Flawless Execution: Essential for Winning in Football and Production
On Sunday January 23rd, I watched the NFC Championship Playoff game between the Packers and the Bears. I was excited to see the Bears make it to the playoffs for several reasons: my father was a huge Bears fan all of his life or at least for as long as I can remember, and I really like Mike Martz and Lovey Smith.
As I watched the Bears get brutally beaten on the field, missing one opportunity after another, I realized this game could be compared to print and direct mail production. The printing and direct mail industry has been hit hard with commoditization. So, what keeps some companies alive, while others are failing miserably and ultimately closing their doors?
I'm sure there are a lot of reasons for failure, but the one that is screaming the loudest at me is failure to execute flawlessly. It's a must if you want to beat the competition. Obviously, the Bears' execution was anything but flawless.
I asked a few of my key customers why they continue to give their bread and butter to a select group of vendors. The number one reason given, over and over again, was they need vendors that make it easy for them. They select vendors that are organized and proactive with their projects, partners that can demonstrate these characteristics on a daily basis. They want to hand over a project or a program and move on to the next task on their "to do" list, without worry or loss of sleep. In other words, they want and demand hassle free partnerships.
Production clients tell you what they want, and it is up to you to get it done...on time, on budget, with no surprises. Of course there are times when you should make recommendations to help your client save money and gain efficiencies as mentioned above, but as production vendors we really don't call the plays...we execute them...flawlessly.
Too bad the Bears couldn't do the same. Any chance they had to capitalize on a Packers' mistake was lost. Maybe next year will be better, but in the meantime, take advantage of every mistake the competition makes...no matter how big or small, because in the end, the customer knows who they can turn to when they can't afford any mistakes.
Author: Laura Kucharczyk
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