Setting and flawlessly executing a business strategy is extremely difficult under the best of circumstances; it’s even harder and perhaps close to impossible if your business is having a crisis. Over the past few years, hundreds of companies have experienced some sort of business-related crisis that has impacted their brand equity, including Chrysler, Toyota, Taco Bell, Jet Blue, Apple, and FIFA.

In most of Advantexe's business acumen skill development and business leadership engagements, we discuss several strategic frameworks for building a strategy and assessing markets. One of the frameworks we share is the Discipline of Market Leaders proposed by Treacy and Wiersema in their book by the same name. The core of this framework suggests that there are really only three different strategic approaches to business – Product Leadership, Customer Intimacy, and Operational Excellence. According to Treacy and Wiersema, choosing one of these value propositions and creating organizational alignment and focus through flawless execution is the key to success.

Our Subject Matter Expert (SME) was ten minutes early to our interview and sat quietly outside our room until exactly 2PM.  Of the 15 interviews we conducted as part of the design of a new state-of-the-art Senior Manager Development program, he was the only person who was early.  He came in, exchanged pleasantries, and sat confidently with a presence in the comfortable chair.  Although his face showed signs of some weathering, and his beard was more grey than dark, there was a young, energetic gleam in his eyes.