Defining Your Difference Part 3
Define your Difference...Maximise your Impact
Defining our difference and maximising our impact is our sole source of competitive differentiation as a business person. It determines our economic value and reward, and ultimately the choices that flow from this, but more importantly it determines our level of personal fulfilment in accomplishing our life¡'s work.
Scientists tell us that 99.99% of human DNA is common to all humankind, and it¡'s the .01% that makes us unique. I guess that is true as most of our physical makeup is similar. However, unlocking that special .01% is like splitting the atom releasing a critical mass of energy and power. It¡'s the .01% that defines our difference and is the source of our capacity to create, achieve and impact change. The question is; how do we make this a reality for ourselves and the organisations in which we work?
In the same way most businesses are similar. They have products; customers; IT; infrastructure etc, and people; whose contributions so often are really no different from their counterparts as they are defined and often limited by their functional roles with little scope to experiment with new ideas or think of growth. Even the greatest encouragement for new ideas from people bears little fruit as normal activities and workload prohibit this focus. This seriously limits the competitiveness and growth prospects of many businesses whose sole source of competitive advantage are their people.
Research has shown that on average 38% of an organisation¡'s developed talent lies untapped - although it is paid for every month. Here¡'s why unlocking and deploying this investment is critical to a company¡'s future but requires special skill and care to accomplish:
„X This is the least accessible part of peoples¡' value because it lies hidden in the hearts and minds of individuals.
„X It is also the most valuable part because it represents the creative genius of people that when deployed, results in the biggest returns.
People define their difference in business by expressing themselves uniquely through entrepreneurial laws, that when applied fully and consistently, will always impact the growth of a business. It¡'s knowing and applying these laws that provide the key to growth.
Companies that are seeking to initiate and drive growth from within their organisations face the challenge of having to go deeper and further than they have ever been before in developing their unique DNA - the unique value that only people can bring to creating their strategic growth. This is not an automatic process, and goes way beyond the application of conventional skills. It requires careful diagnosis and involvement of people in a structured process to unlock their creative and purposeful engagement in delivering a unique brand of impact to customers and the business.
Companies can now define the unrealised potential of people to impact growth¡K. by individual, using a groundbreaking diagnostic tool. Application of this potential to meet specific business objectives is facilitated through a unique development programme.
Article submitted by James Raath
