The times they are a-changin’

The business landscape is changing. With 2020 just around the corner, Fiona Clark offers some timely advice on how to face up to the challenges that come with change.

They say the only constant in life is change, and that is equally true when it comes to business.  

Business is changing and we need to keep up and stay relevant or risk getting left behind. 

The way we did business five to ten years ago will not be enough to keep us successful in the next decade. And even years of a successful track record is no guarantee in a changing economy, dynamic market and with increased client expectations.

Our world is constantly evolving, and the Information Age we live in now has changed everything. The Internet has changed the way we communicate, the way we shop, work, travel, have 24 hour-a-day access to information, and are able to be contacted by clients and employers at all times of the day and week.

This is also one of the most exciting times to be in business, with global e-commerce creating more of an even playing field for smaller businesses to compete on an international stage.  

There is opportunity to expand and grow, build international relationships and access new business anywhere in the world.  

However, with change comes challenges, and it’s not always easy to adapt. You may experience changes in regulations, compliance, product manufacturing, consumer trends, increased client expectations, new competitors, and new technology impacting your industry – such as artificial intelligence and blockchain.  

But whatever change you may experience – the fundamentals are still important.  

Relationships are key in business. We do business with people we know, like and trust.  

In addition, we live in a digital age but the customer experience and level of service is still paramount for consumers. 

To quote Charles Darwin: “It’s not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.”  

The benefit of being a small or medium sized business is the ability to be agile, flexible and make changes quickly when needed.

Resilience rules

There has been a lot of discussion recently about resilience in business and the need to pivot when necessary.  This is essential to stay relevant, keep connected to customers and to future-proof your business.  

Resilience is explained as: the ability to recover from setbacks, adapt well to change, and keep going in the face of adversity. Most companies that have been in operation for some time would have had setbacks or failures of some sort, and we usually take a lot of business learnings from these situations.  

Resilience is also about ‘digging deep’ and needing to stick at it, roll your sleeves up and work through things when the going gets tough.  

Business is not easy, and things don’t go according to plan, so it can come down to: “what are we prepared to do to get out of a situation and put it right?”  

This resilience, perseverance, hard work, grit, determination and making things happen are key to success in business. However, it’s one thing being resilient when necessary, and another when facing the same ongoing challenges and problems on a regular basis. If this happens, this could be the time to review your business model and strategy, and decide whether to find a remedy or to pivot and change direction. 

Businesses at different stages of growth may need to pivot to stay agile, and adapt to the market changes in their industry.   

Time to pivot

A good example of pivoting involves one of my clients from New Plymouth. 

Office Furniture First provides an extensive range of high quality furniture for office, retail, hospitality, the medical industry and educational sector. The company is owned by Anna Davis of Nga¯ti Kahungunu/Nga¯ti Porou descent, is well established, has been in operation for 20 years, and Anna is proud to be leading one of the few Ma¯ori-owned furniture companies in New Zealand.  

The team at Office Furniture First is active and well known in the local Taranaki community, with the majority of business coming from the local region. 

While the company is sought after locally, in order to expand and future-proof the business the need was identified to position the business nationwide. This created the requirement to pivot; to alter the way the company operated.   

Online and offline marketing strategies were developed; key relationships with new clients were built in other regions; relationships were strengthened with product suppliers; and members of the sales team also focused on industry areas of specialty.  

The ability for the business to be flexible and adapt has meant the company is expanding nationwide, is maintaining high service levels for clients, and will successfully build into 2020 and beyond. 

Get ready

Whether you are a start-up business or long established company, the reality is there will always be change. Sometimes you will need to be strong, resilient, and work through the tough times. Or you may need to pivot and modify your approach, products, or target market.  

Either way, success can come from anticipating change, being flexible and adaptable.  

The next decade will be a game changer for business. Are you ready?