Originally posted – Jan 24, 2014
Dr. Chuck Bamford is the founder of Bamford Associates, LLC. He has worked with thousands of managers over the last 20 years in the development of implementable strategic plans and an entrepreneurial orientation to growth.
He worked in industry for 12 years prior to pursuing his Ph.D. His last position was manager of business analysis for Dominion Bankshares Corp., which is now Wells Fargo.
Bamford also is the author of five textbooks used by businesses and universities around the world. Among them are “Entrepreneurship: A Small Business Approach,” “Strategic Management and Business Policy”and “Strategic Management: Value Creation, Sustainability & Performance.”His writings include regular contributions to the Charlotte Observer, the Charlotte Business Journal, NPR; WBTV-Channel 3, News 14 and the Mecklenburg Times.
His extensive business consulting, writing and teaching background has led to his being a regular speaker at conferences, conventions and company retreats for a variety of organizations.
In addition, Bamford has taught courses in strategy and entrepreneurship at the undergraduate, graduate and executive levels. He is currently an adjunct professor of strategy at the University of Notre Dame – and his teaching experience includes courses taught internationally at universities in Scotland, Hungary and the Czech Republic. He has previously been on the faculty at the University of Notre Dame, Queens University of Charlotte, the University of Richmond, Texas Christian University and Tulane University. Bamford has won 18 teaching excellence honors, including nine Executive MBA Professor of the Year Awards. He is a National Noble Foundation Fellow in Teaching Excellence.
Dr. Bamford will be a keynote speaker at the Coin Laundry Association’s Excellence in Laundry Conference, which is scheduled for May 14-15 at the Ocean Reef Club in Key Largo, Fla.
As a professor of entrepreneurship, do you believe that entrepreneurs are born – or can anyone develop an entrepreneurial mindset?
I believe that both exist in some form. In general, we know a lot about what works and what does not work – that is, once someone knows the “how,” they might be more inclined to try their hand at a new venture. We call this an entrepreneurial orientation. Where it comes from is simply not known at this point.
As we slowly emerge from the Great Recession, what overall trends are you noticing on the small-business landscape?
There is a lot more focus on process. At least in the short-term, there has been a return to the fundamentals of cash flow and effective business models.
What do you think are some of the biggest issues facing small-business owners today?
From my perspective, the issues have not changed much over time. I put these together into a few questions that should be asked:
- How do you separate your business from that of your competitors?
- How do you ensure a substantial gross profit margin?
- How do you get your employees to stay focused on the things that matter to the customer?
- How do you improve the consistency of delivery to customers?
- What is your sales generation scheme?
- How do you maintain a balance in your operational financing?
What are the keys to small-business success in 2014? How can laundry owners create a framework for that success?
This is the core of the talk I will give to the group in Florida. I believe that it requires a discipline and a process. While there is a lot of “art”to designing a solid strategy, there is also a “science.”That science is the key to separating those “feel good”answers about competitive advantage and those answers that are real – even if they are difficult.
On your website, you talk about “REAL Business Strategy.”Can you explain what that is?
Far too many business owners think SWOT is strategy. These owners believe that if they think something is a strength, weakness, opportunity or threat, then it must be true. There is a process to determine what constitutes a real business strategy, and we will cover that in my session.
A REAL business strategy is one that incorporates a small set of true competitive advantages as the focus of the business. That is, a focus for everyone who works in the business.
Competition has never been tougher. How can a businessperson define what separates his or her business from all of the others? In other words, how can owners find those individual competitive advantages within their businesses?
This requires the business owner to separate what is orthodox – or what must be done to be a player in the industry – from what separates the business from its competitors. Those elements that are REAL separators are simultaneously rare, durable, relatively non-substitutable, relatively non-tradable and valuable. In most organizations, there are at most two, three, maybe four resources/capabilities that are truly competitive advantages.
What is your definition of the “Perfect Customer?”
The perfect customer is the one who instantly gets the value proposition of your business and is willing to pay for it.
You talk about orthodox and unorthodox elements of a business. Can you provide some examples of how these two types of business elements may come into play within a laundromat setting?
Orthodox elements are all those things you must have in order to be considered by customers. In a laundromat setting, that would include a facility, lighting, heating, washing machines, dryers, tables for folding and many other items depending upon the location and competition in your area. Unorthodox elements would be those that meet the criteria discussed above – rare, durable, etc. And, of course, we will work through what these might be in our session in Florida this May.
In your work, you talk about “strategy maps?”Can you explain what those are?
These are the most effective means of focusing the strategy of every individual in the organization that exists today. The maps generally have five columns and require that every employee explain how they will contribute to the success of the business strategy. It also incorporates metrics that dramatically improve accountability.
How can laundry owners use strategy maps to grow their businesses?
By focusing all of their employees’ efforts on what really matters to customers and what really separates the business from its competitors, the map is the key to growing that business.
Do you have any suggestions for how business owners can make sure they stick to their strategic vision and not “fall off the wagon?”
It is so tough to keep the strategy/vision in mind when the phones are ringing. I encourage business owners to force themselves to consider how they moved the business strategy forward every single day. Even if it is only five minutes, it is crucial.
The second part of this effort is ensuring that every employee gets the importance of this. Business owners must constantly ask/check-in with their employees on how they personally are moving the business strategy forward. Employees will focus on what matters to the boss.
When implementing a new business strategy, how can you best engage your employees in that implementation?
I think the best way to work the whole strategy effort is to incorporate as many employees as is possible – all, if they can do so. A short workshop/retreat whose goal is the production of a strategy map is a start. A weekly or monthly business process review of progress is a must.
Why is it so important to have your staff “buy in”to your new strategy?
Quite honestly, it is all that matters. Your staff implements the strategy, and they alone have the power to undermine the whole effort.
Competitors come and go, and the competitive landscape is always changing. Do you have any suggestions as to how laundry owners can keep their strategic visions sharp and adjust their strategies to accommodate shifts in their markets?
There is a model for the design and implementation of strategy that really requires the continuous monitoring and adjusting of the strategy based upon the changes in the competitive environment. It is about getting into a strategy rhythm.
Are there any businesses you look at and say, “They’ve got it together,” and are doing it all “right?”
All the time. However, keeping it together for a long stretch is difficult. Executives come and go, as do the relative efforts spent on strategy. Every time we mention a particular business, it seems that someone loses focus and the business starts to suffer. It is a point-in-time observation.
Entrepreneurs are known for having a creative edge. Do you have any recommendations for how to keep the entrepreneurial spirit/creativity alive? Often times, you’ll see companies make a big initial splash, but they don’t continue to innovate.
This is an entire line of thinking and an approach that is crucial to the continued success of all business ventures, whether they are new or established. Whole books have been written on this subject. The best advice I have – outside of a detailed reading on the topic – is for the business owner to keep in mind that anytime they stand still with what they are doing, that someone else is running to catch up with them. No innovation is a direct path to profit deterioration.
Are mission statements important?
Oh, yes! A well-written mission statement can be a guiding light for employees as they make decisions every day.
How can a laundry owner design a stellar mission statement that makes a difference in his or her business?
There is a technique that suggests that a great mission statement is simultaneously short, simple, specific, actionable and measurable. Although we will look at this briefly in my talk to the group in Florida, it is something that truly deserves a longer focus.
When small businesses fail, what are the most common reasons for that failure?
There are so many reasons for business failure that most researchers focus on business success. If I had to put it simply, I would say it is a failure to have an effective sales generation approach, a failure to develop/maintain a strong operating margin and a failure of financial support.
You do a lot of speaking to business owners across the country, what have you learned from these interactions?
I am fortunate enough to speak with dozens of organizations every year. I’ve learned that the business owners in the audience know far more than I will ever know about their business. The folks in the audience are the content experts. What I bring is a process approach that, in combination with their expertise, will allow them to soar in their industries. The success of hundreds of businesses who put all this in place is a remarkable testament to the deep understanding of the business owners.
What would you most like the laundry owners reading this to take away from this interview?
I’d like them to know that there is a lot of material out there that they can use to leverage their own knowledge and experience. The approaches that I will talk to the group about are not secret and are well tested. Take solace in knowing that every business person in every industry at every size company is dealing with the exact same issues.
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