Page 18 - Sustainability and entrepreneurship for CSO's and CSO networks Cambodia 1 November 2018

Position and Services
Your organisational position is an essential element of strategy building. When positioning your organisation you determine your profile, actions, clients, other stakeholders and communications. You distinguish your organisation from others, and create yourself a unique position. In his book, The Blue Ocean, (Chan Kim 2007), advises to look for a market position in which you don’t spend resources fighting competitors, while loosing on added value of your services. Chan describes a market not overrun with competitors, a Blue Ocean, where you can swim freely and build up your market position creatively without being eaten by competitors (Sharks) swimming in a Red Ocean.
• Task
• What makes your organisation unique? How do you distinguish yourself from others? Does this bring any benefit to your organisation?
• What do you need to reduce, skip, enforce and create to enter the Blue Ocean?
• What services do you provide? What are you good at? What can you deliver to
your stakeholders and who wants to receive and buy your services?
Stakeholders and Customers
A stakeholder is: "Every identifiable person or group who’s either influenced by the actions of your organisation or influences your activities and who are important for the survival and success of the organisation (suppliers, advocates, media, and funders)” (Desmidt & Heene, 2005)
Customers, in a narrow sense, are those who buy your services or products. Mobilising and retaining your stakeholders and customers is, next to innovation, your most important business activity. It is instrumental to "constantly acquire intelligence about your customers evolving and changing interests, desires, preferences, likes and dislikes" (Kennedy, 2011), to stay focused and improve the relationship with major stakeholders and customers. Making profit (or to develop your CSO) is the result of satisfying customer and stakeholder needs, and is never a goal in itself; you may produce matches, but if they are being sold by another company at a cheaper rate and better quality you will not sell yours until you improve or innovate and again attract the attention of your stakeholders.
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