Life’s too long for short-termism
Better Businesses have a clear purpose and balance growth, profitability and sustainability
More and more companies have longterm admirable ambitions. The problem is often the gap between the long-term ambitions and the short-term “business-as-usual” actions. At Brave Business, we believe the only way to truly bridge the gap between ambitions and actions is through aligning business development and sustainability ambitions with innovation capabilities. Using this approach, Brave Business empowers companies to innovate on different horizons in parallel – profit today, growth tomorrow and future sustainable transformation.
A scalable process…
From our long experience within both hands-on line management and consulting, we have built a solid base of proven processes for different client needs. However, our typical process is never the same! It depends on your situation, your business and of course your budget. We can run the full journey from Strategy to implementation or act as guiding partners from the sidelines. We also have a wide network of independent specialists and partner agencies to involve when and if needed. You pay for what you need, not for fancy offices or unused teams.
Horizons Audit
In a fun, interactive and inspirational 60 minutes, we will help you assess your growth gap and how well your business is equipped to innovate on different horizons. We then deliver a prioritised shortlist of gaps and actions.
Book a freeThe Journey toward better business
Below are the steps we usually advise our clients to go through to build a better and more resilient company. Some of them you might already have in place, or feel you can handle yourself, while others might need external help.
0. Quick wins
This is about identifying the short-term wins that give you the breathing space to stop chasing sales and start building value. This could typically include Portfolio analysis, Communication Plan, NPD Process optimisation, Customer segmentation, Business Model Canvas, or risks and opportunity mapping.
1. Define Purpose beyond profit
Here, we help you to find your guiding principle beyond profit. Why was the company started? Is that still why your customers buy from you? Which large challenge can your company credibly own? As a filter for your strategy, this purpose should be at the heart of your brand and reflect the value you bring to your customers. This will help you to attract customers, employees and investors, and increase your perceived value.
2. Map and prioritize strategic projects
This step can actually be divided in two: first is an opportunity mapping, to ensure a long-list of possible strategic initiatives you could work with. Second, those initiatives get evaluated and prioritized in the Purpose Pyramid, from compliance to thought leadership, to set a base for your project plan.
3. Assess and understand innovation capabilities
Do you need to sprint, or need the stamina for long-term marathon projects? Now it is time to assess whether your company has the ability to perform the innovation work needed to fulfil your strategy and live your Purpose. We use a tool called InnoSurvey® to assess you company’s innovation readiness, eg Culture, Organization and Capabilities. Through the survey we identify gaps and build a plan to fill them.
4. Build an Innovation Management System
Innovation that drives growth, profitability and sustainability is a structured process to make sure creative ideas are being explored, data from market tests is being gathered and analysed, and the right products or services are being launched. We help companies to build systems where Ideation is integrated, and the flow from exploration to commercial product is systematic and structured.
5. Communication and story-telling
You’re now ready to package your story and tell the world. Beyond just initiatives, invest in brand-building communication about your ambition and journey. Drive deep external collaborations seeking system-wide solutions and change. Explain to customers the value in your offer, and align your prices and promotions accordingly.
Coaching and inspiration
Real change happens with people, not powerpoint decks, that’s why we facilitate interactive workshops and engagement programs. We support and coach leadership teams through change management by Designing and documenting processes to go from ambition to action.
Did you know?
According to a recent Nielsen report, While 66 percent of global consumers are willing to pay more for sustainable goods, a full 73 percent of Millennials are (Nielsen defines Millennials as those born from 1977 to 1995). Helping customers make a “better choice” is the new luxury.