Savvy Expertise

Strategy

It’s important for the formulation of mission, vision, corporate strategy and objectives through workshops and interviews to involve the executive board, management team and other relevant stakeholders like members of the supervisory board, owners and individual experts in- and outside the organisation. Different models can be of value, the BCG matrix, Porter 5 forces, Ansoff matrix, SWOT analysis and for the strategy execution, the McKinsey 7S framework. A good strategy involves market analysis, a good understanding of the product and organisation in order to determine strategic options. A product, commercial, HR and possibly partner strategy are part of the corporate strategy execution.

Financial and business analysis is necessary to further develop and guide the organisation. Analysis of historical results like activity based costing, defining cost drivers leads to insight and better decision making for the business and increase budgeting, financial forecasting and KPI measuring capabilities. Cost price and investment calculations are necessary for product pricing and packaging and enables setting up valuable business cases for product development and making the right strategic choices.

Operationalising strategy by translating the objectives into short and longer term recommendations, measurements, actions and (operational) business plan is key, as much as the alignment with all departments and main stakeholders on the current situation, strategy, (financial) implications and consequences in order to safeguard the feasibility of the business plan execution. A 3 to 5 year business plan includes a short market description, product development, commercial direction, organisational development and sound financial projections.

Most start-ups and scale ups lack certain disciplines, knowledge, expertise or even more important, experience. Its great to help and provide new businesses with that experience and support or coaching on various aspects that are new and unknown like, strategy, business planning & development, concept development, product development, financing, pricing & packaging, distribution, marketing and connecting with an external network.

Small and large companies get involved in mergers and acquisitions at some point, either to grow themselves or to become over-leveraged. Not only the acquisition is important, but also the integration afterwards, for both parties. In this process, many aspects are important, strategy, business planning, valuation, deal structure and things like financial forecasts and management presentations, but above all finding the right buyer or takeover party and getting the right fit.

Innovating within companies is one of the hardest things to do. It is important to have the freedom to think and act outside the existing organisation and to think up new things, or improve existing things.Developing new concepts is great to do, but without management attention and sponsorship it is impossible and only leads to extra costs and employee frustration. A fresh look from the outside can help the company to gain new insights and develop products and concepts.

Marketing and strategic marketing in particular, plays a central role in the organisation, where strategy, product development and sales come together. Focus on the right products for the right customer segments and the right value proposition combine to create an excellent go-to-market strategy. Branding, website, marketing collateral on- and offline marketing events to create leads and support sales.