Rx for Business: Thinkivity

By Sandra W. Evans

Thinkivity is a dynamic new way of thinking for harnessing the power of creativity within organizations seeking an enterprise-wide roadmap for change. In addition to building internal processes for continuous improvement, it is an effective, convincing guide for enabling deeper and more meaningful connections with a company's key customers.

With the second book of her Rx for Business series, Sandra Evans introduces the revolutionary Thinkivity continuum, an internal workflow system that builds a strong bridge between the internal processes of a business and the external relationships with customers, partners, and services.

Drawing on her experiences of more than two decades as a manager and change agent for some of the most dynamic corporations in the United States, Evans has created a pragmatic and well-thought-out model for using creative thinking to connect a company's vision with its customers' most urgent needs. Beginning with designing the structure for an actionable strategic vision and mission, this essential guide then provides careful instruction for building the capabilities within an organization necessary to meet those goals.

Complete with case studies and graphics to support and illustrate Evans's innovative process, Thinkivity is a pioneering system that enables performance breakthroughs for companies of any size.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Oct 3, 2008
• ISBN: 9781440103780

Sandra W. Evans

Sandra W. Evans has more than twenty-five years of experience in corporate financial and general management at major corporations and nonprofit organizations. She holds an MBA and is also the author of Rx for Business: Qualitivity.

Book preview

Rχ for Business

THINKIVITY

A Prescription for

the Health of 21st

Century Business

Sandra W. Evans

iUniverse, Inc.

New York     Bloomington     Shanghai

Rχ FOR BUSINESS

THINKIVITY

Copyright © 2008 by Sandra W. Evans

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

ISBN: 978-0-595-47820-0 (pbk)

ISBN: 978-0-595-71383-7 (cloth)

ISBN: 978-1-4401-0378-0 (ebk)

Printed in the United States of America

Contents

Preface

PART 1

"If you build it, they will come.

1

INTRODUCTION: THINKIVITY

2

CREATIVITY AND CONNECTIVITY

3

Thinkivity Continuum

4

OUTSOURCING

PART II

Weigh alternative courses of action

and develop strategies

for the future

5

INTRODUCTION: STRATEGIC PLANNING

6

LONG-RANGE PLANNING

7

DIFFERENTIATION FACTORS

8

PLANNING PYRAMID

9

PLANNING BLUEPRINT

10

STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS

PART III

Setting in motion a change

in business environment

and process orientation

11

INTRODUCTION: WORKFLOW REDESIGN

12

ENTERPRISE-WIDE WORKFLOW INITIATIVE

13

WHO:

CUSTOMER TODAY, STILL HERE TOMORROW

14

WHAT, WHEN, AND WHY:

REALIGNING WITH CUSTOMER PROCESSES

15

WHERE AND HOW:

CUSTOMER-COMPANY CENTERED PROCESSES

16

IMPLEMENTATION

PART IV

Transforming an ordinary business

into an extraordinary business

17

INTRODUCTION: WHAT IF

18

What If Strategy

19

Evaluation Methodology

PART V

Capitalize on successes

20

INTRODUCTION: LESSONS LEARNING

21

RESISTANCE TO CHANGE

22

CONCLUSION

Appendix A—Strategic Planning Worksheet

Appendix B—Sample Strategic Plan

About the Author:

Notes

Preface

When I managed high-volume operations areas at American Express, First Data Corporation, and Standard & Poor’s, I had the opportunity to explore methods for improving internal work performance from every vantage point. In my first book, Rχ for Business: Qualitivity, I discussed ways to find synergy between quality and productivity. I focused on internal operations and finding opportunities to improve quality and productivity. Rχ for Business: Thinkivity concentrates strictly on vision, strategy, and innovation in a customer-centric environment. Thinkivity is about creativity internally within an organization and connectivity externally with customers.

I explore the Thinkivity Continuum and the myriad opportunities that the continuum provides for enhancing a business. This includes widespread process innovation, which introduces new ideas and technologies. Because such innovation can be disruptive, I also address opposition to change.

I expand the Thinkivity Continuum to include the what if concept, which provides infinite possibilities for businesses today. This concept, used at American Express and Hewlett Packard, can be pivotal in transforming an ordinary business into an extraordinary business. While American Express used the concept to lower the cost of operations, it can also be used to develop new products and services for current and future customers.

I cover strategic planning as the vital link with all internal, external and brand strategies. Thinkivity is key to building the capabilities needed to achieve long-range strategic objectives.

I suggest realigning with the customer by tracing the customer’s processes back to internal processes. The critical questions—who, what, when, why, where, and how—are answered and provide a wealth of opportunities to improve business operations from the customer’s perspective. This may include reconfiguring or reordering steps, integrating or compressing tasks, reallocating work, sequencing work, or reconfiguring complete workflows. It also includes developing new products and services to satisfy customer demands.

I hope this book inspires you to explore some of these unique opportunities in your company.

PART 1

"If you build it, they will come.

—Field of Dreams

1

INTRODUCTION: THINKIVITY

In an announcement about the difficulty of landing auditions for Donald Trump’s popular TV show The Apprentice, a radio announcer said, The best way to get to the top is to cut in line. Thinkivity helps you cut in line with its innovative approach to business. But first you need to look inside and rediscover your road less traveled. You need to regain your passion for the work of your company. You had it once, but did you let it slip away without realizing that it was gone? If so, you need to reclaim your passion and begin your quest for answers. Your course for the future starts with a vision and a focus that paves a new path for you and your company.

Do you want to succeed in business and reap the rewards of this success? When you have a string of successes, you will cut in line ahead of others that are satisfied with the status quo. All you need is to become a dreamer and rekindle your passion for work. Set your targets far into the future so they continue to fuel your dreams. It requires a clear commitment to shape your organization for the future. You need to develop new strategies and innovative ideas that become the cornerstone of all new initiatives. Take a man like the late Dave Thomas, who had the dream of owning his own restaurant. Now you can find a Wendy’s restaurant on every corner all over the world. Dave Thomas started small and ended up building an empire. When you fulfill your dreams, you will join the ranks of the Dave Thomases, and will be recognized and rewarded many times over.

It is going to take discipline and foresight to introduce new strategies and innovative operating processes. When you are in doubt, think about the Grand Canyon Skywalk built by the Hualapai Tribe.¹

Field of Dreams

The Grand Canyon Skywalk is a glass-bottomed steel and glass observation deck suspended four thousand feet above the Grand Canyon floor. From the transparent deck, you can look left, right, up, and down at the magnificent view. More importantly, the Hualapai Indian tribe built it to attract tourists to boost their economy. As did the character Ray in the movie Field of Dreams, the tribe members and elders believed, If you build it, they will come.

You may encounter obstacles along the way. Although obstacles will open your eyes, they will also provide learning experiences. You need to analyze the obstacles that your business is experiencing and find new, innovative, long-term solutions. When faced with uncertainty, you need to be adaptable and resilient to change. You need constantly to invent new ways of doing business by building innovative business processes. These innovative processes change the way your business operates and improve your business capabilities. In turn, businesses with superior capabilities can leverage that advantage over their competitors. Most importantly, if you build it, the customers will come.

2

CREATIVITY AND CONNECTIVITY

You have the opportunity to make your business world-class, by following the principles of the system I call Thinkivity. You can be a key player in making this dream a reality because Thinkivity concepts can help you transform your company. Thinkivity is thinking about the power of creativity within your company to change internally, and about connectivity with your customer to change externally. Thinkivity fosters an environment of creativity and a mind-set of change that inspires everyone toward accomplishment of the long-term goals. It is a revolutionary system that has helped top executives at S&P 500 companies turn strategy and long-term goals into tangible financial results for their organizations. It is a system that results in breakthrough improvement in products, services, operations, and processes. It sparks innovation and business improvement activities.

Creativity

In the last two decades of the twentieth century, management made great strides in the process improvement arena. However, management tended toward improving existing processes and did not venture beyond this narrow space. When you focus on the customer’s processes, you open up new opportunities for process improvements. By turning your full attention externally, you can discover smarter ways to manage your business activities. This calls for inspiration and a good dose of creativity, even as it leads your company down an unfamiliar but promising path toward new opportunities. Knowing your customer’s processes helps you to develop better solutions that retain current customers and attract new customers. As you simplify processes and deliver better solutions, these improvements result in dramatic cost savings, open new markets, and increase the overall reputation for timely products and services. The following questions will help