and educational goals established, and recruitment efforts have incorporated the higher skills and knowledge that is needed.

 
_____0 to 10 points
The organization has a formal process with checks and balances that assures the hiring of the highest level skilled and educated individuals regardless of age and even though such individuals may be more skilled and educated than current staff.

 
_____0 to 10 points
The organization is team oriented in most endeavors including; projects, product development, account management, efficiency improvement, cost savings, problem solving, market development.
This is exemplified with various committees consisting of all levels of employees and staff and of all ages, and continual improvement activities.

 
_____0 to 10 points
The organization has a progressive incentive program for all employees for suggestions including product and service improvements, new products and services, new markets, new applications, efficiencies, cost savings.

 
_____0 to 10 points
The organization has a program to continually solicit ideas and thoughts from their customers for possible improvements of all kinds, new products and services and just about everything else that they can uncover for new ideas.

 
_____0 to 10 points
In the last 6 months, the organization has done something different in regards to new products or services, marketing, advertising, communications, promotions, sales, market expansion, to help contribute to business development.

 
_____0 to 10 points
In the last 6 to 12 months, ALL management and supervisory staff has actively participated in some training program or educational event.
They have been tasked to share the information with the organization and show how to apply what they have learned for helping improvements and growing the organization or business.

 
_____0 to 10 points
In the last 6 to 12 months, the senior executive has personally visited all key accounts plus those in the top 50% of accounts to express appreciation and inquire about suggestions, new ideas and thoughts.
This can be accomplished with joint field visits with your sales staff or customer service staff.
Senior executives can also bring with them management staff from customer service, shipping, production, product management, engineering, purchasing, order processing or other areas of the company as well.
(the only risk to this is that if customers and clients give you great suggestions and ideas, if you do not show appreciation and act on them, they can view you negatively and unwilling to advance and improve)

 
_____Total Points   (try to be honest with the points that you have written down)

 
Results, Analysis and Scores

 
80 to 100 points
You are exemplary and you are most likely a successful growing organization

 
50 to 79 points
You are most likely a successful executive and organization but desire far more success and more business development.
The information in this test should help identify areas to improve in.

 
10 to 49 points
You are most likely seeking ways to improve the business and organization.
Some days you are probably wondering what else to do.
The information in this test will show you areas to advance on.
I suggest that you read the articles and interviews on this website.

 
Below 10 points
Most likely you and your business are struggling.
Most likely you are blaming the market for your struggles and decline.
The information in this test is critical to help you grow the business or organization.
I suggest that you read the articles and interviews on this website
I also suggest that you consider utilizing an outside business and marketing consultant

Would a psychologist be helpful to CEO’s for growing the business?

 
Would having a senior executive or staff with psychology backgrounds be helpful?

 
Why is continual education and training needed to assure business development?

 
Why is business development difficult for most?

 
Why do CEO’s need to lead business development efforts to be effective?

 
What methodology can be utilized to be more successful in business growth?

By Michael P. Marshall, PhD

 
This article will share numerous interesting insights that are important for business development, marketing and sales growth.

 
I am often asked “What Is Business Development and Why Do So Many Businesses Struggle With It”.

First, I explain that business development is composed of numerous things with many influences and pressures.

I proceed by explaining that to truly discuss what business development is all about, you need to picture in your mind holding a diamond with many cut facets. 

 
Hold this diamond up into the light and slowly turn it. 

 
As you rotate it and the light bounces off the many cut facets, the diamond looks different with varying colors.

 
Business development is very similar.

 
The fundamentals, skills and activities needed in business development are like the facets of a cut diamond.

 
Business Development is far beyond a staff being dedicated to develop leads or follow-up on sales leads. 

 
It is well beyond renaming a sales or customer service position to business development.

 
Effective Business Development closes the gap between:

 
- Current sales and the potential with existing customers

 
- Current customers and potential other customers

 
- Current market and potential other market niches

 
- What a business knows about their customers and what they should know about them

 
- What customers know about a business or vendor and what they should know

 
These gaps are often significant.

- Rarely do businesses know all about their market and customers’ current needs and future needs

- Rarely do customers know all about their vendors’ capabilities or those they get services from

- Rarely do businesses acknowledge all of their own true capabilities

- Rarely are businesses active in all markets and niche markets that they could be

A fundamental that is often over-looked and rarely done is ‘Anything important for customers and the market to know about a supplier/vendor/service provider, needs to be affectively and aggressively communicated in writing with lots of pictures and in all communications, continually.’

The critical skills & fundamentals of Business Development include;

 
1. Rigorous investigating markets and potential niche markets

2. Rigorous investigating customer needs and ‘pain points’
3. Continual investigating customer and market changes; and future needs
4. Rigorous investigating the business’s own capabilities
5. ‘Creativity’, ‘Out of the Box Thinking’ and ‘Continual Innovation’ of all types
6. Market penetration and expansion
7. Effective marketing communications; literature, PR, website, advertising,
trade shows, promotional events, digital media, etc.
8. Communications of all types
9. Promotions
10. Database marketing
11. Market research
12. Competitive analysis; bench marking and gap analysis
13. Lead generation & follow-up
14. Developing strategic alliances
15. Account relationship development and management
16. Strategic thinking and planning
17. Team approach, team building, team management
18. TQM total quality improvement of all types
19. Incentives and motivation
20. How to motivate others
21. Root cause analysis
22. Creative problem solving
23. Time management and time lines
24. Project management
25. Product and services development
26. Goal setting and achieving goals
27. Negotiations
28. Organization management and delegating
29. Merchandising and packaging; products and services
30. Customer service
31. Managing distribution channels
32. Managing sales networks and channels
33. Training management
34. Developing strategy, implementing and getting cooperation
35. Change management
36. Niche marketing and segmentation
37. Branding
38. Fundamental sales skills
39. Value-added selling and marketing
40. Consultative and solutions selling
41. International business management
42. “Creativity’, ‘Bold Innovations’, ‘Out of The Box thinking’

There are more skills that can be added to this list but you should get a pretty good understanding of the fundamentals needed to accomplish business development and growth.

 
You need to make a close assessment of your organization’s actual skill sets.

 
This assessment can be accomplished by reviewing staff’s education, trainings, skills and experience or having an outside consultant coordinate the review.

 
It is advisable to utilize some skill assessments that are available.

 
Once you have a base line or inventory of the skills your staff has, then you need to evaluate:

 
- whether individuals are in the right job suited to their skills and interests

 
- the training needed to increase skills

 
- whether these staff are given the time and responsibility to successfully complete the important business development tasks.

Remember, studies indicate 50 -70% of people are in the wrong jobs with the wrong skills. 

 
This includes management level.

 
A caution needs to be mentioned about training.

 
Training is not a cure all to problems. 

 
It only enhances and helps.

 
Training individuals who do not like their job or do not have a passion for it, is not effective.

 
Do not expect a one to three day training course or workshop to be the cure for everything.

 
The critical skills listed above can be within the business’s staff or complimented by utilizing outside resources such as consultants, advisors and agencies.

 
The key is to have these skills in some way and be utilizing them continually.

 
When businesses do not have these skills through direct staff or outside resources, business development tends to struggle and fail.

 
What commonly sets in is often referred to as ‘Business Psychosis’.

 
‘Business Psychosis is repeating the same things that do not work over and over again and expecting different results’.

 
A component of this is the psychology term of ‘Approach Avoidance’

 
This is when there is a motivation or drive to approach something but as one gets closer, a very strong feeling takes over to avoid it.

 
This is commonly seen in business organizations talking about how improvements and changes are needed to compete in the changing business environment and to help grow the business.

Often, when the details of improvements and changes needed are uncovered, many of these things are not acted upon.

 
Instead, the improvements and changes needed are avoided.

 
‘Inaction-itis’ and ‘Inaction-constipation’ often refer to businesses and staff that do little for business development. 

 
They come up with reasons and excuses why they are doing little to improve the situation or why improvements will not work.

 
Lack of ‘Creativity’, lack of ‘Innovation’ and lack of ‘Outside the Box Thinking’ is usually prevalent.

 
‘Creativity’, ‘Outside The Box Thinking’ and ‘Bold Innovations’ is critical for business development.

 
Even though most people may say that they are creative, they are not.

 
As children, we often heard;

 
“Do not color outside the lines”
“Only use certain colors for certain things”
“Only start reading the book from the beginning, never the back or middle”
“There is only one correct answer and you do not have it”

Most people have been trained Not to be creative so formal training is needed to help everyone get creative and possibly bring out the creativity that they have some abilities in.

 
When people disagree with this and boast how they are creative and have no need for formal training, there is a simple method to handle this.

 
I list 8 or 9 simple items such as; paper clip, pen, pencil, pin, safety pin, rubber band, belt buckle, auto spark plug, etc.

 
I professionally and politely ask them to select one of these items to write down 100 uses for.

The rule is that there are no wrong answers.

I tell them to take 1 hour to write down 100 or more uses of the object or item.

I explain that if they are ‘Creative’, ‘Outside The Box Thinking’ and ‘Innovative’, they will have their listcomplete within 30 to 60 minutes; if they can use some formal training in ‘Creativity’ they will havethe list 100 completed by the following day after they have the entire evening to think and probably ask others to help with ideas.

 
Seldom does anyone complete the list of 100 in the 30 to 60 minutes and many come back the next day without the list of 100 complete.

 
‘Creativity’, ‘Out of The Box Thinking’, ‘Bold Innovations’ are things that can be formally trained to help people gain some of these skills and open up their creative side of their brain/mind.

 
These skills rarely come naturally.

 
They require some effort.

 
Formal training, reading some books on the subject to expose one to ideas and thoughts and a variety of creative thinking exercises such as the one I just explained, will help people to become more ‘Creative’, ‘Out of The Box Thinking’, and ‘Innovative’.

 
I always advise that senior executives send all of their supervisory and management staff to formal training in ‘Creativity’ and ‘Out of The Box Thinking’ and to come back with ideas to help grow the business.

 
The same approach should be used for quality improvement, eliminating wastes and decreasing costs.

 
‘The Rule of 10′ and “Business Psychosis’ can prevent such progressive steps.

 
“Excuses are nothing more than lies wrapped in delusions.”

 
To make things more challenging; the truth of the matter is that even the most skilled professionals with many of the appropriate skills can easily be distracted significantly from effective business development.

 
Yes, you are reading this correctly.

 
Even when a business or senior level professionals have these skills, business development is often hindered by not enough time and effort being dedicated to it.

 
At this time you are probably thinking that maybe business development is only for a few lucky businesses.

 
I can assure you that luck does not have anything to do with business development.

 
In regards to obtaining and retaining the skill sets that are critical fundamentals of business development, you have 3 alternatives.

 
1. Find, hire and retain professional staff with the skills
2. Find, hire and retain outside resources such as consultants, advisors and agencies with such skills

3. Utilize a combination of both skilled staff and skilled outside consultants, advisors and agencies

In regards to why even the senior level professionals that may have some of the skills being hindered and neglecting business development objectives; let’s discuss this a little further.

 
Generally speaking, business in the United States is based on capitalism, which in turn is based on profits, which in turn is based on a P & L, profit and loss statements, which in turn is often based on short-term profit with the minimum expenditure.

 
This is often the major driver and motivator to business here in the United States.

 
Pretty fundamental that most will agree with.

 
Business development efforts often cost money and are expenditures of money, time and staff whether internal or utilizing outside resources.

 
Business development results maybe beyond short-term needs and expectations.

 
Depending on ones definition of short term versus long term sales and profit improvement, business development efforts may not fit within a short term
P & L directive.

 
Obviously, without business development there is no future profit or sales growth and no business stability.

 
In addition, most would agree that businesses have streamlined their staff levels to keep costs down and profits up to certain levels.

 
Some may call it downsizing and others may call it right sizing.

 
Many businesses may lack staff levels to allow for all important tasks and functions to be done effectively and in a timely manner.

 
Senior level management may be working with less staff than what would be optimal.

 
They themselves may be performing duties and functions that should be delegated to others, if staff levels were a little higher.

 
Basically, not enough staff and time to do all of the important things needed to proactively grow the business.

 
In such situations, businesses and staff often become reactive instead of proactive.

 
They get focused on daily issues, problems, challenges and tasks that can significantly distract them from important proactive business development efforts.

 
The P & L, profit and loss statement is being reviewed often by the executive level.

 
There can be pressures on making short-term fixes and resolutions of issues, to encourage short-term sales and profits.

 
This can delay or interfere with the important larger business development efforts needed.

 
The majority of time and efforts may be dedicated to short-term fixes, daily issues and tasks with little time and effort available for the larger business development needs that are important.

 
Business development is a struggle and challenge under this situation.

This situation can create “Tunnel Vision” and “Selective Perception”.

 
Tunnel Vision is viewing things in a very narrow and select way, and not seeing things outside the narrow scope of vision.

Selective Perception is simply seeing or acknowledging only those things that you are thinking about most often and not seeing or thinking about anything else.

 
Keeping this in mind, ‘Selective Perception’ and ‘Tunnel Vision’ can keep staff busy on daily events, tasks, issues and pressures; but also keep them away from those things important to business development.

 
Staff’s minds just have no time left for anything outside of those daily tasks, pressures and issues.
Critical business development efforts and activities can suffer.

‘Selective Perception’ and ‘Tunnel Vision’ affects attention in a major way.

 
An example is; when you are thinking about purchasing a new car and start visiting automobile dealers looking at cars and looking at ads in the newspapers. 

 
The cars that you have the most interest now appear to be on the road more.

 
You become more aware of these cars and wonder if more people all of a sudden ran out to buy the car that you like.

 
Well, the cars were always there and you just did not notice them since you were not thinking about them.

 
When you start thinking about something more and actually start doing more activities around that thought, you see far more related to it than ever before.
 

Attention to such increases significantly.

There is a term called ‘Reticular Activation’ which relates to a part of the human brain.

 
When stimulating with overt and aggressive attention to things, individuals become more aware of those things. 

 
This area of the brain is associated to ‘getting things done’.

 
These natural phenomena can work for business development or against it.

Leadership and organizations can creatively utilize these natural phenomena to help stimulate business development.

 
If you and your staff are continually discussing business development in detail and working on activities related to it, far more attention and positive progress will happen.

 
Combine goals, objectives, assigned action items, time lines, measurements and aggressive incentives to such things; and business development and growth gets significantly stimulated.

 
Some individuals and organizations comment that they do some of business development fundamentals but not many.

 
In situations like this, they also comment that they are not as successful in business development as they should be.

 
I comment how this is similar to basic engineering and the importance of strong a footing, foundation, individual components and structure.

 
Without such there is weakness and eventual collapse.

 
The pineal gland in the brain produces and secretes a chemical called melatonin, which affects our biorhythms and how we feel.

 
It is known that the length of sunlight in a day affects humans.

 
A lack of sunlight for any length of time whether seasonal or geographical, affects our moods and feelings, and can stimulate depression and lack of motivation.

 
This is called ‘SAD Seasonal Affective Disorder’.

 
A psychologist may be able to help an organization manage this both within the organization and possibly externally out in the market with customers and clients.

 
This is similar to what happens with plants and the chemical of chlorophyll that they produce, depending on the length of sunlight in a day. 

 
The result of this affects the production of leaves and flowers or loss of them.

 
This is referred to as ‘photo periodic’.

 
Botanists and greenhouses with special sunlights can overcome this to help produce plants and flowers even in the winter season.

 
The scientific community has been studying what is often referred to as human vibes and feelings; people producing and emitting them and those receiving or feeling them.

 
In the scientific community this is referred to as ‘quantum entanglement’.

 
Metaphysics have studied this for a long time.

 
This is written about in the popular book called ‘The Secret’ which has become a common book to read in business.

 
A psychologist may be able to help an organization manage this within an organization and possibly externally in the marketplace with customers and clients.

 
All fundamentals and components of business development are important.

 
After a fuller understanding of “What Business Development Is All About”, leadership may comment how this costs money, time, appropriate staff with the right skills, possible outside resources and effort.

 
I can only respond to this with what Sigmund Freud once commented when asked, why if the cause for helping others and need for better mental health is so important and a noble cause to him, why doesn’t he do it for free.

 
He supposedly responded with, “You will only get better if you pay for it”.

 
You may look at this as meaning that you need sincere good attitudes and motivation to get better and succeed.

 
This is also similar to what adults told me as a child growing up and out-growing my bicycle.
 

As I grew taller and got a larger bicycle, I could pass my smaller bicycle onto some other child in the neighborhood.

 
Adults taught me not to just give it away and to always sell the bicycle for some amount of money, even if just a few dollars. 

 
This helps make sure that the next child sees value in the bicycle and takes good care of it. 
If not, I will eventually see my previous bicycle left out in the rain getting rusty and bent up because the next person lacked perceiving value in it.

 
Another important concept that everyone needs to be aware of is ‘The Rule of Ten’.

 
This concept is more of an understanding to a common business syndrome and phenomena that harms a business and dramatically hinders business development.

 
Simply explaining: ‘The Rule of Ten’ refers to common behavior of management staff to selectively hire others at skill levels below their own.

 
From a skill level ranking of one to ten with ten being the highest, there is a natural tendency for tens to hire nines and lower, nines to hire eights and lower, eights to hire sevens and lower, sevens to hire sixes and lower, and so on.

 
People tend to hire those at skill levels below their own, both consciously and unconsciously as a natural self-protection reaction to job security and ones own ego.

 
Again this can be both consciously and unconsciously.

 
As management staff with the higher skill levels leave an organization and those in the ranks are promoted up; a spiral down of skill levels in the organization can occur.

 
Such a situation obviously harms the organization and hinders business development and growth.

 
Of course, sometimes staff with higher level skills than their immediate supervisor can be hired but; during times of downsizing and right sizing, ‘The Rule of Ten’ can come alive and become dominant. 

 
Individuals with the higher skill levels can be targeted and be part of the layoffs as a way to re-align things in the order of  ‘The Rule of Ten’. 

 
Again, the phenomena can be both unconscious and conscious in nature since it is a self-protectionism behavior within individuals.

 
‘The Rule of Ten’ is a business syndrome that needs both the executive level and human resources management to put formal processes, procedures and measurements in place to manage this progressively and hopefully help to avoid this, as well.

 
This needs to transcend all internal political considerations.

 
Business and organizational internal politics is a natural tendency and certainly common in our culture and most others, as well.

 
Such progressive efforts need to be in place during both good business times and the not so good business times.

 
Let me suggest something that will help this situation.

 
Organizations’ senior executives and leaders need to make mandatory, all management and supervisory level staff to be continually participating in training and education; quarterly and semi annual.

 
The rationale is simple.

 
Getting all management and supervisory staff skill level increased will lessen the bad effects of ‘The Rule of 10′.

 
Why struggle with ‘mother nature’ or what seems to happen naturally with this ‘Rule of 10′?

 
Just use it and manage it to the organization’s best interest.

 
Do not let the lower skill levels drag an organization down via ‘The Rule of 10′.

 
Progressively help increase everyone’s skill levels, instead.

 
Instead of a spiral down in skills, create a spiral up in skills with mandatory aggressive continual training and education for all management and supervisory staff.

 
Yes, you may be able to reverse the common negative effects.

 
The cost of such is far less than what an organization is losing from the negative effects of ‘The Rule of 10′.

 
Keeping in mind fundamental behavioral psychology, we know that positive reinforcement is more affective and longer lasting, than negative reinforcement.

 
This fundamental should be applied in business.

 
Creative incentives and rewards of all types can be utilized for all levels of employees and staff to stimulate improvements, positive contributions and positive change.

 
Incentives and rewards do not always have to be money.

 
This can significantly help business organization to grow, implement positive changes and progressive strategies, gain cooperation and enthusiasm, and overcome any potential resistance.

 
Taking these thoughts forward; studies indicate that progressive business strategies and planned improvements that fail, are not due to them being wrong or flawed but actually due to them not being fully implemented in a timely manner.

 
The combination of positive incentives for such along with designated time lines will improve this situation.

 
People tend to want to be part of positive change, improvements and contribute to it.

 
Keeping this in mind, to gain people’s cooperation, willingness for positive change and maybe even get some personal positive contributions to such; a business organization needs to involve employees and staff early on in the process instead of dictating conformance once senior management decisions are made.

 
Getting employees and staff involved early on, will help gain support and contributions of major enhancements, as well.

 
Psychology teaches us that ‘personal awareness’ must happen before there is a willingness to get better and improve.

 
There is tremendous value and significance of continual education and training to help people and business organizations get ‘awareness’.

 
Without ‘awareness’ positive improvement and positive change may not happen.

 
Psychology teaches us that people seek meaningfulness and having a purpose.

 
Business organizations and employees need the same.

 
It is important that business leaders understand this.

 
Executives need to help create it along with employee ‘passion’ in the business organization, its importance and value.

 
Employees having a deep understanding of the organization’s value and a ‘passion’ for being apart of it, is very common in the more successful business organizations.

 
A fundamental in psychology is the human need to be ‘productive’.

 
Business organizations can easily tap into this fundamental need.

 
Just be creative in doing so.

 
Another fundamental is that individuals have a tendency to be resourceful when needed.

 
Again, this can easily be tapped into with employees’ participation in teams, soliciting employee’s ideas and thoughts with appropriate incentives/rewards programs established, getting employees active early on in potential change, improvements and more.

 
Executive leaders need to lead all of these efforts to help grow the business.

 
The last factor is senior leadership.

Senior leadership has three options;

 
1. Embrace these facts and aggressively support all that is needed for business development and growth

 
2. Look the other way, lending little support which in turn will hinder business development and growth

 
3. Get in the way with poor judgment and poor leadership, and of course hinder business development and growth

 
Senior leadership is the final key.

 
It is important that business development leadership comes from the top, the CEO and president of organization.

 
It is important that CEO’s understand business development fundamentals with many being listed here in this article.

 
CEO’s need to support business development efforts aggressively and hold staff accountable for such.
This is just as important as the P & L statement.

 
CEO’s need to understand clearly that business development is like a balloon or automobile tire.
 

There is continual environmental pressure on the balloon or tire causing it to naturally deflate.
 

You must continually be checking the air in them and be adding air when needed, to keep them fully inflated.

 
The same is for business development.

 
The CEO needs to be monitoring this closely to make sure all efforts remain full and aggressive. 

 
There are continual pressures of all kinds that will reduce business development efforts.

 
It is also important for CEO’s to be on the look out for ‘Business Psychoses’. 

 
This cripples organizations.

 
Senior executives and CEO’ s need to me more sensitive to how their life style, compensation and bonuses are being perceived by others especially if the business is struggling, if there are employee layoffs and any government bailout monies or subsidies are being paid.

 
This situation has become a major public issue with the struggling economics and the large corporation bailout monies from the US government.

 
Senior executives and CEO’s are now under extreme scrutiny and many watchful eyes.

 
Any perceived excess of such is now seen as ‘SCDD Social Conscience Deficit Disorder’.

As Albert Einstein once commented, “The only thing more dangerous than ignorance is arrogance”.

 
He also commented, “We cannot solve our problem with the same thinking that created them”.

As Tom Peters comments “There is a difference between being a CEO, Chief Executive Officer and a CDO, Chief Destruction Officer.  It often seems that it is easier to kill a business than change it.”

 
I have now shared with you

 
- the psychology of Business Development and Growth

 
- natural phenomena that can hinder or be utilized to help stimulate business development

- the simple methodology on how to overcome these natural obstacles to be successful with business development and growth

 
- the need for CEO’s to be active in stimulating business development efforts

One question still remains.

 
Now knowing just some of the psychology behind business and business development; would utilizing a psychologist or having senior level staff with psychology backgrounds help a CEO grow the business?

 
Discussing this subject should promote some very interesting conversations.

 
If you have further questions or need some help, you can give me a call or email.

 
Michael P. Marshall, PhD
Senior Specialist and Advisor for Business Development, Marketing and Sales
Tele. 920-734-8678
Email:  michaelmarshall@new.rr.com
www.AskTheBusinessDoctor.com

 
Michael has more than 30 years of business experience focusing on business development utilizing extensive skills in marketing, sales, and communications; both national and international.

This experience comes from starting at field staff level positions and then progressing up to senior level Director and Vice President positions in several industries and markets including medical and healthcare.

His expertise is also utilized in special advisory and consulting situations, as well.

Prior to his extensive 30-year business career, he studied advanced engineering and then transitioned to psychology and social human behavior.

He was a mental health counselor for several years in some major medical institutions prior to business.

In these endeavors he learned what makes people do what they do, what influences others, how to motivate positive behavioral change; and the importance to a strong foundation and the individual components in a structure.

Among the senior level positions held during his career, Michael was a vice president of marketing and business development for a healthcare organization.

Michael’s education and trainings include a PhD in business concentrating in marketing and business development, an MBA, bachelor degrees in psychology and social human behavior, advanced post graduate certification in medical and healthcare marketing from UCLA, formally trained in ‘Creativity and Out of The Box Thinking’, federally certified in international business.

He has over 35 formal trainings and certifications covering the fundamentals of business development, marketing, sales, communications, management and leading a business to significant sales and profit growth.

By
Michael Marshall, PhD

It is important that senior management and human resources management in the US understand this situation and possibly rethink their attitudes towards candidates that
they would possibly view as ‘over-qualified’ and eliminate from possibly hiring.

 
High unemployment has put many people into the job market who have high levels of education, trainings, skills and experience.

 
Concern, frustration and depression are evolving into personal anger.

 
These individuals are competing for the same jobs that others with less education, trainings, skills and experience are applying for.

 
Higher education, trainings, skills and experience are often associated with individuals further on with a professional career and older than those that are in the early stages of a career or those that simply lack such.

 
This often equates to age which is a factor protected under the US Federal EEOC Equal Employment Opportunities Commission.

On the employers’ side, one often hears:

1. We do not want to hire individuals with high levels of education, trainings, skills and experience for many job positions because their immediate supervisors and managers are at a much lower level with these things.

2. We do not want to hire such individuals because their immediate supervisors and managers would be younger than them.

3. We do not want to hire such individuals because they may want to speak up about suggestions and improving things.  Maybe we do not want to change anything or if we do, their immediate supervisors and managers would look poorly since they did not have the skills to know these things prior to this.

4. We do not want to hire such individuals because they would expect to be promoted to higher level positions eventually and we do not have such positions to promote them onto.

5. We do not want to hire such individuals because we will never pay them anywhere near what they once earned.  Once the economy gets better and more jobs are available, they will only leave us.

On the candidates’ side, one often hears;

1. We have a right to work and support my family. Discriminating against us for higher level skills, education and experience that correlates with age is wrong and against the law

2. In the United States, it is our culture to strive for higher education, skills, experience and competence.  If we achieve some of this, it is not right for employers to hold this against us.

3. We have spent a lot of money and time to get educated and trained.  The educational system never told us that this would be held against us one day and prevent us from getting a job

4. It is our right to have a job even if it is at a lower level and lower pay than we once had.  Viewing us as ‘over-qualified’ only to hire those at lower levels of education, training, skills and experience does not make any sense. It seems to be counter productive to organizations who want to survive and hopefully grow

5. You would think that organizations would want to hire the highest educated, trained, skilled and experienced individuals even at lower wages and lower position levels.  This should be viewed as a bargain for them that would give them an opportunity to help improve their business.

Not every job position opening situation is age related but many are.

 
Now, let’s proceed to a few more details that will only add more debate on this subject.
Employment applications often ask for dates of education, trainings and previous positions and employment.

 
Dates of such can easily infer age; not always but often.

 
At the bottom of applications sometimes there is something about if untruthful or if information is left off the application it can cause termination later.

 
Obviously such information can be helpful to qualify a candidate but it can also be used to disqualify them due to age.

 
If a formal complaint is filed with the EEOC for discriminations, such things can be viewed as discriminatory.

 
Many companies and organizations remove these things from their employment forms and process to avoid legal issues.

 
This is a growing sensitive situation.

 
In 2005 the US Supreme Court ruled that employers may be liable for ‘disparate impact’ age discrimination under the ADEA Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 even if they did not intend to.

 
The primary focus of the ADEA, Age Discrimination Employment Act of 1967, was for individuals 40 years of age and older and for both employees and for hiring.

 
This originally targeted employers with 20 or more employees.

 
As unemployment challenges continue, unemployed individuals with the higher level education, trainings, skills and experience are going to demand fair treatment under the United States EEOC  Equal Employment Opportunities Commission laws.

 
Under such there is formal recourse by a formal complaint to the US - EEOC where they will conduct formal investigations for any allegations or complaints and also by private retained attorneys.

 
Either of these will not be something that companies or organizations will like having to become involved in.

 
The FEPA Fair Employment Practices Agency also helps with age discrimination issues and complaints.
These laws apply to all business located within the US.

 
In 1996, 43 terminated employees from the Monsanto Corporation filed an age discrimination complaint with the EEOC and also filed a formal law suite through a private attorney.

 
In 1996, the EEOC settled with Monsanto for amounts ranging from $125,000. to $500,000. per each of these employees.

 
This settlement did not include the settlement amount reached by the private attorney that was retained.

 
Hiring individuals that are younger may be justified if they have higher education, more  training and have more experience.

 
Often, this is not the case though.

 
Not hiring or replacing older employers with younger individuals can be justified for safety reasons and ability to perform the job safely.

 
Despite federal and state laws prohibiting age discrimination, it still happens.
Formal statistics do not reflect the actual age discrimination.

 
To get a personal insight to this, just ask some people who are unemployed searching for a job position about how often they hear that they are ‘over-qualified’ for a job position.

Keep in mind that much of this is in violation of the age discrimination laws.

 
Get ready for a real surprise.  It is truly shocking and disturbing.

 
Can you imagine if everyone searching for a job position that is told that they are
‘over-qualified’ for the job position, actually filed a formal discrimination complaint or retained a private attorney and brought law suit.

 
The legal courts and the United States EEOC would get overwhelmed.

 
General perception is that age discrimination is commonplace well beyond formal statistics.

 
In the ‘fiscal year’ of 2008, the United States EEOC received about 24,582 formal age discrimination complaints, resolved 21, 415 and rendered financial settlements in favor of employees and candidates for hire, in the amount of 82.8 billion dollars.

United States EEOC Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ‘Annual’ Statistics:

 
            Number of Formal Age         Number of Settlements         Percentage of Complaints with
Year     Discrimination Complaints    Reached                          $ Amount Found To Need Settlement 
2004              17,837                              1,377                               $ 69 million           39.4 %

2005             16,585                               1,326                                  77.7 mil              47 %

2006             16,548                               1,417                                  51.5 mil              48.2 %

2007             19,103                               1,795                                  66.8 mil              48 %

2008             21,582                               1,974                                  82.8  mi              48.1 %

These numbers do not include the settlements from retained private attorneys and not include the out of court settlements from retained private attorneys either.

 
The actual numbers are higher.

 
The US is not alone with this issue.

 
Other countries also have laws prohibiting age discrimination and they too struggle with this issue.

 
In New Zealand that also has discrimination laws, 10% of formal discrimination complaints are age discrimination for various reasons and various situations.

 
Of the formal age discrimination complaints, 19% are for pre employment and 24% are for employees in active employment.

 
This is 43% of age discrimination formal complaints are job or employment related.

 
Of New Zealand’s formal age discrimination complaints;

1 %       0-15  years of age
3 %       16-17
3 %       18-19
7%        20-29
6 %       30-39
17%      40-49
30 %     50-59
17 %     60-64
15 %     65-69
1 %       70-74

Understanding this issue and possibly progressing companies’ and organizations’ attitudes of such may be a proactive approach to this rising situation and paradox.

Here are some questions and a rating scale to review and determine where your own company or organization is positioned on this subject or issue.

 
Just write in the points on each item that you qualify for.

 
0 to 10 points with 10 being the highest rating on each item

 
Add up your score and judge for yourself.

1. ______ 0 to 10 points  
The human resources director, senior executive (president or owner) and the senior management staff (VP’s directors, other upper management) have met to discuss this subject and issue extensively within the last 6-12 months with progressive efforts agreed to and implementation started

 
2. ______ 0 to 10 points
The human resources director has reviewed the employment applications and processes for anything that can be skill level and age discriminatory, and remove such items.
This needs to include recruiting, pre employment and current employee status.
Dates of education, trainings and previous employment on employment applications should be evaluated for removal because this can be considered discriminatory if a formal complaint of discrimination is filed with the United States EEOC.

 
3. ______ 0 to 10 points
A formal process with guidelines and measurements are in place to make sure the highest level of skills, experience, trainings and education of candidates regardless of age are being hired and not screened out due to ‘over-qualified attitudes’.

 
4. ______ 0 to 10 points
All hiring management and supervisory staff have been in training on this issue within the last twelve months.

 
5. ______ 0 to 10 points
To help overcome the natural tendency of staff to hire those below their own level of skills and education that is often associated to age, there is some type of an incentive program in place to encourage all supervisory and management staff to hire candidates above their own skill, experience and education levels, regardless of age. 

 
6. ______ 0 to 10 points
There is a program in place to utilize the skills and knowledge of new and current employees with higher level skills, experience and expertise, to contribute to the company or organization’s growth; especially with those of the higher age that may have such.
This to incorporate efforts to make sure the older individuals with higher levels of education, skills, expertise and experience are on committees.
The program also needs to have the proper recognition and adequate incentives for them.

 
7. ______ 0 to 10 points
There is an incentive program for the employees’ immediate supervisors and managers to promote the hiring of top level skills, experience and education regardless of age, even if such is higher than their own.
This will help gain the support and cooperation of supervisory staff and management.

 
8.  ______ 0 to 10 points
From an executive level, such things as formal mission statements and company values need to include the progressive approach and attitudes of hiring highest levels of education, skills and experience regardless of age.

 
9. ______ 0 to 10 points
All supervisory and management training programs to include discrimination laws and the company’s attitudes, compliance, processes and procedures to comply legally, ethically and morally

 
10. ______ 0 to 10 points
Utilizing an outside special consultant, conduct a formal annual review of all forms, processes and procedures for hiring and supervising of employees regarding discrimination.  This formal review is to include interviewing of all hiring supervisors and managers on this subject.

Score Results

 
80 to 100 points
Excellent attitudes and management    You are exemplary
You most likely are a growing company or organization

 
50 to 79 points
Good but from this list you now know what additional improvements you need to be implementing

 
20 to 49 points
You have a descent start with managing this issue but the above list will give you a road map and path as to the improvements you need to proceed with

 
1 to 19 points
Your company or organization started improving on this subject but somehow you have stopped      What happened?
You do have a potential for legal issues
Your growth is probably hindered and struggling
The above list gives the things that you need to consider implementing

 
0 points
You are positioned for legal problems
Your business growth is probably hindered and struggling far more than others
You need immediate improvement
The attached list gives you the things that you need to consider implementing

Michael P. Marshall, PhD
Senior Specialist and Advisor for Business Development, Marketing and Sales
Tele. 920-734-8678
Email:  michaelmarshall@new.rr.com
www.AskTheBusinessDoctor.com
Michael has more than 30 years of business experience focusing on business development utilizing extensive skills in marketing, sales, and communications; both national and international.
This experience comes from starting at field staff level positions and then progressing up to senior level Director and Vice President positions in several industries and markets including medical and healthcare.
His expertise is also utilized in special advisory and consulting situations, as well.
Prior to his extensive 30-year business career, he studied advanced engineering and then transitioned to psychology and social human behavior.
He was a mental health counselor for several years in some major medical institutions prior to business.
In these endeavors he learned what makes people do what they do, what influences others, how to motivate positive behavioral change; and the importance to a strong foundation and the individual components in a structure.
Among the senior level positions held during his career, Michael was a vice president of marketing and business development for a healthcare organization.
Michael’s education and trainings include a PhD in business concentrating in marketing and business development, an MBA, bachelor degrees in psychology and social human behavior, advanced post graduate certification in marketing from UCLA, formally trained in ‘Creativity and Out of The Box Thinking’, federally certified in international business.
He has over 35 formal trainings and certifications covering the fundamentals of business development, marketing, sales, communications, management and leading a business to significant sales and profit growth.

By Michael Marshall, PhD    ‘TheBusinessDoctor’

Many individuals that may be viewed as intelligent, smart, and brilliant may not be as open to new ideas and solutions as people would think they are.

Look at Albert Einstein who refused medical treatment for a large growth in his abdomen and died from it.

He refused surgery to remove the fast growing tumor and commented that he did not believe in artificially extending life.

This is similar to business leaders and management staff stuck in their own attitudes and ideas, and the need for new solutions and new ideas to keep the business healthy and grow the business.

If the business is unwilling to seek out and welcome new ideas and change, it can die.

Much scientific and medical advancement have come from other fields of study and from ‘serendipity’, just simple luck.

The same applies to business development, marketing, product development and services.

Organizations and individuals need to be on the look out to utilize thoughts, ideas and solutions from other fields to apply to their own.

Generally, this comes from several ways including;

One;

From staff having extensive education, trainings and experience in many areas

Two;

From a team approach utilizing all staff and employees to contribute ideas, thoughts and solutions and a formal program with progressive incentives to simulate this

Three;

Recruiting management level staff and employees from outside your industry and market to bring in new ideas and thoughts

Four;

Actively asking customers and clients for their ideas and thoughts for possible improvements and advancements

Five;

Seeking out new ideas and thoughts from other markets and industries

Advancing how to grow bacteria in laboratory petri dishes and slides came from seeing how people make and preserve jelly and jam.

Advancing the knowledge of bacteria came from the study of dirt.

When doctors trying to study bacteria talked to those scientists who studied dirt that has bacteria in it, a break through in studying bacteria and treatment of it happened.

Using the medication of Dramamine for travel sickness came from using it for another illness that it was intended.

After patients using Dramamine for another illness came back to their doctors to comment that their travel sickness went away while using it, then did doctors realize that Dramamine was an effective treatment for travel sickness.

The advancement on medically treating Salmonella poisoning in people came from studying Salmonella in chickens and eggs.

Accidentally it was uncovered that individuals with various mental illnesses who

came down with Malaria and treated with the medication Quinine, their mental illness improved and cleared.

Using Quinine for some mental illness became a break though in medicine.

Using Coumarin medication to thin blood for heart patients came from studying cows bleeding into their milk from eating sweet clover as food. 

Coumarin was a substance found in sweet clover after it died and soured to be used as cattle feed

Later a brand name of this was marketed as a medication for people. 

You know this as Coumadin.

Those chewing Aspergum that has aspirin in it, for sore throats, it was observed that side affects was the thinning of blood and bleeding gums inside the mouth.

This led to using the common aspirin for heart patients needing to keep their blood thinner.

Did you ever think about how the latex surgical glove got developed?

It came from surgical doctors’ skin being harmed and irritated from using disinfectant chemicals to sterilize their hands prior to surgery.

A doctor contacted a company that made gloves and asked them if they could develop surgical gloves from latex.

Velcro came from someone with a pet dog.

He studied common burrs getting stuck in their dog’s hair.

He looked at it under a microscope and thought of applying applied it to fabric and other materials.

Teflon coated kitchen pots and pans have an interesting story.

Dupont Corporation developed Teflon for industrial and military applications.

Supposedly one of their engineers had a friend who was an engineer in France. 

This French engineer heard about Teflon and got some from his engineer friend at Dupont to apply to his personal fishing equipment to make it more waterproof.

This French engineer’s wife heard of this from her husband and used it on her kitchen cooking pots and pans

She could cook without butter and grease and food would not stick.

Next thing is that they opened a small factory and sold pots and pans coated with Teflon in France.

The business went well.

Supposed they had a friend that was an American journalist who visited them. 

She cooked him a breakfast on the Teflon coated pots and pans without having to use lots of butter and grease.

He loved the breakfast.

Upon learning about the Teflon coated pots and pans he decided to personally market them in the United States.

The story goes on to say that he approached Macy’s department store in New York and they agreed to some amount for a first purchase. 

The store sold out within two days, had to order more immediately and Teflon coated pots and pans went on to become poplar in the United States.

We can go on with thousands of stories on how scientific and medical breakthroughs came from having an open mind for ‘creativity and outside the box thinking’ and willingness to seek out information from other fields and expertise.

Again, the same applies to business development, marketing, product development, services and contributing to growing a business organization.

Studies indicate that brilliant ideas, thoughts and solutions can lay dormant and unconscious in individuals’ mind for a length of time, even many years until one day these thoughts emerge to the conscious level to be recognized and be so compelling to

be acted upon.

Many individuals have woken up from a sleep with brilliant thoughts, ideas and solutions to a variety of things only to comment later that they had some passing thoughts on these several years prior but only now the thoughts are clear and compelling.

This shows that knowledge does not stale and get lost.

Knowledge can re-emerge and be utilized.

When people ask me how they can uncover new ideas and thoughts from other fields and other areas of expertise, I normally reply that you need to go ask them.

This can easily be accomplished by targeted networking in business, networking while participating in continual education and training, and by attending trade shows in other markets and networking there.

Asking others about the marketing, sales, business development, product development numerous other challenges that they encounter in their market or industry and what they have done, may bring fresh new ides, new thoughts and new solutions to you.

Accomplishing this is quite simple.

Many have asked me how I uncover this information and insights.

Besides extensive education, trainings and experience in several markets, I have a psychology and behavioral health background.

This unique combination has proven to be quite effective in marketing, business development and growing business.

As Albert Eistein stated; “We cannot solve problems with the same thinking that created them.”

If you have further questions or need some help, you can give me a call or email.

Michael P. Marshall, PhD

Senior Specialist and Advisor for Business Development, Marketing and Sales

Tele. 920-734-8678

Email:  michaelmarshall@new.rr.com

www.AskTheBusinessDoctor.com

Michael has more than 30 years of business experience focusing on business development utilizing extensive skills in marketing, sales, and communications; both national and international.

This experience comes from starting at field staff level positions and then progressing up to senior level Director and Vice President positions in several industries and markets including medical and healthcare.

His expertise is also utilized in special advisory and consulting situations, as well.

Prior to his extensive 30-year business career, he studied advanced engineering and then transitioned to psychology and social human behavior.

He was a mental health counselor for several years in some major medical institutions prior to business.

In these endeavors he learned what makes people do what they do, what influences others, how to motivate positive behavioral change; and the importance to a strong foundation and the individual components in a structure.

Among the senior level positions held during his career, Michael was a vice president of marketing and business development for a healthcare organization.

Michael’s education and trainings include a PhD in business concentrating in marketing and business development, an MBA, bachelor degrees in psychology and social human behavior, advanced post graduate certification in medical and healthcare marketing from UCLA, formally trained in ‘Creativity and Out of The Box Thinking’, federally certified in international business.

He has over 35 formal trainings and certifications covering the fundamentals of business development, marketing, sales, communications, management and leading a business to significant sales and profit growth.

By
Michael Marshall, PhD
‘The Business Doctor’

This is an important subject for business, marketing, sales, business development, planning and strategy, product development, customer service and profitability.

 
This sentence should cover the general business development aspect.

 
There is some debate about how much a business should diversify as to markets, customers, clients and geography versus specializing to try and create value and efficiency.

 
I suggest to you that this debate is more of an interesting business conversation than the possibility of having negative affects on business.

 
To stay profitable and for progressive business development; all businesses and organizations need a mix of customers, clients and markets.

 
It is this simple and no debate is needed.

 
The question is how diverse one should progress until you reach some negative affects.

 
I suggest that you would need to be fairly extreme to reach any harm to the business; so one should not be fearful of diversifying as long as it makes business sense and ‘horse sense’ so to say and does not chase away healthy existing business.

 
A mix helps to over come the ups and downs of market niches, customers and clients.

 
A mix shares products, services and expertise to those who can utilize them and hopefully at business efficiencies.

 
Such ‘a mix’ approach is important to all businesses, organizations with all products, services and markets.

 
Yes, this is important to all businesses and organizations.

 
What drives or stimulates your market mix include;

1. products

2. services

3. marketing

4. geographic and location of the business

 
You may have noticed geographic and location of the business as a contributing factor to the mix.

 
This can be a factor with attracting specific types of customers or clients.
Such reasons include:

1. cost of transportation of products if the products are heavy in weight and costly to ship

2. location or concentration of largest customers or clients or accounts if they prefer to
work with those closer to them

 
Any products or services not being marketed aggressively or marketing efforts not targeting the appropriate target audience, is not achieving the potential sales or business revenue.

 
Correcting this can increase business, expand your customer and client mix and can lead you into a new market.

 
Manipulating the products and services offered, marketing and geographic location of the business, can affect the customer/client/market mix and business revenue; positively or negatively.

 
Most businesses and organizations fail to pay attention to this business fundamental and in so doing or lack of doing, hinder business growth.

 
A mix can be size of customer, sales/revenue amount from the customers or clients, type of customer or client, products or services they receive from you, applications, customer special needs, geographical areas, markets, niche markets, length of payment or type of payment possibly, sales cycle time and several other criteria.

 
Be creative with such criteria for the ‘mix’.

 
Looking at the ‘mix’ in this way is similar to the business fundamental of ‘market and customer segmentation’.

 
Another way to understand this is to vision a large diamond in your hand that represents your customers, clients, accounts and markets plus all those that you have potential in.

 
Hold it up to the sunlight and slowly turn the diamond.

 
Just like the diamond with its many facets and colors reflecting off the sunlight, you should see the many types of customers and markets both those you currently have and those with potential.

 
Using this diamond to explain this helps most people understand fairly quickly.

 
This should be stimulating some ideas in your mind as to possible niches; customers and clients, markets, geographic segments and a possible better ‘mix’ that can help grow your business.

 
This approach can also positively affect up-selling and cross-selling within current customers, clients and markets.

 
All business organizations need to be evaluating this several times a year.

 
During such evaluations, participating staff need some training in this along with ‘creativity’, and ‘outside the box thinking’.

 
Part of ‘creativity’ and ‘outside the box thinking’ is knowing that you do not have all of the answers and you need to be asking many others for inputs and suggestions.

 
This is one of the keys for business development.

 
This subject is obviously important and management needs extensive training on this.

 
Regarding the length of time to train on this subject;
it can be in hours, days or more, depending on how extensive one wants to get, how interactive one wants and what extent one wants current business situations evaluated along with progressive business development suggestions and ideas developed.

 
I have deliberately kept this article brief since it is fundamental to business growth, marketing and business stability.

 
If you would like to discuss further, feel free to contact me directly by telephone or email.

 
Michael P. Marshall, PhD
Executive Advisor for Business Development, Marketing and Sales
Tele. 920-734-8678
Email:  michaelmarshall@new.rr.com
www.AskTheBusinessDoctor.com

 
Michael has more than 30 years of business experience focusing on business development utilizing extensive skills in marketing, sales, and communications; both national and international.

 
This experience comes from starting at field staff level positions and then progressing up to senior level Director and Vice President positions in several industries and markets including medical and healthcare.

 
His expertise is also utilized in special advisory and consulting situations, as well.

 
Prior to his extensive 30-year business career, he studied advanced engineering and then transitioned to psychology and social human behavior. 

 
In these endeavors he learned what makes people do what they do, what influences others, how to motivate positive behavioral change; and the importance to a strong foundation and the individual components in a structure.

 
Michael’s education and trainings include a PhD in business concentrating in marketing and business development, an MBA, bachelor degrees in psychology and social human behavior, advanced post graduate certification in medical and healthcare marketing from UCLA, formally trained in ‘Creativity and Out of The Box Thinking’, federally certified in international business.

 
He has over 35 formal trainings and certifications covering the fundamentals of business development, marketing, sales, communications, management and leading a business to significant sales and profit growth.

INTERVIEWER

You have an extensive psychology and social human behavior background along with business.

 
What do you think about the current economic and business situation in regards to how these things are affecting people and how people may react?

 
REPLY

People are reacting to these economic times in a variety of ways but over time their reaction, attitudes and behavior will change.

INTERVIEWER

Please explain how their attitudes and behavior will change over time.

REPLY

As more people struggle financially over a longer time from unemployment, possible loss of home, lack of obtaining adequate healthcare due to unemployment, using up all of their savings due to unemployment, house mortgage being well above current value creating insecurity, reading and hearing about the economic times in newspapers and other media, hearing about excessive corporate executive greed, seeing other people suffer and the many other things; civility and tolerance may decrease.

 
People may become angry and desire to strike out against those that they believe are part of the cause of these things.

 
Crime may increase.

 
There can be a mistrust of the banks, stock market, investments, business executives, business organizations, employers, government, politicians and many other things.

 
After people are depressed for a while, frustration and anger may rise.

 
Social unrest can be a result of this and such unrest can become significant if a large number of people are suffering.

 
The government most likely is aware of this and will act aggressively to improve things to avoid social unrest.

 
This is a serious situation.

INTERVIEWER

You mention frustration, anger and striking out.

 
This sounds very serious.

 
With the news about corporate executives taking large amounts of money in salaries and bonuses in the millions of dollars while their organizations suffer, lays off people; and possibly get government bailout money; how will people react to this?

REPLY

Obviously, many will be frustrated and angry.

 
If the economy and unemployment do not improve fast enough, there can be some very serious social unrest and possibly some directed at individuals.

 
This is why it is important for the government to make alliances with academics, experts in many fields and businesses to uncover the best actions to take for improving things quickly and implement immediately.

 
A true joint effort from many people will be needed to accomplish this.

 
When people who are hurting, frustrated and angry, see such effort and actions, they may exert more civility until things get better for them.

INTERVIEWER

Regarding some senior executives getting millions of dollars of money while employees suffer and people are being layed-off, do you think there will be changes with this and how will people react to such?

REPLY
Besides the normal frustration and anger, there could be some serious social unrest with this situation, as we mentioned.

 
I do think there will be some major corporate reforms and positive social reforms on this.

 
Public corporations may be forced to scale back excessive executive compensation for public relations reasons and for the demands from their stockholders.

 
Possibly Wall Street may devalue company stock price/value based on excessive executive compensation.

 
Most people are viewing this situation as excessive greed and I believe in the near future such excessive greed will have a psychological or sociological name or term attached to it just like other illnesses such as; obesity, anorexia, alcoholism, drug addiction, smoking addiction, ADD attention deficit disorder, psychopath and the many other terms we hear of.

 
Who knows; maybe it will be labeled ‘greedism’,  ’social conscience deprivation’ or ‘SCDD social conscience deficit disorder’ and a special therapy developed to treat it.

INTERVIEWER

What other affects and changes do you see coming?

REPLY

I think there are many changes coming including people changing their personal attitudes and living style.

 
I believe that more people will start saving more and paying more with cash instead of using so much credit.

 
Using too much credit to live on has proven to be harmful.

 
I believe people will change their life style, vehicle they drive, vacations they take, various consumer spending and house they live in, based far more on financial considerations instead of ego, self gratifications and image.

 
INTERVIEWER

Now that the US government is promoting education and higher education and willing to financially support it, what effects do you see from this?

REPLY

I am in strong support of this and wish there was even more support.

 
I know this to be important for the US economy, business growth, staying competitive in the world market, culture growth, knowledge evolution and advancement of so many important things.

 
Maybe the negative phrase of ‘over-qualified’ will disappear and not be used any more.

 
Possibly business organizations will hire the highest skilled and educated people instead of only those at the lowest cost that have lower skills and lower education but may barely scrape by.

 
Possibly business organizations will develop programs that promote more education and trainings for employees.

 
Maybe more people will be able to attend college and various training.

 
The academic world views the business world as lacking higher education in solid fundamentals and not applying them, contributing to business struggles and failures.

 
The business world views academics as not having real world business experience.

 
Possibly these two worlds will work together far more.

 
I can speak on about this subject for hours.

INTERVIEWER

You appear very passionate on this subject of the importance of higher education and continual training.

REPLY

I am.

INTERVIEWER

Have shared any of your ideas and thoughts about how to improve the economy, improve business and any of this information that you just discussed with the US government.

REPLY

Yes

I have had communications with several in the US Congress.

INTERVIEWER

What have they said about ithings?

REPLY

Some in the US Congress appear to understand the many causes contributing to all of this and the action needed to improve things.

 
Others Congress people appear not to have a good understanding and do not believe that the government should be an active participant in correcting problems and helping to improve the economy

INTERVIEWER

I am surprised to hear that some in the Congress are not knowledgeable about the economic problems and supporting aggressive corrective actions to improve things.

REPLY

This amazes me as well.

 
When their time comes for re-election, hopefully the US Citizens in their district votes appropriately to correct the situation.

INTERVIEWER

Well, time is up.

 
We appreciate you sharing your ideas, thoughts and insights with us.