Adaptive Strategies Blog

I named my business Adaptive Strategies in the early 1990s in response to an economic downturn. As they say, what’s old becomes new again. That said, the reality of our world is that we have always had to adapt. The problem is that too many people are waiting for “normal” to return. It never will.

Adapting is not an option; it separates the winners from the losers. Just think about past inflection points and those who did and did not adapt.

• Electronics in the 1950s — from vacuum tubes to transisters
• Aircraft in the 1960s — from turboprop to jets
• Autos in the 1980 — from quality vs. price to quality at every price
• Internet in the 1990s — from bricks and mortar to bricks and clicks

Think this “adaptation thing” only applies to businesses? I was a darn good Fortran programmer in the 1970s. Anybody want to hire me today?

Look at your career and your business. To what do you have to adapt? Are you adapting fast enough?

We are in times of deep uncertainty and people wonder about how to do planning during uncertain times. All you know for sure is that your strategy needs to adapt. What to do? Maybe it would help to do a bit of role playing. I’ll add a new white paper to my website by mid-week, but here’s a few role-playing tips to consider while you wait.

• Play the general and conduct war games with your best people. What do you want to accomplish and how will the terrain (economy) and the enemy (competition) react to your moves? What can you do to react to their moves?
• Play the coach and watch game films. Study your entire industry and see what they are doing. What can you learn from their successes and mistakes.
• Play the project planner and consider the elements of risk you are facing and what mitigating moves you can make and what contingengy plans you need to put in place.

I have nine more tips for you and will have them posted on my “publications” tab by mid-week. Download them if you want them (free — no e-mail address required).

But here’s the question for you. Who do you role play when you think about dealing with uncertain times?

I’m working on a new book project that is based on applying Louis Pasteur’s quote of “chance favors the prepared mind” to the realm of hospitals and other healthcare providers. And one of the stumbling blocks has been answering the general question of how does anyone prepare for an unknown future. So I sat down and wrote whatever came into my mind.

Here is my initial list. I’d appreciate additions that you might make to this draft. “We prepare for the future when we …..”

• go to school
• learn something new
• practice
• watch game films
• play war games
• build scenarios
• focus on goals
• do contingency planning
• conduct rick assessment
• ask questions
• send probes into the unknown
• “get in shape”
• experiment
• study failures

What would to add to my list? I REALLY want to know! (It will help me break a writers-block that’s driving me nuts!)

I was prepping for a speech I’m giving next week and I came across a wonderful HBR article from 1997. (”Strategy Under Uncertainty,” HBR, Nov/Dec, 1997) It’s apretty long article and I’m not going to review all of it here, but I do want to comment on a way to think about adapting during these tough times.

Take the time to consider your organization’s future and the degrees of uncertainty you are facing. Then consider your options for action.

• You could do nothing and wait for the storm to pass.  (not recommended)
• You could take some “no-regrets” actions like improving communications and relationships with customers and employees. (highly recommneded)
• You could put some  low-cost options in place (like basic business education for the workforce) and prepare for the inevitable uptick in business. (highly recommended)
• If your organization is healthy you could place some “big bets” like buying a competitor and take advangtage of weaker competitors’ troubles. (depends on your real business health).

Here’s the bottom line. Sure, times are tough; but this is NOT the time to hide in a corner and whimper. Do what you can to keep your organization prepared for the future. It’s in your hands.