Companies now operate in a new Era of Mass Customization, where customers enjoy nearly unlimited options to satisfy their needs and appetites. Mass customization, a term Stan Davis popularized in his 1987 book Future Perfect, aptly describes the Internet's impact on the marketplace. No longer must they put up with the "one size fits all" approach of the old Era of Mass Production.
Products are now mass customized, service intensive and infused with the knowledge and the individual tastes of customers. Because companies must constantly innovate, product life cycles collapse. Although technological tools are constantly evolving, social media, cloud computing, and the Millennial or Gen Y mindset will continue to advance the progress of this transition because each helps companies satisfy the consumer's appetite.
Customers can instantly offer feedback or issue complaints. Companies can instantly obtain feedback from customers, or tell them about new products, special offers, and useful tips about using their products.
And, perhaps, the most transformative force has resulted from the coming of age of the Now Generation, the Millennials or Gen Y's. This generation of consumers and workers has grown up living in the now. Unlike preceding generations, they have never waited for much of anything. Their mind-set, which combines skill in social media and all the latest communication devices with an appetite for instant gratification, has profoundly influenced the workplace and the marketplace.
As more businesses embrace the "need for speed" aspects of the Millennial/Gen Y mindset, management must change not only the way it operates but also the way it thinks about doing business.
Here are the 11 Rules of Now Operations:
Listen carefully to your customer
Keep the company goals in mind.
Measure your performance.
Access the data you need.
Use data to make good and speedy decisions
Understand what your decision costs.
Do not hide problems or they will go unsolved.
First please the customer, not your boss.
Do not be afraid because your boss has your back.
Honor the process not the department.
Strive always to say "Yes" to customers.
John M. Bernard: Business at the Speed of Now: Fire Up Your People, Thrill Your Customers, and Crush Your Competitors
Andrea Kates: Find Your Next: Using the Business Genome Approach to Find Your Company’s Next Competitive Edge
Lynne C. Lancaster: The M-Factor: How the Millennial Generation Is Rocking the Workplace
John Agno: Can't Get Enough Leadership: Book Notes & Coaching Tips