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What is the lifetime value of the top 20 per cent of customers?

What percentage of customers are below average in delivering
revenues and profit?

What customers, by name, are more trouble to serve than they are
worth?

The big picture

Every great leader of every great business that has ever spoken or written
on the subject of success has declared that the one essential attribute is to
have a clear view of the big picture. From McKitterick and Watson to the
two Jacks, Welch and Smith the story is the same – know precisely where
you are going and passionately pursue your dream.

The first step in developing a meaningful strategy for success is to
create your ideal future in such detail that all of your five senses can expe-
rience it right now. The passion is important so until you have the answers
to these questions you have no foundation for your strategy and, without
a foundation, you will never have a strategy worth pursuing or the energy
to make it a reality. Unless you have what it takes to make your dream a
reality, you have nothing and if you are incapable of developing a dream
worth the effort you might just as well drift and let the world give you as
much or as little as chance dictates. So either take the following questions
seriously, or forget the whole business, because in a very real sense you will
have no business. (For the tools of strategy building see Key Management
Solutions pages 14–36.)

In writing this section I am, as always addressing an individual reader.
This should in no way be taken to mean that strategy building is anything
other than a team activity. Teams, however, need leadership and it is my
firm resolve that my reader should be at the very least, a “thought leader”.

Step one – the ideal future – where I want us
to be

n What is my ideal future?
n Assuming all things to be possible and knowing that I will come

back to a realistic assessment and plan later, where do I intend to
be in the future?
n How large will the company be in 5–10–15 years’ time?
n What customers will be beating a path to our door?
n Who will they be, how big will they be, what will be their position
in their own sectors?

2 Key management questions