Quote: “I don’t skate to where the puck is, I skate to where
it’s going to be.” – Wayne Gretzky – proclaimed to be the
greatest hockey player in history.
Highly successful leaders follow market trends, and they focus
on where the business is going so they can out pace the
competition by understanding what the trends mean for their
specific market. How is your business managed? Do you seek out
forecasts? Do you know how to draw your own conclusions about
business trends?
You can save some of the money you spend with futurists and
develop your own forecasts using these easy-to-understand tips
on how to get ahead of the game.
++ Brainstorm the key indicators for your industry and establish
a routine for gathering information
++ Interview industry leaders. Watch what they are doing
++ Research trade journals and the Internet
++ Research and plot data on past performance
++ Research and analyze what’s going on with upstream suppliers
and downstream customers, five times beyond your personal
contact
++ Interview leaders in associated industries
++ Subscribe to futurist newsletters and analyze information as
it pertains to your business or industry
++ Join trade associations and participate in depth to
understand topics that will impact your business
++ Tap into academia. Find out what the gurus are watching
The Marketing Department at Wharton School of business
provides an excellent web site to assist you in selecting
forecasting methods and methodologies –
http://hops.wharton.upenn.edu/forecast/welcome.html
The Leadership Edge: Forecasting is a team effort. You can’t gather
or analyze all the information yourself. Make forecasting part
of your team’s routine, and you’ll be able to focus on where
business is going instead of reacting to problems and fighting
off competitive attacks.
Go to http://www.CourageBuilders.com for more free articles on
courageous leadership practices.
Copyright 2010 – Dale Collie