To know where the direction of greatness is, we went to the North.
To define the culture and values that motivate us, we went to the East.
To understand what stops us and how can we overcome our limiting beliefs, we dug the South.
We will now move forward to the West, where the key question to ask is “HOW DO WE GET THERE?” This is where the rubber meets the road. This is our strategic focus in action. Execution is always easier said than done. Typical challenges such as managing conflicts, dealing with resource constraints and getting unfavorable feedback could become show stoppers along the way.
A key in the N.E.W.S. Compass©️ process is the weekly focus and the quarterly checkpoint led by respective “Champions” of strategic drivers or project initiatives. Mobilising the team and sustaining the momentum through focused execution, and regular checkpoints are keys to knowing and tackling issues in a timely manner, and achieving the critical goals.
Critical goals are the ones that make the difference. As Goethe has said: “Things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things which matter least”
In 2007, I was assigned to lead the Kodak Health Group ASEAN Transition Team, a task force with representation from sales, customer service, and various functional support, multi-country and headquarter teams. Our mandate was to transition and cutover the Kodak Health Group (KHG) ASEAN business unit to 4 new and independent multinational corporations in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Philippines, after the sale of the KHG global business unit to Onex Equity. The MNC headquarter is known today as Carestream.
Our key goals were 100% employee (of 80+ employees) on-boarding, and all critical ‘Day 1’ areas operational (supply chain, customer services, sales, support functions such as IT, HR and Finance).
To-date, it’s one of the most demanding and stressful things I’ve done in my work life. At the same time, one of my proudest moments. It was through the power of strategic focus in action by our wonderful team. It was the West in action!
Related posts:
- The North ~ Where do you want to take your Organization?
- The East ~ Purpose, Values and Culture Sustain Us
- The South ~ Break Barriers and Comfort Zones to Grow
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