Reconciling Corporate Dilemmas

The world of business is changing at an amazing speed. Yet, some companies manage to always lead the pack, always seem to manage to do the right things the right way. How is that? Is there a corporate genetic code or secret recipes to succeed?

Research showed such successful organizations actually share one feature: their leaders manage to reconcile the various dilemmas presented to the company.

Usual manager base their decision making on binary, opposite options basis: Is it good or bad, should we do this or not, etc... But the business world is more complex than such short-term visions and success is indeed the result of reconciling two opportunities that may have appeared opposite.

Should we think local or global? Do we need to concentrate on our customers or our employees? Should we cut cost or invest in R&D? Compromise is not the best solution as neither option is fully enforced, hence creating frustrations devastating in the future. Working with British Airways and American Airlines, Fons Trompenaars points out with humour in the following example what compromises may create:

In the "One World" alliance, typically Americans emphasize on "core competencies" while in contrast BA and Cathay Pacific emphasize service with hot breakfasts, champagne and the like. Thus the options are as follows:
1. Go for "service the cattle with Coke and pretzels";
2. Not only serve hot breakfasts but add massage and shoe polishing and "go bankrupt on the flight";
3. Compromise and "serve the hot pretzel" so that it becomes certain that one will lose all clients...

Reconciliation is the art of trying to define those specific areas to provide a more personal service and deepen relationship. Here are a few dilemmas most companies are facing today.

Successful leaders transcend their day-to-day business environment to think ahead reconciliation of the dilemmas their company is about to face.

Michael Dell is famous for creating an organization that successfully reconciled the old dilemma of mass production vs. customization. Richard Branson, the brand of his empire, is the champion of reconciliation of making money vs. critiquing the current economic system.

What are your corporate dilemmas? We can help you identify them, study together the way you reconcile some of them and find out how to reconcile the others. We do not claim to have better answer than you. Only the management of a firm is best placed to discover the way of reconciliation for the company's dilemmas.

Through an innovative training approaching topics such as corporate culture, cross-cultural management and sometimes simulation games, let us lead you to a new era of management by reconciling your dilemmas.