If your business had a body, what would it look like? Is it trying to run on skinny, under-developed infrastructure legs, or grab at market opportunities with uncoordinated commercial arms? Never mind, I’m sure that stylish Branding Jacket will cover that slightly chubby middle management bulge. You know, that area just above where the belt gets tightenned.
Seriously though, a business is very much a living organism – every part performs a function to keep it alive, it needs an eco-system to survive, and most will live a complete life from inception to termination.
And just like a person, there are times in the life of a business where it can benefit hugely from outside help. Young businesses can be far better prepared for life if they have experienced advisors. Aspirational businesses can achieve greatness with training. Injured or sick business may need expert assistance. Even fit and healthy businesses can benefit from regular checkups.
At Innovise we’ve constructed a detailed anatomical model of a business which we use to provide advice, training and assistance. There top level components are :
- Management
- Operations
- Commerce
- Infrastructure
That might seem pretty basic, like describing a body as made up of a head, torso, arms and legs. To understand the health and fitness of a business it is important to look into how well these components are performing their functions and how well they work with each other.
What makes a business different from other living things is that it can re-write its DNA and evolve. The need to evolve can be driven by many things such as survival, passion, or a changing environment. This is more than just getting a business in peak condition