Keeping your eye on the ball

Yes that’s right, I’m jumping on the bandwagon as well! Another blog about Leicester FC — It is a big achievement and I’m not even in to football however I might as well take advantage of this great underdog story.

Anyway, my take is following on from my last few posts. When you’ve been in business for a long time and have been fortunate to have had growth and success, it’s easy to get complacent and feel secure. This is a dangerous state of mind. You should always be aware of you’re your competition, no matter how small fry they may seem.

Okay — lets look at Leicester City FC. A year ago, their sporting rivals wouldn’t have seen them as a threat but now they’re champions of the Premier League. How do you keep your eye on the ball in business?

Learn from them

I have said time and time again that learning from others is key in business development, and that means learning from our competitors too. Back to the football analogy, many teams have attempted to emulate Barcelona’s unique ‘tiki-taka’ style. This is not to say you should copy your competitors, but it is useful to emulate certain things they do. New businesses may do things in a way your business hasn’t thought of. For example, they may market their business in a different way to yours. See everything they do not as a threat, but as a learning opportunity.

Play to your strengths

A new business will likely do certain things better than you, but there are some elements of your business that will be stronger. Assess what your business’ strengths are and accelerate them. Is your product knowledge better than your competitors, for example? Expand that knowledge and get even stronger.

Leicester used one of their biggest strengths to overtake their competitors; teamwork. Many big teams rely on the skills of individuals, such as Messi, but Leicester pooled all their team members’ talents together. They knew each other’s strengths and worked with them. It’s the same in business. Know what team members are good at what and bring out the best in them.

Work with them

Many businesses fail to see the value in partnering up with a competitor. Last year, I published a blog on strategic alliances where I discussed the benefits of teaming up with another business. By joining forces with a like-minded business, you will not only immediately lose them as a direct competitor, but you will also be creating a competitive advantage over other similar businesses by the pooling of both businesses’ resources and skills.

Be a good leader

It sounds obvious but if your leadership isn’t effective, you will fall behind competitors. A good leader will bring the best out in their team. Leicester had a great leader in Ranieri. He encouraged them to believe they could achieve the so-called impossible and ‘seek that fire’. Any effective leader should believe in their employees and push them to do their best.

Don’t rest on your laurels; keep an eye on your competitors and the goals you need your business to achieve. Kindly provide your views and comments and kindly connect via Twitter: @SafarazAli

Regards,

Safaraz

p.s I really am not a football/soccer fan but one can learn from anything!