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Cost Challenge

From quick fix to competitive advantage…

Many organisations face the daunting challenge of improving performance in the face of apparently overwhelming odds.  Economic uncertainty, changing market dynamics, competitive pressures, reduced demand, the effects of new technologies and low priced imports all focus attention on cost effectiveness as an essential ingredient of the business mix.  Clearly if a business holds on to costs that it cannot stand, the result will be one or more of higher prices to its customers, falling profits, reinvestment or a less competitive position and greater vulnerability.

Many organisations have tackled the subject of cost reviews – only to be thwarted by the complexity of the implementation task, and the fear of damaging future growth potential.

Typical comments from clients include:

“We’ve always treated cost as a tactical issue, without aligning it to the strategic context of competitive advantage.”

“How can we make decisions when we can’t be sure if the input is factual or political?”

“We haven’t managed the soft issues well.  Employee buy-in has proved difficult.”

“We are efficient, but our rapid growth has led to uncertainty regarding opportunity potential.”

“We tried cutting the fat but not the muscle, and costs soon returned to previous levels.”

In this often sensitive and problematic area, Brooklands supports organisations to secure critical improvements through a well developed and vigorous process - simultaneously and collectively tackling both hard and soft issues.

In the initial stage we work with clients in the identification and separation of business needs from perceived implementation problems.   It is critical to success that history, perceived obstacles and entrenched positions are cleansed when assessing the art of the necessary rather than the art of the possible.  The process must be driven dispassionately with the emphasis on analysis and hard facts, and not influenced by deeply established erroneous prejudices and behaviours – sidelining sacred cows.

The integrated process must be carried out within the context of the organisation’s Vision, Objectives, Action Plans, Resources, Skills and Motivation for change.

Key elements of the process include:

  • Planning and preparation
  • Set up Steering Group
  • Set up Working Groups
  • Launch Meetings – to involve and gain commitment and ownership of executives and staff
  • Workshops and Training
  • Data gathering
  • Analysis
    • Understand current position
    • Define need – where we need to be
    • Identify full sustainable improvement potential
    • Identify consequences of implementation in human and operational terms
    • Determine changes
  • Board report
  • Authorise actions
  • Implementation

We bring benefits to this challenging process through:

  • Designing and project managing a well developed, robust and proven process
  • Creating an environment for success
  • Adapting to a changing business environment
  • Embedding cost efficiency as part of corporate DNA
  • Understanding cost drivers
  • Encouraging leadership and commitment at all levels
  • Developing the invest to save mentality, e.g. cut cost not opportunity, re-allocate monies to more promising areas etc
  • Providing an independent, objective external perspective
  • Challenging established attitudes and thinking
  • Guiding, motivating and directing client executives to achieve success against defined timescales with hands-on support, thus developing confidence in abilities
  • Transferring knowledge and skills
  • Encouraging managers and executives to look for and implement sustainable short-term improvements in support of the core objectives of the project