The Moneybag Perception Problem: A tunnel-view perception that poses a silent threat to the organization

Business Improvement Series

“I help improve people, processes and products – in that order!” As a CMC, I use this tagline as a sales pitch to prospective clients. Some might be impressed with it while some might question the underlying meaning. So, I’m about to disclose the profound philosophy behind my tagline. It is an outcome of my two decades of experience having served over two hundred clients across geographies and industry sectors.

Any business is always a “going concern”, irrespective of its trajectory or history. In this context, organizational development (OD) is of prime concern which is the pars virilis of any leader. There are several OD theories like systems theory, human relations theory, action research theory, etc. where a specific framework is adopted to understand and implement organizational growth. However, there is none to my knowledge that addresses OD problems in a holistic manner. As mentioned earlier that any business is a going concern and will continue to operate as long as there is sufficient cash-flow; it is imperative that it must also work on its “Brand Value” and “Goodwill” (BV&G); in order to grow. Top leaders are very well aware that long-term sustainability depends on BV&G and not just on cash-flow whether it is generated via investors or customers. A push-pull strategy (fundraising & valuation to sales strategy & customer acquisition) on its own can only elongate the survival but can never take you to the next level. For example, we all are aware of a major e-commerce startup that is running on losses since its inception but still is heavily backed by investors. In stark contrast, we also have a few other startups that have been star performers since over a decade with very pleasant returns to its shareholders including investors and customers. With this background, we can now have a look at the below image:

Figure 1: MPP Overview

 The “Moneybag Perception Problem” (MPP) is rampantly prevalent in organizations that are trying to thrive in a competitive environment. By definition, it is a tunnel-view perception purely arising out of a consumerist mindset, where one sees every other opportunity / situation / partner / person as a potential “Money bag”. This kind of a perception can affect the organization both internally and externally as shown in the image above. For example, your sales team starts seeing every other prospect as a “Moneybag” and measures the customer in terms of ticket value. Prima facie, there is nothing wrong in performance metrics like NPS, CAC, LTV, etc. which can be part of your planning, forecasting, KPIs and KRAs; but it becomes a problem when your sales team develops this perception right from the beginning of the sales cycle and carries it throughout execution. Such an approach will eventually reduce customer satisfaction due to a dip in the service delivery; as each customer will not be treated equally and this can spiral down into increased efforts in the long run, thereby increasing costs. Likewise, your HR team starts seeing each employee as a “Moneybag” and measures every employee in terms of their pay-band levels. Once again, there are formal processes to measure employee performance but this approach can spread like wildfire within the “informal organization” that exists everywhere; and very soon there can be an air of discomfort where all employees are not treated with equality. In this manner, employee performance levels can plummet as the work culture gets affected and very soon the attrition rate can rise to staggering levels, which will directly impact the overheads of the organization.

Figure 2: MoneyBag (generated via hotpot.ai)

The “Moneybag Perception” if ignored for certain duration; will certainly have a negative impact on the BV&G of the organization. I have personally witnessed teams disbanded, projects discontinued and organizations restructured for the wrong reasons owing to the phenomena of MPP. When I discuss on business improvement with team leads or even the top management; they usually come back with typical responses like “we are currently having a very high attrition rate and unable to manage our operations effectively”, “there’s too much competition in the market right now hence our sales is taking a hit”, “we are dependent on our sole supplier and hence we are losing orders”, “we are trying to raise funds but our investors are not confident enough” so on and so forth. Each statement is self-defined and there is a clear lack of understanding of the problem in most cases. Most of the times, clients are only able to convey the “Reaction” without being able to identify or define the problem accurately. So, how do we tackle this type of a silent killer?

Any business organization exists to deliver a product to the customer – be it a tangible product or a service. Your product can only be as good as the process behind it and your processes can only be as effective as the people who drive it. Now, here comes the solution – you have to ensure that you have the right people driving efficient processes that can deliver the right product. In our given example, it is the leadership team that has to work on the sales team and the HR team in order to bring about an organization-wide change. The management team then has to redefine the policies that can revitalize the service delivery and work culture of the organization. This will organically lead to continuous improvement of your product and / or service both internally and externally. To be able to achieve this you have to eliminate the MPP through a series of steps which can be very specific to the needs of your organization. I must reiterate that most organizations fail to make a turnaround because the leaders too are often a victim of the MPP and are unable to “see beyond” the reaction viz. the repercussions occurring due to total ignorance or complete denial of the existence of MPP.

Figure 3: Tagline (image via picsart..com)

As we know that any business is a “going concern”, as consultants let us strive to make it into a “winning concern”. Let me conclude once again with my tagline – “I help improve people, processes and products – in that order!”

CONSUMERISM KILLS...EVENTUALLY!

(Life Coaching Series)

Last week, I was doing some quick errands to buy some pending grocery and sweets to cross my home-shopping checklist. I just happened to be on my toes for hours with constant updates over my mobile which included targeted ads across various apps and services that I regularly use. Let me tell you that I prefer walking out to buy my grocery rather than order it online, even in the post-covid era. Throughout my shopping spree, I was bombarded with “relevant” ads, some of which are listed below along with my take on them:    

 

For starters, water is made potable by several methods that include filtration, distillation, reverse osmosis, ultraviolet radiation, etc. Each of these processes along with cleaning the water depletes the mineral content in it. Consumption of such water form bonds with the minerals inside our body and is passed out through urine and sweat; thereby depleting our mineral intake. Firstly, they deplete the minerals from water to make it potable and then they add minerals to make it healthy. I would rather drink directly from a natural and clean pond than falling for this gimmick.

In the last decade, it has become the norm in our nation to gift chocolates on auspicious occasions and festivals. Thanks to this excellent ad that has carefully and consciously manipulated our thought process. We are a nation that celebrates at least three festivals per month (refer any Hindu Panchang i.e. Ephemeris) where each festival has an associated culinary diet that is most suited to the season and region. For example, “thandai” (natural home-made cold drink that cools the body) at Holi (around March / April) which is the onset of summer or “tilgud” (natural home-made sweet rich in oil content) at Makar Sankranti (around mid of January) during autumn. Why do we need to replace such a rich and healthy tradition with fermented and preservative infused food?

As far as I know, cold-pressed oil (still available in rural India) poses the least risk to our health since it is free of man-made chemicals and good cholesterol is preserved. In the modern refinery, filtration of oil takes place in the presence of CMR (Carcinogenic-Mutagenic-Reprotoxic) substances. No matter, what the brands might claim the end product is certainly a risky proposition. Any given day, I would bet on unrefined / unfiltered cold-pressed oil to keep my heart beating normally.  

With the advent of shopping malls and supermarkets, we have unwittingly started consuming processed vegetables instead of fresh vegetables. Most of us are unaware that the preservatives, artificial colors and artificial flavoring used for processed food often contain CMR substances and are never listed on the label. Is it just our ignorance or is it our fast-paced lifestyle that makes us too lazy to work with fresh vegetables?

Each of these ads are an example of brilliant consumerism and are probably used as case studies at B-schools. But the moot point is – where do we draw the line? This kind of consumerism is like a slow poison that kills both the consumer and the society in a gradual manner.

I’m neither a nutritionist or a medical doctor; but as a systems / process auditor I have had the opportunity to audit entire food chains across India & Africa. What I am presenting here is out of direct experience from years of observation, both as an auditor and a consumer. Just like you, I’m a consumer first and an auditor later. So, it does concern me when I find that I’m unaware of what goes inside my body willingly.

Remember that each time you eat, you are either fighting disease or feeding it!

Follow this simple formula to stay fit – OPPRESS:

Oil – Reduce your intake of oil and fried food

Processed – Avoid anything that is labelled as “processed” since it is mostly less natural than you think

Packaged – Avoid anything that is labelled as “packaged” since it is mostly less natural than you think

Refined – Avoid anything that is labelled as “refined” since it is mostly less natural than you think

Excess – Avoid any type of overindulgence including food for thought viz. digital exposure  

Sugar – Reduce the intake of sugar and sugar-based foods

Salt – Reduce consumption of salt and salt-based foods

This way you can OPPRESS any disease with ease and stay fit for a longer period. And, don’t take my advice with a pinch of salt – Just try it out and you will feel the difference!