Chapter 1 to INDISPENSABLE: How to Build and Lead A Company Customers Can''t Live Without by James M. Kerr Your Business Needs to Be Indispensable Merriam-Webster''s Dictionary defines indispensable as "being absolutely necessary and not subject to being set aside or neglected." This book is written for business professionals who want their companies to become indispensable. It provides a framework that you can follow to transform your business by first reimagining what it can be and then describing what is needed to reconstitute it in ways that make it compelling and irresistible to your customers. This book features dozens of examples from the industry, including ones drawn from Amazon, Uber, Facebook, and more. Each business example illustrates how the concepts offered in the book are already being used to make businesses indispensable in the marketplace. Keep in mind, though, only your customers can decide if your business is indispensable. Indeed, what we think of our businesses and their ability to delight our customers is irrelevant.
It is our customers who determine who is indispensable. We don''t get a vote on that. However, there are steps that we can take to improve our chances. This book was written to help you build an indispensable business--one that your customers can''t live without. Why Indispensable? The answer is simple: the competition is overwhelming. Please believe that regardless of what your company does or how it does it, there''s another firm right behind you ready to take your spot. Moreover, your competition is not just local businesses. It''s global.
There''s no need for us to recount all the reasons why this is so. Let it suffice to remember that the internet and related technologies have made the world a whole lot smaller. Your customers have choices. If you can''t give them what they want in the way that they want it, someone else will. It''s just a point and click away. So you better figure out quickly just how to become indispensable, or you just might be replaced. Here are just a few examples of what can happen when you take your eye off the ball and neglect to strive for indispensability: Boeing: They certainly demonstrated their hubris when they worked with inspectors to certify a plane that crashed twice within months of its release. After grounding their Boeing 737 Max fleets for most of 2019, the company still has to convince the worldwide flying public that the aircraft has been appropriately modified, tested, and determined to be safe.
It''s unclear if the company will ever fully recover from this debacle. Apple: The stock took a tumble when it came to light that the tech giant had purposely slowed down older iPhones to force consumers to upgrade. This move forced them to offer inexpensive battery replacements to win back customers. Mylan: The drug-maker claimed it took up to a $260 million revenue hit when news came out of the possible price gauging and fixing practices related to its lifesaving allergy shot product, EpiPen. Imagine the challenge that comes with having to justify a more than 400-percent price jump on a product that has an estimated 3.6 million prescriptions. Mylan certainly has little care for the people relying on its products to save their life. Volkswagen: When it was discovered that the car manufacturer hoodwinked emissions testers by installing software into eleven million cars to sidestep air pollution laws, Martin Winterkorn, then CEO of Volkswagen, resigned soon after.
He should have left--he lied to his customers. Wells Fargo: The fake-account scandal (highlighted by the creation of as many as two million fake bank and credit card accounts in the names of their customers) forced its stock down 10 percent when it was slapped with a $185 million fine by the government. United Airlines: Their stock plummeted after videos of a passenger being bloodied and dragged off an overbooked plane circulated on the internet and in the media. You really can''t manhandle customers, even if they get argumentative. I could go on. The point is simple: just do not become one of these companies--one that misunderstands their customers or takes them for granted! There are repercussions. Instead, learn what your customers truly want and exceed those expectations. What Your Customers Want Industry innovators like Apple, Amazon, and Netflix inspire other business leaders to consider ways to disrupt their respective industries.
Of course, you don''t have to disrupt an industry to become an indispensable business! Instead, you must be driven to excellence in all that you do and deliver what your customers want. In essence, you want to be on a constant lookout for ways to unlock your customer''s potential. Paradoxically, the key to unlocking that potential in your customers lies with the leadership and culture of your organization. These are the keys needed to differentiate you from your competitors. These are the things that will enable you to be the provider of choice in the hearts and minds of your customers. These will enable you to help them become disruptors of their own respective industries. Some examples of leaders who drive winning organizations through their leadership style and focus on culture include the following: Reed Hastings, Netflix''s CEO, helped create a culture based on trust that has made the company indispensable to many streaming TV viewers around the world. At the height of the pandemic, there were even memes reflecting the firm''s indispensability.
The world was shut down and there was nothing left to do but stay home and watch Netflix. The company "believes that people thrive on being trusted, on freedom, and on being able to make a difference . dedicated to constantly increasing employee freedom to fight the python of process." By encouraging independent decision-making, Netflix allows staff to use sound judgment, not administrative policy, to delight its subscribers. Jack Ma, executive chairman of Alibaba Group (the world''s largest retailer), is known for his willingness to drop whatever he is doing to assist his employees, whether it be "6 a.m. on a Wednesday, a Sunday, or during my best friend''s birthday party." This attitude is indicative of a leader who believes that their role is to serve their people and build a culture that leads to indispensability.
Satya Nadella, Microsoft''s CEO, is known for valuing his company''s culture and truly empowering employees by saying, "Make it happen. You have full authority." He seems to have an ever-present curiosity and is on a constant lookout for ways that others can win. Virginia Rometty, CEO of IBM since 2012, is credited with restoring the company to greatness. She believes staff development should be a primary focus, suggesting that talent development can set the stage for "changing the way work is done, using AI, putting skills at the center," which enables the company to remain vital even as digital transformation changes the business culture in which IBM operates. Kent Taylor, Texas Roadhouse CEO, gave away his salary and bonus of $800,000 to help employees during the pandemic. He also contributed $5 million to an employee emergency fund--demonstrating through his behavior the values that the chain espouses: "A family built on love, care, and concern. We celebrate our people in the good times and we have each other''s backs in the tough times too.
" Bill Belichick, head coach of the New England Patriots, has an unflinching commitment to a "Do your job!" philosophy that has created a winning culture at the NFL football franchise. He has led the Patriots to sixteen AFC East division titles, thirteen appearances in the AFC Championship Game, and nine Super Bowl appearances, winning a record six of them. Certainly, leadership and culture is the key to success in New England. Why does it come down to leadership and culture? The answer is simple: leadership drives behavior, and behavior establishes culture. Unsure on where to begin? Just Ask Some Basic Questions of Yourself Here are some basic questions to ask yourself about your organization. The answers to these questions will establish the platform from which you can begin to change your business and shape it into one that your customers prefer. They have been organized across several essential dimensions: On Leadership What are the leadership attributes required to drive transformation to achieve your vision of becoming the provider of choice for your customers? Which of the attributes do you believe are strengths among your midtier leaders? Which of the attributes do you believe are weaknesses among your leadership team? How would you begin to transform these weaknesses into strengths? On Culture How is the current culture (beliefs, behaviors, assumptions) facilitating or hindering movement of your teams toward achieving transformation objectives? How are definitions of responsibility, decision-making, and structure facilitating or hindering movement of your teams toward your vision? How do you navigate competing internal priorities and drive innovation? On Transformation and Change Do you feel your organization is agile enough to be competitive? Can you move at the speed required to drive change with velocity? If not, what needs to be done to increase agility? What is your approach to drive transformation by enhancing the customer experience? What is your strategy to move your organization to optimize its interactions with its internal customers? On Talent an.