With Sergio at the Strategy Conference
Mr Timothy Langdon, Strategic Project Manager at Query Holdings, recently joined a querisher conference in a plush alpine resort. The star of the day was Sergio Marchione, the mighty CEO of Fiat. He came to tell the audience of the remarkable turn around of Fiat. Just some 18 months ago a conglomerate on the brink of failure, today a case of hope, and Sergio a first cut options dealer. As a matter of fact he received an options grant when taking over that made him already today many times a millionaire.
Yet what did he say was his secret formula of success: Focus. Focus plus the right people, a culture focused on results, Timothy’s thoughts wandered to his own company QE. No we are no turn around case. But the thought kept creeping back: Lackluster performance, our query business built on print based publication and the annual print query index that showed no sign of a revival. Quite to the contrary, the curve was like a cardiogram of somebody dead for about three years: Beep, beep, beeeeeeeeeeee...
What to do? A new strategy? After all that was something Sergio talked about in his speech. New people? Quite some people did retire gracefully over the last years, and some new people got promoted. But wait, Sergio talked about new external talent. Well in our case it was mostly the long serving deputy that took over the post of his now retired boss. Not really what you call fresh talent. So focus? Sure, we publish commercial answers to queries. We do that mainly in print. We are paid a commission for doing so. So actually we are focused, aren’t we? Again, some nagging feeling hit Timothy: What when query index will not recover?! A new strategy then… We got a new strategy, they recently hired someone for this. So problem solved.
With that feeling, he stood up, went to the bar, got a drink, mingled and ended up talking with a guy called Walter, working in the digital answer business. Walter talked about his company’s simple game plan: The best destination to get straight answers! And, asked Walter, what is your strategy in one sentence?
Ooh, you know, Timothy commenced...
Yet what did he say was his secret formula of success: Focus. Focus plus the right people, a culture focused on results, Timothy’s thoughts wandered to his own company QE. No we are no turn around case. But the thought kept creeping back: Lackluster performance, our query business built on print based publication and the annual print query index that showed no sign of a revival. Quite to the contrary, the curve was like a cardiogram of somebody dead for about three years: Beep, beep, beeeeeeeeeeee...
What to do? A new strategy? After all that was something Sergio talked about in his speech. New people? Quite some people did retire gracefully over the last years, and some new people got promoted. But wait, Sergio talked about new external talent. Well in our case it was mostly the long serving deputy that took over the post of his now retired boss. Not really what you call fresh talent. So focus? Sure, we publish commercial answers to queries. We do that mainly in print. We are paid a commission for doing so. So actually we are focused, aren’t we? Again, some nagging feeling hit Timothy: What when query index will not recover?! A new strategy then… We got a new strategy, they recently hired someone for this. So problem solved.
With that feeling, he stood up, went to the bar, got a drink, mingled and ended up talking with a guy called Walter, working in the digital answer business. Walter talked about his company’s simple game plan: The best destination to get straight answers! And, asked Walter, what is your strategy in one sentence?
Ooh, you know, Timothy commenced...
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