Reallocation of Resources Around Opportunities

I’ve been talking about this whole idea of REALLOCATION for such a long time that I felt it was almost turning into ‘harping’. (I wrote about Reallocation by Mitt Romney and Opportunities to Excel as two of my favorite examples.)

However, with this whole ‘ECONOMY’ thing having such a huge effect, I’m convinced now more than ever, we need to:

REALLOCATE RESOURCES around OPPORTUNITIES.

The latest issue of Harvard Business Review backs this up in its main article on Capitalizing on the Crisis and Seizing Advantage in a Downtown, which led with:

“A downturn opens up rare OPPORTUNITIES.”

“INACTION is the risky response to the uncertainties of economic crisis.”

Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks, says it this way, “Great companies recognize who they are and who they are not; but they must also have the COURAGE to examine TRANSFORMATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES.”

Here are 2 things to get your creative juices flowing:

1. TRANSFORMATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES. As Schultz says, you’ve got to have the COURAGE (which comes from the French word cour meaning HEART). This is about Vision, BHAG’s, Quantum Leaps and more. Once identified and prioritized, these TRANSFORMATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES need to be attacked with every ounce of talent, energy and money available.

2. RESOURCE ALLOCATION based on these new OPPORTUNITIES. I’ve been encouraging coaching clients to take a very hard look at the ‘NUMERATOR’, not the ‘DENOMINATOR’ in their FUNDING MODEL. In Suddes shorthand, that means you can’t CUT costs, CUT budgets (the denominator) and ‘SAVE’ your way to success. You need to significantly increase your NUMERATOR (REVENUE) through SALES!

This demands measurement and accountability of CURRENT RESOURCES used to raise CURRENT DOLLARS.

A quick example: University and College Advancement (Development) Offices need to commit themselves to high-end sales, the top of the pyramid, leadership presentations, major gifts, legacy giving, significant increase in reunion giving, etc.

That means the resources of people and time and energy and money need to be REALLOCATED (SHIFTED) to a “higher level of productivity”.

No money in the budget? REALLOCATE.

Stagnant or decreasing programs, events, direct mail? REALLOCATE.