Ever had one of those "Oh, rats!" product alignment moments?

In the past year, I’ve worked with two different clients who were trying to move beyond the offering/product upon which their organizations were built.

Most of the time this isn’t as easy as making a u-turn and continuing down the road. After all, successful organizations are built on beliefs and purpose and their products and services reflect those deeply held principles.

So, before you actually get to the place where you sunset one product and introduce another or make investments in a new area, the successful company spends time in assessment, discussion and evaluation.

My clients wanted to be mindful of the legacy of their offerings, but at the same time they needed to be clear-eyed about future profitability and sustainability.

In each case, there was a structured approach to assessing the current situation, determining what would be successful in the future and then planning the strategies to move the organization to that next level.

YOUR ACTION STEPS

How do you know whether or not you need a strategic advisor to help you align your product/service offering?

As the leader of your organization, you might see yourself in the client examples I shared. Perhaps you're even having conversations with your team about future viability of your offering right now. Or, maybe your revenue or sales numbers are telling you that your offering is no longer addressing your customers’ pain points. If any of this is true, it's time to take action.

Encourage your team to regularly ask themselves – what problem is our product/service solving?

This analysis encourages you to see your offering from your customer’s perspective. Is that problem still acute for the customer? Is your offering still relevant?

Many organizations need an advisor who has worked with dozens of clients on these issues to quickly recognize patterns and themes to facilitate the assessment phase. An advisor has the benefit of having worked with many clients in your field, at your stage, and can look at your situation from many different viewpoints (operator, investor, board member).