In the realm of business operations, efficiency and effectiveness are not merely goals; they are imperatives for sustained success. Establishing robust operational processes and precise measurement systems is crucial. Here’s how organisations can streamline their operations and enhance their decision-making capabilities.

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Too many New Zealand businesses are too humble and try to grow in secret. We need to defeat the ‘tall poppy’ syndrome of NZ business. In the competitive landscape of modern business, must be bold and have a clear market focus and a strong branding strategy is essential. Companies must not only understand their addressable market and competitors but also truly know and connect with their target audience. Here’s how businesses can refine their market focus and elevate their branding to stand out and succeed.

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We discovered that businesses often struggle with a lack of clear vision, strategy, and goals. This absence of clarity hampers their ability to effectively execute strategies and prioritise efforts. Consequently, this results in misalignment, leading to the inefficient allocation of scarce resources to areas that do not add value. Here are six themes that business leaders have identified to help mitigate these issues:

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42% of businesses indicated that they lacked adequate staff capability and expertise in essential roles. They found it challenging to recruit and retain qualified staff and were unable to identify crucial training and growth opportunities. This shortfall in capacity presents challenges in managing workloads and obstructs the scaling efforts of businesses. Here are five concepts that help mitigate these challenges and allow business to sustainably grow and succeed:

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We discovered that businesses often struggle with a lack of clear vision, strategy, and goals. This absence of clarity hampers their ability to effectively execute strategies and prioritise efforts. Consequently, this results in misalignment, leading to the inefficient allocation of scarce resources to areas that do not add value. Here are six themes that business leaders have identified to help mitigate these issues:

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Commonly, business leaders struggle with undefined roles and responsibilities, resulting in a lack of accountability. This often leads to inconsistent decision-making and unclear direction. Additionally, leadership development and succession planning tend to be neglected in favor of daily operational tasks. From our research here are 6 key themes the business leaders have identified to help address these.

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We have recently unveiled some insightful analysis from a comprehensive study of 75 medium-sized businesses (MSBs) in New Zealand. These businesses, defined by their staff numbers ranging from 20 to 150+ employees and annual revenues of $5m to $30m, play a pivotal role in the nation's economy. This blog is the first in a series of blogs we will release on our findings.

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We are constantly asked what we are seeing across the many businesses and many industries that we are supporting with Strategic Advice. We work closely alongside 10 strategic partners and also seek their insights. This is at the Board and Executive level for Strategy, Strategy Implementation and Executive Leader Development.

This video gives a snapshot of our and our partners, insights as of May 2024.
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At a presentation for the Canterbury Institute of Directors, I delved into the intriguing world surrounding "The Signals of Strategy Implementation." It was a deep dive into the visible and hidden hurdles that can stymie an organisation's strategic ambitions. The crux of the discussion? How Boards of Directors can spot these obstacles early and navigate around them, ensuring the company's strategic objectives are met whilst enabling the CEO & Management team to take action.
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In the ever-evolving landscape of medium-sized businesses, crafting a coherent and effective strategy can be a perplexing challenge. It often pays to back a central idea instead of spreading yourself too thin across various concepts.
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Small businesses form the backbone of economies worldwide, serving as catalysts for innovation, job creation, and community development. However, in today's rapidly evolving landscape, small businesses face a host of mega-trends that can either propel them to success or present significant challenges
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Creating strategic plans to win in your market is actually the easy bit! What we hear all too often, is that mid-level managers are left in the dark about the plan. This article will discuss how middle managers serve to play a critical role in medium-sized business success by communicating vision, values and strategy to their team members and ensuring that they are successfully implemented.
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No one sets out to be someone's bad leadership reference point, it just happens. So, how are you going to ensure you don't end up being a poor leadership story that is told through those below you? .
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Are you flexing your business leadership style to suit the situation? There are so many articles that try to position leadership versus management, it’s a leader versus a boss etc. However these ‘either or’ are traps for leaders which in all likelihood leave leaders bewildered and feeling that they are letting the side down. The truth is that leaders need to be able to draw on a spectrum of approaches and management styles to suit any given situation.
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In today's rapidly changing business landscape, effective board succession planning is more crucial than ever. It involves identifying, developing, and transitioning capable leaders to ensure continuity, innovation, and sustained success.
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Succession planning is an essential part of any business’s effective governance. It’s a process that helps ensure the continuity of leadership and the stability of an organisation, no matter what challenges it might face.
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