Q&A
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) we encounter include:
What is your process?
Our custom-designed process harnesses creativity, adapting to your project's challenges, desired innovation, and transformation potential. The approach is distinct yet aligned with implementation best practices.
It is best to utilise the process at the start, to initiate your transformation journey and unlock your organisation's full transformation potential.
How long does the process take?
Working live and fast we collaborate actively and efficiently with your team. Our processes typically span 3-6 months, incorporating The Lateral Room™. Within this timeframe, your team will gain a comprehensive understanding of your challenges and actively solve them, paving the way forward. The outcome will be an aligned, energised team equipped with the ideas to drive your business transformation. This marks the crucial beginning of your transformation journey.
When do we get results?
Immediately you will have a team moving forward developing a shared understanding. Starting the process of change.
Within 30-90 days you will be having different conversations throughout the organisation. Focussed on finding and building solutions for the future.
Within 3-6 months the team will have identified the main opportunities and moved the ideas from concept to implementation ready and have engaged with the leadership and organisation to execute. You should also have some live prototypes.
Within 12 months, anticipate bottom-line results and the emergence of a new culture within your organization. The subsequent rate and scale of progress will depend on your people and the level of support you provide, including the allocation of resources away from business as usual. Transformation is underway.
How much does it cost?
Our process offers a cost-effective alternative to traditional approaches. We strive to quickly make ourselves redundant while empowering your team to take charge. Rather than relying on prolonged engagements and larger teams, we aim to leverage and unlock your team's skills, providing you with the confidence to implement independently. This approach makes better business sense for you as it reduces third-party fees and enables you to retain the new learning in-house.
How is “Transformation” different to “Change”?
Results in an altered state where people in the organisation choose to behave, think, and act differently.
Reorients the organisation towards a new direction; with an improved balance among the needs and interests of customers, employees, the organisation, society and environment.
Transformation goes beyond incremental improvement and continues to improve over time.
Embedded and sustainable within the organisation.
Change, by contrast, is often incremental and requires sustained focus, energy, and attention to maintain. When the focus shifts, regression can occur rapidly if people have not undergone fundamental change. Change often lacks sustainability and fails to deliver transformative results for the future.
“Change works despite the culture, whereas transformation creates a new culture”
The power of people to create transformational change
How do we work with organisational culture?
Organisational culture always exists and is shaped by the collective behaviours and beliefs of its people. No culture is perfect, as each has strengths and weaknesses. Culture both manifests and maintains the status quo and becomes most tangible when initiating change. We work with the existing culture whilst fostering creativity through leveraging diversity in skills, behaviours, and beliefs.
Why do we include Customer Experience as an essential ingredient in our work?
Customer Experience (CX) is crucial in a business context for several reasons. It directly impacts the fundamentals of the business, such as customer acquisition, churn rates, propensity to spend, repeat purchases, and the cost of service. Positive CX enhances customer satisfaction, leading to customer retention, increased sales, and reduced service costs related to complaints and faults. It supports the overall health and success of the business by driving customer loyalty, revenue growth, and operational efficiency.
Indeed, Customer Experience (CX) is inherently intangible and challenging to measure accurately, often leading to questions about the effectiveness of commonly used metrics like NPS (Net Promoter Score) and Customer Satisfaction. Paradoxically, the aspects that are easier to measure and justify in business cases may inadvertently undermine CX and customer satisfaction in the long run. Striking the right balance within an organization can be a complex and challenging task.
What is "Lateral Thinking"
"The solving of problems by an indirect and creative approach, typically through viewing the problem in a new and unusual light" - "Lateral Thinking" as defined by Oxford English dictionary, and coined by Edward de Bono.