The Consequences of Weak Management

Achieving Full Potential in the Promotional Products Industry

Apr 22, 2009

While there are many business owners out there who are getting what they want and need from their companies, the same cannot be said for the companies themselves.

These comments about management strength in the promotional products industry describe both the supplier and distributor side and are intended to point to future opportunities, opportunities because there are many companies out there that are lacking in the systems they will need to prosper. Give them those systems and they will grow.

What can Cause this to Happen?

There are two reasons for this. The first is “not knowing what we don’t know.” This is a dangerous place to be, like the US Navy at Pearl Harbor not knowing there was an attack force on the way. If companies don’t know they need something, where is the motivation to acquire that something going to come from?

The second is the investment required to get a part of the company’s performance up to the next level. These investments can be substantial and are often an obstacle to someone who would rather sell the company instead of putting a significant amount of more capital into it. After all, why bother putting a million dollars into the company to upgrade its operating system when the owner would prefer to use those same dollars elsewhere?

What is it that Leads to this Weakness?

A common observation is one of bright, energetic, and well-meaning managers and entrepreneurs who just are not leading their organizations up to their full potential. The systems they need to do this are missing and to aggravate the situation, they will often respond that they don’t have time or the resources when presented with the necessity of implementing a system that could guide and control their organization through the next levels of growth.

A visit to Japanese auto manufacturers who now lead the world in the sophistication of their operating systems used to produce one of the most basic high ticket consumer products, the automobile, is revealing. It shows what is missing in the promotional products industry and the contrast is sharp.

The areas seen lacking the most often in comparing these two groups of organizations are:

The academic world is not the issue as those instructing at different universities with today’s students are seeing future leaders being prepared to work with these systems. The students though are experiencing frustration as they are just not able to apply what they have learned in many of their current companies in this industry. What they are finding instead is frustration from business leaders who don’t recognize the need for systematic management.

Where Is the Answer Going to Come From?

It is most likely that the answer is going to come from managers who are not in this industry at present. Experienced management from the outside will become more common as various investment groups buy up companies in the industry and look outside for the competencies they will need to manage these enterprises. This is despite some recent bad experiences at some large firms and will be by default from those already in the industry. While they have experience in the promotional products industry, they have not prepared themselves in becoming skilled in utilizing this systematic approach to running a business.

The copyright of the article The Consequences of Weak Management in Business Profiles is owned by Paul Larson. Permission to republish The Consequences of Weak Management in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.