In less than five years a lot can change. For instance in the past five years, Volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous conditions, also known as VUCA have crushed nations and also liquidated several financial institutions. The gusty winds of creative obliteration toppled several iconic brand in the market and created new ones. For example, Uber became the largest taxi firm in the globe without having to own any car, and Alibaba became the biggest retailer in the world without having to own any inventory.

To succeed in business, leaders must be ready to play the long game. The leader would have to have long-term goals, and focus on the needs of the customer and embrace the new models. Hard work, incremental improvements, and good advice alone will not cut it. Leaders who come up with successful long-term business strategies envisage a bold future and then do everything that they can to make it happen. Successful leaders will not just be taken along for a ride, – they will shape the future of their businesses by thinking outside the box. Research from Sphere Digital, a leading recruitment firm in London, has shown that there are six essential behaviours that are fundamental to being truly strategic. Strengthening these behaviours is key to the success of a business.

Successful leaders must know how to:

1. Challenge the Status Quo

Contentment is surefire method to fail the long game; status quo can also be referred to as the dead-end street. Leaders who are long-term oriented will tend to constantly question the norms of their business model and re-invent it in the end. They should create internal groups such as the ‘Pixar Braintrust’ where the varied teams frankly criticize strategies and projects regularly.

2. Forestall By Seeing Sooner and Scanning Wider

Business leaders ought to continuously get ready for what is coming next so as to get ahead of the transformation. A majority of individuals identify the value of looking ahead; nevertheless, those that anticipate well will look sideways to the side-lines when the disruption often starts.

Just reflect on how the joining of the new technologies yielded 3D Systems, Uber, and Amazon before they became mainstream. In a few years to come, business leaders will not only be challenged to acknowledge these forces- genomics, infinite computing, robotics, and 3D printing, but also be able to control then in advanced ways to transform and disrupt industries.

3. Understand and Join The Dots

There is a growing demand for data scientists, this is driven the buzz surrounding big data and the significance of algorithms. With the new technologies and apps amassing a surge of information, business leaders ought to be skilled at burrowing beneath the surface, magnifying inconsistencies, and locating hidden connections so as to get fresh insights.

4. Make A Decisions and Implement Them

Given the intricacy of information in this new information age, business leaders must evaluate several pathways forward- and then bounce into action without getting paralyzed. Nick Woodman, the founder GoPro, came up with an expedient waterproof camera specifically for surfers, this is after he tries to create a makeshift model for his personal use. The makeshift model consisted of a Kodak camera that was tied to the wrist using a broken surfboard leash. After trying several ways to achieve his vision, he spent approximately 18-hour days perfecting his prototype and today his product is a force to reckon with in the camera market.

5. Align Individuals Around Pioneering Ideas

Amazon’s ‘two pizza rule’ and Pixar’s ‘morning after’ de-brief meeting for making sure that there is a manageable team size that is designed to concentrate teams on persistent product improvement and idea generation. The idea is that both innovation and alignment come from cross-fertilization and innovative tension. This tactic will ever more significant as business leaders should embrace the varied perspectives and eliminate the differences so as to come up with the best solutions.

6. Learning Through Experiments and Turning Failures Into Opportunities

Getting to know early enough the importance of failure is not in trying but instead its bad result. Even though very few will succeed, business leaders need to embrace the skill of experimentation so as to encourage transformation. Developing the Agile Methodology outside software improvement, Google X learns from failures and successes to regulate how to fine-tune and where to place big bets through rigorous and rapid feedback cycles.

Creating a Strategy for Long-Term Growth of Your Business

While a majority of entrepreneurs are aware of what they intend to achieve and grow their businesses, very few have actually taken time to carefully plan it out. A strategic plan can help when focusing on the objectives and also in aligning the workers to accomplish the long-term goals of the business. Below are 4 tips that can help when laying a foundation for long-term growth, without having to sacrifice any short-term profits.

• Keep Your Returns in Perspective.

You can use profits in paying down debts, creating new products, or services, recognizing the effort of your team, and also set aside some funds for emergencies in future.

• Increase Sales from Your present Clients.

In case you already have a customer base, focus on them instead of concentrating on 90% of individuals who do not understand your business. These regular clients are your champions and they are usually the best way for you to increase more sales and generate more revenue. Find different kinds of loyalty programs, customer recognition, discounts for regular clients, and also new product presents to regular clients.

• Never Reinvent The When.

When you are planning to expand your product delivery, you should not re-invent the wheel. In its place, you can come up with innovative ways to manage it, such as utilizing freight services provided by companies like CSA Transportation, for instance. In doing so, your entry cost might be much lower and you can grow exponentially.

• Value Each Relationship That You Develop.

Every individual that you meet is very significant. They could turn to be your next funder, advocate, mentor, or customer. Not all the relationships that you develop will end up being beneficial, however, there is absolutely no reason not to try them at different angles with different individuals. These relationships can help you in getting to know more about the business and your capabilities. It can also help you in developing your network much quickly, permitting you to rapidly grow your business.

References

• http://www.spherelondon.co.uk/blog/defining-our-future–our-five-year-strategy
• http://www.imd.org/research/challenges/TC044-13-bridging-the-gap-thomas-malnight.cfm
• http://smallbusiness.chron.com/long-term-business-strategies-5146.html