Monty's Wire

Dealing with Power in Business

Power by definition is ‘The capacity or ability to direct or influence the behavior of others or the course of events.’ Over the years I’ve read many articles, books & witnessed many types of power plays in various business meetings & situations. What I know is that not one story is the same and that each situation involving power or influence is complex and deeply interesting.

Some leaders exercise their power through their position or by right. I’ve seen how this can be incredibly effective as it can mean things move very quickly without being reviewed by committee. This approach can also be very limiting as decisions often originate from a narrower perspective and are not always well thought through. On the other hand, some exercise power through genuine influence. On the surface this can be riskier as the original path can be de-railed and progress can slow down dramatically. Conversely the outcome has the potential to be a much more rounded, well thought through approach with a buy in of others who can help drive the vision forwards.

Both types can be morally good or bad, both can be in your face loud or deafly silent, but what’s important is to appreciate & understand their existence in order to help step closer to your ultimate goal.

With all of this background, here are Monty’s ‘5 rules to Building Power & Influence.’  Enjoy!

1. Have a clear ‘Ultimate goal or end vision’ in mind. Win the war, not every battle.
2. When entering a meeting, negotiation or discussion, always have a plan in your mind of how to articulate your point of view. Have a plan A, B & C.
3. Stay open minded to being wrong, corrected or meeting a compromise, but always make sure you can see a path to your ultimate goal or vision. If not, you lose the power. Game over.
4. Be empathetic & understand the other side of the coin. Understand as much background as possible, both the hard facts & softer dynamics.
5. Understand where your leverage can come from & be thoughtful & systematic when to play each card.

Power and influence is definitely not an exact science, but in my experience having an appreciation for it's importance in the world will put you and your organization on the front foot for the future!

Sport & The International Opportunity

On Sunday afternoon, I was lucky enough to be stood next to the coach of one of the Men’s 1500m finalists at the IAAF World Indoor Championship. What I witnessed was a grown man’s emotions switch from extreme hope to extreme despair back to hope to raw anger to exultation, in the space of 3.44 mins as his protégé Robby Andrews came from last place with 300m remaining to steam into 4^th in a dramatic finish to the line.

Sport has the ability to excite, inspire, bring people together & change lives.

With that said the statistics show that in many cases grass roots participation fluctuates between steady growth to stagnation and in some cases slow decline.  It can depend on general interest in sport but also on wider economic factors such as public policy, government spending etc. For this reason Leagues, Federations & International Sports Brands have no choice but to look at growing interest in their ‘brand’ and therefore demand in their game or sport globally to increase their revenues.

Look at the NBA & NFL, who in recent years have hosted regular season matches in London, both of which sold out. Conversely, some of Europe’s top Football (Soccer) teams will jet off this summer with their Clubs to the U.S, Australia & China in the International Champions Cup. Not to have a holiday, but to help build the brand of their employer in under-penetrated markets.

As the world becomes more homogenized, and international business in theory becomes easier, how will this shape up in future years?  Will we see a ‘European Champions League’ night hosted in Africa, India or South America? How will global Sports Brands change their business models to adjust to the changing tides?  One of the reasons the UFC has been so successful is that it governs itself & is able to move quick and nimbly in to new markets, collaborating with TV networks and other local businesses on their terms.  They created their product, they inspired not only their own athletes but also  the fans, & they were able to promote their core product to an international audience with ease.

No doubt, growing internationally is hugely complex, and not everything is controllable. What is undeniable though is that the opportunity for 'The Business of Sport' around the world feels infinite due to its ability to excite, inspire, & bring people, companies & even countries together.

 

Why Innovation Matters

Many companies across multiple industries claim to be global leaders in innovation. In Fast Company’s 2015 list of ‘Most Innovative Companies', there were brands included such as Apple, Warby Parker, Instagram, Alibaba, HBO amongst others.  Why such a diverse list & why do businesses position themselves around this idea of innovation.

Being first is a huge competitive advantage. Simply put, constantly re-inventing your product to be cutting edge can put you first in the race. If you get it right, you literally could change the world. Steve Jobs was famous for never doing any consumer research because ‘people don’t know what they want until you show them’. The purest expression of innovation I’ve heard.

Another reason is that it’s exciting for your employees. No year is ever the same; you live in a constant churn of newness & challenges, that need solving for, which by definition is the opposite of stale or boring.

Why do some industries focus on innovation more than others? Look at Technology companies, Facebook, Google, Twitter, Uber, Samsung are all looking for the next product to stay ahead & wow consumers. Innovation is built in to the culture of the entire industry. In sport; Nike, Adidas, Under Armour, all constantly looking for the latest innovation in athletic footwear and apparel to make athletes run faster, jump higher, perform longer. The Airline ‘Indigo’ created step-less ramps to speed up the time it takes to board & took learning’s from Formula 1 to create a pit-stop style turn around between flights. Tesla & Gogoro are two leading examples who dared to think differently about the motor industry by creating electrically powered vehicles. What do these companies have in common? The consumer is central to the success of their business & as a result, these markets become fiercely competitive, the expectations get astronomically higher, customers will simply go elsewhere.

The truth is, when you look at the companies listed above innovation matters in business in 2016. Innovation can manifest itself in many ways, it could be the speed and volume at which you make a product, it could be the product itself, or it could be revolutionizing a process to make things cheaper to make. That list is endless. Whichever way you look at it, there is clear value for all companies to explore what innovation means for them.

That is if they want to get out front & stay there.

Brand 'Athlete'

Since the day of Nike’s first Sports Marketing deal with Michael Jordan, the world of Sport has grown to become a sophisticated & hugely influential industry within popular culture. It is an industry involving money, power, influence and more money. Made up of League’s, Franchises, Agents, Sports Brands, Car Brands, Music, Fashion, the list goes on. Combined, these create a complex swirl of interest & excitement for the Athlete’s who were lucky enough to make it.

On a basic level, children & adults alike have always been inspired by the fairytale stories of professional athletes. The Athlete who was born in to a tough environment, worked hard their whole life, fought against all odds, went to College & made it to the big League. What’s interesting though, is what happens when they do make it, today in 2016…

Surrounded by everyone who wants a cut, The Athlete is required not only to perform in their Sport, but to quickly adjust and become astute & ruthless businessmen and women.   Their business is their image, their connections inside & outside of Sport & ultimately their influence in the world. They operate like Marketing Directors, like CEO’s in some cases, their focus is no longer just what happens in the gym, on the court, on the field, but everything that goes around it. Why, because they don’t want to just be the best, they want to be the biggest, the richest, and the most influential.

Recently, many of these modern day Superstars have been criticized for their motive & dedication to their sport. Good or bad, the landscape has changed & will continue to change. I don’t believe for a second that in most cases ‘The Athlete’ has forgotten where they came from or what it took to get there. What I do know though is that in this industry it has become far more complex & there are more distractions than ever before. The Athletes who will win in the long run are the ones who stay true to these values & surround themselves with positive, selfless & good people who have The Athlete’s interests at heart as well as their own.

The Trump Effect!

 

This is not a political blog - simply commenting on interesting things happening out there in the big wide world..

As a Brit living in the US, following this US Election has been absolutely fascinating to observe.  The old fashioned posturing & the cliche's from these supposed potential 'Leader of the Free World' candidates is almost farcical.  It has felt at times like a select club of incredibly boring politicians re-hash thousands of old speeches & party policies & re-package them for 2016.  No originality, little flair, based on sound bites & little fact.  Clinton, Sanders, Cruzzz...zzzzzzz.  Sorry, back to it. :)

Despite his continuously abhorrent statements, Trump is representative of a new genre of candidate at the table of this 'daily entertainment show' and is providing a fresh perspective, which is what a lot of American's are clearly looking for.  Some key observations from Trump's rally so far..

1)  Phase 1, Trump began his campaign as a complete no hoper, a joke.   He was controversial at every turn, he was racist, sexist, you name it, but he said a lot of things a certain demographic in the US are thinking & his comments unfortunately gave him a seat at the table.

2)  Phase 2, Trump is established and his rhetoric & tine is changing.  He is sounding more humble, more Statesman like and his business experience is helping him thrive in every public appearance.

3)  'WIN WIN WIN'.  Listen to any of Trump's speeches & count how many times he say's win.  He win's in business, he thinks he win's in life.  It's an old trick but if you believe it enough, you say it enough, other people will start believing it too.

This won't be my last post on this crazy topic, but pay attention to how the tone shifts with the key candidates in the coming months.  I can of course in no way begin to show any fraction of a level of support for Mr.T, BUT, you can't deny how he has shaken up the US 2016 election in a way most people did not see coming.