TOP PICK

Business Not As Usual:

Challenging Your
Assumptions For 2020
& Beyond
How to ensure business can respond to
change ahead of the pace of the marketplace 

By Gary Magenta

2 020 has universally and

simultaneously disrupted
every single one of us. We’ve
respond to change ahead of the
pace of the marketplace? 
disrupt the marketplace they are
in. And it works.

been hit smack in the face by a Blowing Up the Box Consider Sears, which began as
global pandemic, social unrest, Companies that have survived a mail-order watch and jewelry
and the harsh realization that the over the long term – for decades service and then morphed
“normal” way of work, and life, is and centuries – are the ones that (or disrupted) into a booming
a thing of the past. didn’t stay stuck in their status catalog business. The brand
quo, but disrupted their products touted having more merchandise
You might even say that 2020 and operations to create the under roof than anyone, offered
has been the great equalizer. next best thing (product, service, a rewards program, and had a
Regardless of industry, business experience) that met customers’ 100% money-back guarantee.
size, location, or product or needs and did it faster than their This was unheard of. Sears was
service you offer, everyone has competitors. These organizations the ultimate retail trailblazer,
shared the same experience. have managed to avoid being becoming the largest retailer
We’ve all been forced to pause bogged down by incrementalism, in the world, and remained
and adjust. We’ve all been forced adhering only to “rational untouched for years. Years! Until
to watch in-person interactions thinking,” or making small moves they weren’t the leader anymore.
switch from being a constant forward by adjusting existing They failed to continually
to nonexistent in the blink of an products in an effort to stick to disrupt their business and as a
eye. To say it’s been a shock is just what they know and already result, they fell behind. No new
an understatement. So where do well. Disruptors think big. innovations, no fresh ideas,
do we go from here? How can They act boldly and challenge no new customers. They lost
you ensure your business can assumptions. Their goal is to the race.

HCM Sales, Marketing & Alliance Excellence presented by [Link] AUGUST 2020 33 Submit Your Articles
 Business Not As Usual: Challenging Your Assumptions For 2020 & Beyond

2020 has been throwing be challenged? Leaders must be in our solution? Are we actively
curveballs, and the organizations clear about what’s at stake and supporting innovation through
that figure out how to connect empower people to share ideas our actions and how we allocate
with these pitches first, and that break the current rules and resources? Leaders must also
best, will win. Everyone is in to take risks. It’s time to adopt an be conscious of working to keep
the game. Everyone needs to entrepreneurial mindset as you people, from the front line to the
respond. So don’t be like Sears. pursue your why. C-suite, engaged and motivated
Or Blockbuster. Don’t stay during a time when everyone is
tethered to what you did well, but 2) Creating a differentiated experiencing change fatigue.
take your success and turn it into customer experience – The needs
the next great thing. Be like the of customers have changed. Creating a Culture of
current disruptors, like Netflix and No-touch delivery. Curbside Innovation During Change
Amazon. If you feel a sense of shopping and pick-up. The actual, Fatigue
urgency – good. You should. The logistical ways we shop, dine, You’ve got to disrupt in the
time is now to spark ideas that and socialize have changed. midst of change fatigue and
may have felt far-fetched or out of To create a differentiated some of the highest levels of
reach before. customer experience, you need disengagement the workforce has
to think from the customers’ ever seen. Yes, the challenges are
Get Everyone in the Game perspective. What changes do stacked. But all organizations are
You might feel overwhelmed, they need to see? What do they facing the same dilemmas. What
but it boils down to ensuring the want? What problems are they are you going to do about it?
disruptor mindset permeates encountering that we can solve? The organizations that stay the
your entire organization. The Ask yourself: Are we making same will fail because customers
best disruptors, like Amazon, business decisions based on no longer have the same needs,
have become trailblazers by what the customer wants and beliefs, abilities, or opportunities.
applying the same principles needs or based on what we, as a However, organizations that
to their strategy. To help you business, want and need? What respond and innovate the
integrate a disruptor mindset into can your business do to disrupt quickest – the ones that use this
your organization and give you a the marketplace? national and global disruption
quick pulse check on where you as the impetus to become THE
stack up right now, review the 3) Engaging your employees – If disruptor – will win.
principles below and answer the you want your people to show up
associated questions. (or, more likely, log on), they need If things feel dismal, just
to feel a part of the business. remember this reality: A lot
1) Understanding your You need their buy-in and their of changes for the business
purpose and being bold in ideas. They are experiencing the world were already in the works
bringing it to life – Consider not world very differently now and pre-COVID era. The events of
just what your company does, have a point of view you haven’t 2020 simply accelerated what
but what it achieves for the considered. So, give them a was already in play. So now you
customer TODAY. Not yesterday. platform to do that, and do that must accelerate your response.
But today and in the future. consistently across the business. As you focus on bringing the
Because needs have changed. Ask yourself: Are we empowering disruptor mindset throughout
Answer this question: What our team members, at every level, your organization, try thinking
business practices or norms are to bring their best ideas and about it as an opportunity to
you willing to give up to remain innovations to the table, and are reinvent yourself and come out
true to your purpose? What our leaders willing to listen? How better than before. 
long-held assumptions need to can I ensure everyone plays a part

HCM Sales, Marketing & Alliance Excellence presented by [Link] AUGUST 2020 34 Submit Your Articles
 Business Not As Usual: Challenging Your Assumptions For 2020 & Beyond

What Are Your Next Steps? now? What’s your commitment they are encountering. Determine
What will you do with the ideas to reinventing yourself? If you’re customer loyalty drivers. Or
generated when you tap into your stuck on how to get started, try conduct a market analysis of your
people? What’s your call to action analyzing customer feedback, competition.
to activate a disruptor mindset preferences, and what problems

Gary Magenta is Chief Change Architect at Root Inc. With more than 30 years of business experience,
Gary brings a realistic outlook, a focus on results, and a sense of humor that puts things into
perspective. Gary is the author of 720 Haircuts — Creating Customer Loyalty that Lasts a Lifetime and The
Un-Bossy Boss, as well as the host of the talk show series, ‘The Pot Stirrer’. He is a highly sought after
international speaker that has been recognized with a ‘Stevie American Business Award for Executive of
the Year’.

Would you like to comment?

HCM Sales, Marketing & Alliance Excellence presented by [Link] AUGUST 2020 35 Submit Your Articles
Copyright of HCM Sales, Marketing & Alliance Excellence Essentials is the property of
[Link], Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a
listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print,
download, or email articles for individual use.