FAQs
JUMPSHIFT! is written by Michael Sherlock (founding MD of Brumby’s Bakeries and Alan Anderson (Management Consultant) on how to plan, strategise & execute for business success: read now, apply tomorrow. The book outlines the successful business strategies employed to drive the growth journey of Australasian bakery icon Brumby’s Bakery in the period of its greatest transformation from 2002 until its purchase by ASX-listed Retail Food Group in 2007. In that period Brumby’s applied the 8 step process and was sold for 17 times last reported earnings with over 320 bakeries and its share price rising from 56c to $3.40. JUMPSHIFT! is expected to be available in early 2011.
1. Research: Undertake detailed research from independent consultants not associated with the brand that will provide a clear insight of how the brand is viewed by all the stakeholders. This should include: - demographics, focus groups, useage and attitude survey, brand and positioning, operations.
2. Strategy: Based on the outcomes of the research, implement your go forward strategy that distills the essence and gold nuggets dug up from the research.
3. Structure: Establish a clear structure and reporting guidelines for all positions. The structure needs to be tested and adjusted as your business evolves.
4. People: Select and build a team that is capable of achieving your SBP and vision that is commited to your priciples. Make sure your team is constantly: - rewarded both financially and other recognition - benchmark within the industry - undertake 6monthly, 360 reviews, replace under performers - have quarterly meetings to review SBP that includes reward and fun elements - Annual bonuses based on stretch targets - Golden handcuff system to reward long term loyalty - BHAG.
5. Systems: Create a system of operational procedures and manuals that is constantly updated and summarises all the trial and error and best practice. Your systems need to be continually updated.
6. Results: Provide weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual results to the team so that they can experience the ownership of the system.
A Dashboard is real time feedback to your team members. Identify the key drivers that will help you achieve your Strategic Business Plan (SBP). It's like you as a CEO are the driver of the car, your team are the passengers or co-drivers and they can readily glance across at the Dashboard to get real time feedback on the performance of the company in relation to achievement of the SBP. You need to identify the key indicator which is often non financial, eg. The speed of service from when an order is placed and the customer receives their food at a restaurant. Put a graph up of this KPI so that all team members can look to the scoreboard, see the result and celebrate in the team success.
Looking in the Rear Vision Mirror will give you your historical results. It will show you where you have been. This is like looking at your profit and loss and balance sheet. Remember you can't drive down the road to arrive at your destination by looking in the Rear Vision Mirror. The information you receive is critical but you need to be in the here and now by looking out the windscreen to safely arrive at your SBP destination that has been set into your Sat Nav.
There are generally four gauges on the Dashboard of your car, plus the warning lights that come on when something is wrong with your car. In your business identify the four main gauges that can give real time feedback to your team. The main gauges in the car are: speedo, rev counter, fuel and temperature. Examples of gauges would be: Speed of service, Customer count, Profitability and the fun factor for your team (your team culture).
A road map is having a long term strategic business plan SBP. It's like when you get in your car and you want to drive to Perth you set your Sat Nav and follow the recommended route.
To keep your SBP alive between quarterly meetings implement weekly stand up meetings so that everyone can freely communicate their personality, concerns and aspirations to each other. Hold the meetings at the same time each week for a maximum or half an hour, if people are travelling they can join by phone. Everyone stands up so that the meeting doesn't take to long, no notes or minutes are kept, each meeting covers off 5 questions to each team member: 1. What's up? - what is on the top of your mind? 2. Focus - what is your focus for the up coming week, what do you hope to achieve? 3. Bottle necks or road blocks - identify any obstacles that are going to stop you from achieving your weekly focus (it's likely the person who can clear the road block will be in the meeting, or there will be someone to help you clear it) 4. Intelligence - do you know any rumours or intelligence that are important to the business? 5. How do you feel - your sign-off The answers have to be short and sharp if you identify and issue get the people concerned together after the meeting to resolve the matter.
1. Access - This is both for vehicles and pedestrians. Any retail space should have clear and easy access, it should be obvious how you access the carpark and when you leave your car, how you access the tenancy. I use the ant trail principle. The tenancy should be located on the ant trail where customers normally move about within the shopping complex. Any impediments to access such as steps and ramps in front of a tenancy should be avoided at all costs.
2. Exposure - The tenancy and the store branding signs should be exposed to all pedestrians and passing vehicles moving past and moving within the shopping centre, particularly on the ant trail. Customers should easily be able to identify your tenancy and understand at a glance what you offer.
3. Tenancy mix - if your business is not a stand alone business you will need to be located alongside complementary traders. This is based on the amount of customer count your business requires to trade profitably. By locating next to complementary traders you get spin off business from their customers.
Employ the services of a good PR company and meet fortnightly to discuss your strategy, particularly in the financial press. I always make myself available to speak to the media and return their calls as soon as possible. When speaking to the media I maintain a set focus and message that is repeated. You need to be relaxed, be yourself and speak enthusiastically of your brand. Don't worry about the results, it's not free advertising it's a news story. Know the difference between advertising and PR and be honest and relaxed with the media.
In order to be effective in attracting customers to your business to experience your great service and product quality - the essence of your brand, I recommend you consider using four types of marketing.
1. Above the line - marketing on television, radio, Magazines and Newspapers and PR.
2. Local area marketing - Determine where most of your customers are sourced from and devise ways to communicate directly through them. Consider where your customers live (neighbourhood demographic marketing) work (this includes schools and universities) play (nearby sporting clubs and communities) and complementary businesses (identify other businesses your customers are likely to also use and co-brand with them.
3. Customer relationship management (CRM)A satisfied customer becomes an advocate for the brand, an unsatisfied customer tells 10 people of their experience and don't return. In my view this is the most effective method of marketing it is where you manage and look after your existing customer base. The best customer is the one you already have, who becomes a fan of your business and recommends it to family and friends. Implement loyalty cards and reward frequent shoppers with free products. Most importantly, have a systemised complaint handling process to quickly solve the issue so that you don't have the reverse of loyal customers.
4. Point of sale. At each store have a regular marketing campaign so that there is always a special offer. There are four types of POS:
a. A deal BOGOF or bundling.
b. Competion, buy a product and enter a competition to win a prize.
c. Product awareness, promote the benefits of a new or existing product 4. Gift with purchase, spend a certain amount and get a free gift.
The TCBP is applied by visualising the finished product at the time it is on the drawing board. You visualise 3 months after the project has been completed and reflect back on how successful its been. You try and identify any issues and obstacles that may have prevented ultimate success and once you have identified the obstacles to success you then have a chance to remove them at the planning stage. You complete the formula for success backwards. TCBP can be applied to any business decision - if you had your time over again you often wish that you could have done it differently - is this to your advantage by thinking ahead and teasing out the issues that would seem so obvious upon completion but are not so easily identified at the planning stage.
At Brumby's in mid 2003 we were confronted with the worst possible publicity for a food premises, graphic but unfounded footage of a premises that was associated by way of the editing by the media, was depicted as being one of our stores. The local council immediately took action and whilst they didn't find any evidence that was depicted on national TV they did find some minor faults. 5 stores were closed for 24hours whilst the minor faults were rectified. The story kept feeding on itself and played out on the front page of the State paper and on national TV. I was required to go on national TV and explain our position and maintain our brand integrity. At the time there was only a slight consumer reaction, particularly in the stores involved. We used the situation as a catalyst to change. The challenge galvanised the team to achieve the fantastic results, it was a rallying point for our organisation that made everyone more determined not to let one incident effect the good work of all the franchisees stores.
Check out Peter Ellingson's article in The Age by clicking on the link below.
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