A Masterclass in Market-Driven Strategy
This month, our LEAD™ programme delegates experienced an exceptional Masterclass on strategic marketing delivered by Professor Malcolm McDonald – a world authority on strategic planning and marketing excellence.
Professor McDonald delivers his expertise with both intellectual rigour and engaging humour, highlighting a critical challenge many businesses face: most organisations cannot accurately describe their markets, understand market dynamics, identify their competitive position, or recognise available market segments.
Without this foundation, how can any business create sustainable competitive advantage or generate superior long-term profits?
Professor McDonald observes that businesses attempting to create strategic plans often fall into predictable traps:
- Crafting vague mission and vision statements that could apply to virtually any organisation
- Conducting generic SWOT analyses instead of segment-specific evaluations
- Failing to ground their planning in market realities
Last week's guest article by Malcolm, "Stop Selling Products, Start Creating Value" introduced these concepts. This week, we're privileged to hear from someone who has successfully implemented these principles in real-world business environments.
From Theory to Practice: A Success Story
We're delighted to share insights from Niels Kjær, a former senior manager in one of QuoLux™ CEO, Stewart Barnes' previous companies. Niels has embraced the Marketing Planning Process (MPP), transforming not only his approach to business but also the companies he's led and his own career trajectory. His success story serves as an inspiration to leaders seeking meaningful strategic change.
Niels writes:
"After reading one of the QuoLux™ blogs from Malcolm McDonald, I decided to write about my practical experience with the Marketing Planning Process (MPP) that I was introduced to more than 10 years ago. I had several years' experience as a sales director/manager in a major Danish building materials company.
The model represented a complete mind-set change and paradigm shift for me and the business. MPP means that you can proactively plan your sales activities. The inputs and outputs in the MPP are based on facts and most importantly what customers think about us!
I spent 2 to 3 weeks every year visiting our customers to do the research demanded by the process. The primary reason was to collect data so we could score our strength in the market compared to our competitors. The visits also had another effect - it gave respect - our customers were pleasantly surprised that we wanted their input.
The next step was to assess what an attractive market looked like. It was an interesting internal task to do and one companies rarely do.
We then constructed our directional policy matrix (DPM). This is a fantastic tool generating many interesting discussions around the Boardroom table regarding where we would focus our efforts.
Previously our focus had been wrong. We had invested time and money dealing with an unattractive market segment where the customers did not rate us highly. We should have been raising pricing, minimising promotion and cutting back on the organisation. It was an eye opener! We reassigned employees to focus on segments that we had chosen as our future. Our profits increased dramatically.
We completed the process each year. The result was a large number of actions to be implemented during the year - we called it our "year-wheel". Our marketing plan became the foundation of our business model.
I have since been managing director in several companies. I use the model every year and have asked my management teams to think and work using the model.
The MPP is more than conducting research and making plans for the companies. It affects the way you think in your working life. It has changed the way I do business, for the better.
So do yourself a favour and read "MARKETING PLANS - Profitable Strategies in the Digital Age" by Malcolm McDonald. Understand the idea and start the journey. You will find that your company will be more market driven than you ever thought possible!"
The Power of Strategic Pause
Niels' testimonial powerfully validates Professor McDonald's approach. As Malcolm himself notes, "Deep down, companies know the answers to the above questions, when they are asked." Our role at QuoLux™ is to help you create the space to step back from day-to-day operations, allowing you the time to ask these critical questions and develop a comprehensive strategic plan.
Taking the Next Step
The impact of proper market segmentation and strategic planning cannot be overstated. If you're ready to transform your organisation through a data-driven Marketing Planning Process:
- Join our next LEAD™ programme for senior leaders on 13th & 14th November, featuring Masterclass sessions with Professor McDonald himself. Learn more about the programme here.
- Schedule a call with our team to discuss how we can tailor the Marketing Planning Process to your specific business challenges and opportunities.
Market-driven organisations consistently outperform their competitors. The question is: are you ready to become one?
Keep up-to-date on the latest leadership and management tips by signing up to our weekly blog here