Adaptive Idea Design, Development and Imeplementation

The world is changing at an amazing pace. The competition is located all over the world. Competitors are an internet click away. The office next door can be in Mumbia or London. "Down the road" can be in Beijing, Capetown or Atlanta. No matter the size of a buisiness, their current market share, or resident expertise, it is important to often ask the following:

- Can someone else compete with your products and quality faster or cheaper? How do they do it?
- Is your marketshare stagnet or falling while some competitors are increasing their share?
- Have new competitors entered the market? Did they take any of your customers?
- What is the cost of entry for a competitor? Can a three, five or ten person company impact your space?
- Are you absorbing production costs without an offset to other expenses; thus watching your margins erode?

- Do you know what what your margins are by product, location, customer and production team? If not, why?
- Can your efforts and products be broken down into smaller pieces and processes?
- Can any part of your product(s) be outsourced or offshored? Does the competition outsource or offshore?
- Can the resources required to produce your key products be found in abundance?
- Are you paying your suppliers and contractors the agreed rates on a timely basis?
- What ar both your product and business reputations in the marketplace?

- Has the specialized knowledge required to produce your key product(s) become commoditized?
- Are you interested in revitalizing your operations to better integrate with your customers and trading partners?
- Does anyone from your organization meet face-to-face with many of your active customers on a quarterly basis?
- Does anyone from your organization meet face-to-face with your ex-customers?
- Do you try to find out why customers left, and would they consider returning?
- Does anyone have lunch with a new prospect at least 3 times a week? If not, why not?

- Are you taking advantage of social media, blogs, local trade groups and customer references?
- Do you try to read your customers and competitors minds? Do you follow them in the news and trade journals?
- Have your orgainzation's desks become anchors?
- Will new statutes and regulations introduce planned and unavoidable changes to your company?
- Are changes in the supply chain, participation rules and technology leaving you behind?

- Does the team avoid bad news?
- Would you partner with a thrid party to build or update your customer and market profile?
- Does the organization have the strength, stability, resources, attitude and flexibility to engage disruptive innovation?
- Is the team ready to make changes or is loosing market share acceptable?
- Do you agree that many of your challenges have been solved both within and outside your specialized industry?

These questions and their answers are critical to the survival of most SMBE's. They are often overlooked.