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By: Kathy Kent Toney, CEO & Founder of Kent Business Solutions  Image by rawpixel on Freepik Many of us have experienced the unfortunate situation where we have let down a client or colleague by not delivering as promised. Ugh, it’s certainly not a great feeling, especially if you lost their trust or their business. There is a better way! You can help prevent similar situations from occurring again by doing two things. I’m sure you’ve heard these “two things” many times before, but I know for me, I like to listen to things repeatedly to remind me of their importance. Here they are: Under-Promise and Over-Deliver There are a couple of ways to go about this: 1. Deliver More than What's Expected Here’s a good example: I worked with a local manufacturer to develop a Voice of the Customer process for product development purposes. We had developed the process and realized that automating it would be optimal. At the time, we hadn’t planned on doing this. The CEO asked me to look for process automation platforms that would work for our application. When we investigated the currently available platforms, there were no cost-effective options. My client wrote off the idea; however, I saw how important this was to them, so I told them I’d try to create a semi-automated one. For a very reasonable price, I created a PDF process map with links that sent them to whatever documents or systems they needed in the process so that they’d have everything they needed right there at their fingertips. The CEO was so thrilled with the result! It wasn’t anything they expected, and that made me very happy as well! 2. Deliver Earlier than What's Expected This idea is self-explanatory, but here’s another example: Whenever I’m buying something on eBay, I’m always thrilled when it’s something I needed yesterday, and I get it much sooner than promised. If you can do this with your clients, they’ll most likely love that as well! 3. Deliver More and Earlier Than What's Expected Who doesn’t like getting something beyond what they expect before they expect it? Providing both aspects with your deliveries, especially regularly, will help drive customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. So, in the end, the philosophy of under-promising and over-delivering your products and services to customers can reap enormous dividends for your company. And who doesn’t want that? # # # One topic that many of us have been hearing a lot about lately is the Metaverse. Are you curious to know how it will impact your business? Well, you are in luck! I interviewed Tony Moroney on this topic for my Elevate Your Profitability podcast. He is with the Digital Transformation Lab at Cork University in Ireland. I'd love for you to check it out!
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By: Kathy Kent Toney, CEO & Founder of Kent Business Solutions  Image by Emslichter from Pixabay Have you ever had a teenage road trip that you'll never forget? Well, here's my story and a description of how it, unfortunately, resembles the digital journeys of many organizations. Back when I was attending college in southern Iowa, I searched for the cheapest way to get home for Christmas. I settled on a non-stop carpool to Los Angeles with one other girl and two guys, traveling in an old Karmann Ghia. Little did I know how rough the journey would be! Here's a sampling of what went wrong on that trip:
It's a miracle I arrived home safe! So, what does this have to do with any business topic? It's this: Many companies start their digital transformation journeys with just a wing and a prayer like ours. They start excited about the trip and encounter severe problems along the road. They may attempt to bolt things on to keep things from breaking further. Or, they may continue to forge ahead when something that's broken, and they limp toward their goal. Much like my difficult trip, they may reach their destination, but it either took too long or cost them way too much to get there, OR they're in the unfortunate place where they never arrive at their desired endpoint. If you're starting a digital transformation journey and want to ensure you arrive at your destination with great results, then check out some lessons learned on this topic based on my eventful trip: 1. Chose the Right Solution/Approach So You'll Reach Your Desired Destination An old, not-well-maintained Karmann Ghia was not a good choice for our trip, and it never dawned on my teenage brain to ask the owner how safe the car was. Lessons Learned: When choosing a digital transformation platform, do your due diligence upfront.
If you do this before you even start, there's a greater likelihood you'll stay on time, within budget, and achieve great results. 2. Ensure Your Team Remains Engaged Throughout the Project Our "team" was pretty engaged in reaching our goal, except for me. This trip was a disaster in my eyes, and I didn't want ANYTHING to do with helping to solve the problems. The owner, however, had to be—it was his car and responsibility to provide us transportation home. Lessons Learned: As a team leader, you know it's your responsibility to help the team effectively arrive at the destination. If they don't see the process working well, you'll encounter detractors (like how I was on my trip). So, exploring the best ways to keep your team engaged is a good idea. 3. Celebrate Your Victories Along the Way At times, it looked like we'd never get home. That's why it was a mini-celebration every time the car was up and running! Lessons Learned: Whenever your team reaches a significant milestone, reward them with a small token of your appreciation, such as letting them leave a couple of hours early one day. That will work wonders for increasing team satisfaction and moving forward to accomplish the end goal. These ideas are just the tip of the iceberg to help you on your digital transformation journey. It's certainly not an easy road to travel, and having experts at your disposal can make all the difference in the world! If you'd like to learn how to successfully navigate your digital transformation journey, check out Michael Cantu's and my best-selling book on Amazon, No-Nonsense Digital Transformation. To learn more, click the button below! By: Kathy Kent Toney, CEO & Founder of Kent Business Solutions  Image by Tumisu from Pixabay As business leaders, we make multiple decisions every day; therefore, it takes diligence and sometimes reminders of how important it is to choose right instead of wrong courses of action when making those decisions. For that very reason, I'd like to share with you a quick primer from famous leaders on how to strengthen your personal integrity. # # # Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody’s going to know whether you did it or not. Oprah Winfrey In the end you should always do the right thing even if it’s hard. Nicholas Sparks People with integrity do what they say they are going to do. Others have excuses. Zig Ziglar Integrity is the ability to stand by an idea. Ayn Rand Have the courage to say no. Have the courage to face the truth. Do the right thing because it is right. These are the magic keys to living your life with integrity. W. Clemente Stone Admitting one’s own faults is the first step to changing them, and it is a demonstration of true bravery and integrity. Philip Johnson As I have said, the first thing is to be honest with yourself. You can never have an impact on society if you have not changed yourself. Great peacemakers are all people of integrity, of honesty, but humility. Nelson Mandela Leading with integrity and empathy requires vision and a connection to your deepest self. Karla McLaren One of your most prized possessions is integrity; if this is you, then you should never compromise it. Byron Pulsifer Make living your life with absolute integrity and kindness your first priority. Richard Carlson Live so that when your children think of fairness, caring, and integrity, they think of you. H. Jackson Brown, Jr. The wind might cause a kite to rise, but what keeps it up there is the fact that somebody on the ground has a steady hand. You have to hold steady to your values – your integrity. It’s your anchor. You let go of that. . . well, it isn’t long before your kite comes crashing down. Mark Victor Hansen and Robert G. Allen Integrity is the ingredient that will enable you to forge rapidly ahead on the highway that leads to success. It advertises you as being an individual who will always come through. Whatever you say you will do, do it even if you have to move heaven and earth. Mary Kay Walk with honor, character, and integrity in all that you do. Do these things and you will find that you can appreciate the adventure of life and live with greater ease. Shawn L. Anderson I believe in integrity. Dogs have it. Humans are sometimes lacking it. Cesar Milan # # # Unfortunately, this last quote too often rings true. But if we, as business leaders, more consistently embrace integrity as an essential personal value, we could transform our business communities for the better. Speaking of transformation, that’s what I love to do with businesses. In fact, I have a podcast dedicated to business transformation called Elevate Your Profitability! Sound intriguing? If so, click the button below to hear a pod where I interview Tony Moroney with the Digital Transformation Lab at Cork University in Ireland. In it, we discuss the benefits of digital transformation. I'd love for you to check it out! By: Kathy Kent Toney, CEO & Founder of Kent Business Solutions  Image by Kampus Productions on Pexels Consultants over the years have earned a bad rap. One thing I've heard frequently is this: Consultants are too expensive, and their engagements don't often empower businesses with self-sufficiency when they leave the engagement. No wonder businesses hesitate to hire consultants! Consultants love a steady stream of income. But that's not a good thing when they do this at the expense of businesses by keeping their fingers in the proverbial pie. I’m illustrating this point because it details a need most customers and clients crave--empowerment to solve their issues and chart their journeys. They don't want to keep hiring consultants to solve their challenges. Ultimately, if consultants or any business can build self-sufficiency as a part of their products and services, they'll deliver incredible customer value! Here are two examples of how I do this with my clients. The first one involved developing a Scrum process for a local manufacturer. The second engagement involved creating a Voice of the Customer process for another local manufacturer. In both instances, I ensured they had all the necessary tools, procedures, and an action item list that contained all outstanding items requiring attention upon my exit. Both projects were a resounding success, and neither client needed to call me back to help solve any challenges related to their particular projects. One CEO said he would hire me again because I empowered them to chart their destinies, which differentiated me from other consultants with whom he had previously worked. I'm giving you these examples because two principles apply, even if you're not a consulting company. Here are two things you can do to build self-sufficiency with your customers: Ensure Everything They Need to be Successful-- During Their Buyer Journey Your buyer journey should be a seamless experience for your customers or clients. Anything you can do to make the process a pleasant experience for them is certainly beneficial. Automated tools ensure customer interactions happen when needed, and the right system can deliver information at the right time to the right people. After the Engagement is Over Ensure your how-to guides or any other information they need to succeed are thorough and easy to understand. If that doesn't happen, your customer service agents could receive too many calls, and your customers might get frustrated. Ultimately, the idea is to empower your customers or clients throughout the process. When businesses can do this, they'll deliver incredible value to their customers or clients! And who doesn't want that? # # # Speaking of empowering your customers, workflow automation tools excel at that. Their use enables employees to engage in higher-level functions by removing mundane tasks so that these tasks no longer consume countless hours of their valuable time. In our best-selling book, No-Nonsense Digital Transformation, Michael Cantu and I discuss this concept extensively. It provides a step-by-step roadmap on how to prepare for and implement digital transformation initiatives in your business. If you’re interested in learning more, click the button below! By: Kathy Kent Toney, CEO & Founder of Kent Business Solutions  Image by jcomp on Freepik As business leaders, we've heard of disastrous stories of companies that have experienced digital transformation failures. Countless companies begin their transformation journeys with high hopes and grand plans yet often don't achieve their goals. But then, there's another end of the spectrum where companies know projects will fail from the beginning! Check this out: a series of studies conducted by several heavy hitters (the likes of McKinsey, Oxford University, and KPMG) revealed that 70% of all respondents said they knew an IT project they were about to start would fail from the onset. With all these grim realities, how does a business leader ensure success from the onset? One way to do it is to prevent those things that could go wrong. Along those lines, here are the three top reasons why digital transformation initiatives fail, all from a people perspective: 1. Wrong Mindsets Good mojo flows down from the top of an organization, and if the CEO isn't supportive of transformative IT initiatives, success will be hard to achieve. So it's essential to have support from the top. Also, when companies continue to keep employees on board who are resistant to change and can sabotage change efforts, this can cause problems. 2. Wrong Culture IT projects will fail if an organization has too many siloed departments and minimal collaboration. It's essential to establish an atmosphere of cooperation. When an organization can foster an attitude that everyone can win with the proposed new technology, that's a game-changer. Without effective change management systems along those lines, end-user acceptance will suffer. Finally, if management does a poor job of encouraging an environment where team members are free to be themselves and can voice feedback without repercussions, chances for success are minimized. 3. Wrong Talent Not having the right talent mix for your team can impede your efforts. For instance, a team leader who doesn't do a good job assessing their internal human capital and filling skill gaps will suffer in the end. Also, when team leaders don't include team members during the interview process with prospective hires, the potential for friction in the team increases. You want to ensure new members can easily integrate into the team. One undervalued idea is to have highly skilled team members who have experienced firsthand failed initiatives. That way, they can bring their expertise and knowledge of what doesn't work on projects. I've only scratched the surface of three possible reasons digital transformation efforts can fail, all from the people side of things. So, there's so much more to learn! Michael Cantu and I detail what it takes to ensure project success in our best-selling Amazon book, No-Nonsense Digital Transformation. If you're interested in learning more, click the button below! By: Kathy Kent Toney, CEO & Founder of Kent Business Solutions  Image by pressfoto on Freepik I spoke with someone the other day who mentioned they are seeing more blogs and articles around Digital Transformation (DX). There’s a good reason for that! Forward-looking companies are embracing DX to remain competitive, and for a good reason. Here are some eye-opening statistics:
With this in mind, companies that don’t embrace DX efforts can experience the following consequences: 1. Inability to Meet Customer Expectations Here’s a perfect example of how not embracing DX can lead to disaster: Years ago, many of us were more than willing to hop in the car to grab a movie at Blockbuster, bring it home, and settle into our favorite armchairs to watch it. Now with a few clicks of a remote, we can watch a Netflix movie from the comfort of our homes. Discerning companies, like Netflix, see the writing on the wall and change with the times. Blockbuster didn’t do this—they refused to go more digital, which led to their demise. 2. Higher Costs Associated with Manual, Inefficient Business Processes Many employees manually fill out forms or use Excel spreadsheets to complete their work. Some of these tasks can be so repetitive that they are mind-numbing. Both scenarios can be time consuming. With automated systems, employees can fill out forms that parse out correct information and tasks to other people next in the work queue. That way, people will know what they're supposed to be doing when they're supposed to be doing it. Furthermore, systems with artificial intelligence and bots running in the background can make repetitive decisions without employee intervention. 3. Higher Costs Associated with Maintaining Legacy Systems Companies that refrain from updating their legacy systems to newer, more efficient technologies waste precious resources by pouring money into maintaining those systems. Organizations may find that the inefficient patchworking of outdated systems could cost more than implementing new, more efficient systems that could provide a greater Return on Investment. Employee frustrations can also run higher around not having more intelligent, integrated systems at their disposal, and keeping employees happy in a tight business market is of utmost importance! These are just a few examples of the consequences companies can face by not embracing DX. Organizations that prioritize DX projects in their budgets, choose the right software platforms to meet their needs, and successfully implement their initiatives are more likely to reap benefits that will help place them at the head of the pack. This last sentence is crucial! Companies must choose the right platform and ensure proper management of the project to be successful. If you're interested in learning how to do this right for your DX projects, check out Michael Cantu’s and my book, No-Nonsense Digital Transformation. It provides a step-by-step roadmap for preparing for and implementing digital transformation initiatives in your business so you can help ensure success even before you start. If you’re interested in learning more, click the button below By: Kathy Kent Toney, CEO & Founder of Kent Business Solutions  Image by Rawpixels.com - Freepik Digital transformation is a buzz word you hear a lot today, and its importance grows with the passage of time. The savviest CIOs and business leaders recognize this and are taking action. A recent Gallup survey discovered that 60% of executives have line items in their budgets for purchasing virtual tools. With each passing day, the importance of digital transformation grows, and And yet, many companies have been slow to embrace digital technologies, even though their use is trending upward. Just take a look at Blockbuster—their refusal to do so obviously didn’t end well! Their demise proves that embracing digital transformation is essential for businesses—not only to survive but thrive and grow. You certainly don’t want to miss the digital transformation boat! So, what sparks companies to start their digital technology journeys? Let’s see if you fall into one of these two categories: 1. A Company Wants to Solve a Problem The way they’re doing things may be archaic, costing them money or customers. Employees may be complaining about the course of doing business as well. Unfortunately, some are often overwhelmed by these problems so that innovation becomes just a pipe dream. Many of these companies have lots of innovative ideas, but being mired in these problems has often outweighed the ability to implement their ideas. When issues are taken care of first, employees are more often able to start implementing these ideas. 2. A Company Doesn't Necessarily Have a Problem—They Want to Get Better They may be unsure how to proceed or search for outside help within a price point they can afford. It may be a complicated conversation for many of them to start with consultants—it may not come easy admitting they don’t have the answers to their challenges. In the end, there are great opportunities for both the business and the consultant to achieve great results together. Here are some additional insights: Business Stakeholders In our quickly changing world, it’s impossible to know everything; however, when business stakeholders can accept this fact, this is key in helping organizations ensure significant growth. By seeking help or insight through consultants who are experts in their field, organizations can gain exponential understanding and value. Also, many companies may stop innovating due to uncertainty because it's human nature to relish solid parameters. However, it’s essential to keep an open mind amid unknowns to keep innovating. Consultants For the consultant, it’s an opportunity to have honest conversations with prospective and current clients while outlining what’s possible. Organizations benefit from having another set of eyes from outside the business to look at their operations. The consultant’s diverse experience allows them to diagnose, suggest, and open opportunities for firms quickly. Doing so can cause a positive trickle-down effect with their customers and, ultimately, the bottom line. What organization wouldn’t want that? **** We're excited! It's inching closer—the launch of Michael Cantu’s and my paperback, No-Nonsense Digital Transformation. We plan to launch mid-August. Needless to say, we are pumped! If you would like to learn more, click the button below. |
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