Des points de vue
The Clone Syndrome
He graduated from the same school as you did, 20 years after you did, on his CV you read the name of that extremely prestigious American university that you know so well, he works for one of your competitors and is the son of one of your friends. He will therefore become the director of the export department that you dream of and that will open up the coveted American market to you.
You have made a mistake… in a few months your sales will be at a standstill and you will have lost the equivalent of his annual salary. You will then understand that the methods taught in your school have evolved, that people can learn how to learn but that it was in fact your own personality and passion that got you to where you are today… and that he does not have those traits.
He stayed for too little time in the United States there to be able to look beyond the “little Americans” and fully understand the pragmatism of their country.
With regard to the business methods of your competitor and of your sector, shouldn’t inspiration be drawn from markets which are more responsive than yours? Because, even if you excelled in your business methods, tomorrow is another day entirely and this young man must anticipate what will happen in the market, a clone can only reproduce. Furthermore, as a result of his cosseted youth he has too much faith in the old methods and would never dream of questioning them.
Even a quick glance at the big worldwide success stories will show you that those people who have made a name for themselves and are admired for their achievements had their ideas before they had a CV (even if that CV is a prestigious one). But above all they have an open mind that allows them to see future changes before other people notice them. With this ability strengthening them, they then acquire the necessary hindsight which gives them the edge and the boldness of ‘people who know’, without the conceitedness and the blind conformity of those who are only interested in power within the business.
Thus learn to detect these bad clones and avoid them in the future.
Be wary of…
- Associates who do not read and know nothing about current affairs. You may think “he must concentrate on his job”; when others will think “his job is also to be aware of what is going on in the world”. The business world is becoming less and less focused on small isolated cases. Target markets now intersect and the public judges you like never before. Your shareholders are also shareholders of companies that have nothing to do with your company, but they measure your shares against the shares of other actors in the market who are very different from you. Your associates and employees notice the development of the world on the internet and often understand your mistakes before you do. The credibility of what you tell them has become absolutely vital. Your clients compare you with others and no longer have any loyalty or feel that anything is taboo, you must anticipate the changes of course that they may make. Therefore, surround yourself with open-minded and knowledgeable managers and executives.
- Internet phobia, if he reads his emails on paper edited by his secretary, dictates his notes and thus his emails in shorthand, prints out the entire press review in order to (not) read it at home or while travelling: there is a high likelihood that he has symptoms of this phobia. Today it is still acceptable but the time lost will add up quickly. Because by typing the name of your competitor into Google or Yahoo your marketing director can better plan his strategy. By consulting what analysts are saying your financial director can anticipate their data and certain market reactions. By consulting the trade union websites and their forums your human resource developers can learn of standpoints that are different to those in the pamphlets that are circulated.
- Managers who live in their own little bubble… and who will only receive visitors who intimately understand an operation to be launched in the short term. It is without a doubt those who speak to you in terms of the immediate future who have such an interest; in fact they do not know your work in any detail, if you confront them with this they lie to you and that is dangerous… they must have experience of operations that have worked in other sectors, in other countries… and that you can put to the test in the future. Refusing to meet different actors in the market is a self-protection reflex. Out-and-out self-protection leads to economic suffocation.
Let us convince you. It may well be that we already have what you are looking for; the candidates that we put forward will be creators of value for you.
Contact us, you will appreciate the difference.
