Strategic Source Solutions is a Stanford technology entrepreneur team with a vision of sharing client risk to expand businesses beyond historic markets. They discuss challenges like emerging markets shifting economic power, the need for innovation, and challenges from new global competitors. They propose learning about situations and people, creating solutions, doing by implementing plans, and adapting when needed. The document discusses issues like balancing local autonomy and global scale, organizational structure, transparency, talent, and mastery through stages of increasing expertise. Their goal is finding ways to engage and share risks to help clients build and expand business.

1. In The Beginning
Strategic Source Solutions
A Stanford
Technology Entrepreneur Team
Spring 2012

2. We Are Strategic Source Solutions

4. How to find a good idea and do something with it.
Linus Pauling famously said:
“The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas. “

5. We Are Strategic Source Solutions

6. Our Vision
Sharing client risk to expand and grow businesses beyond historic markets.

7. Eric Fromm
Creativity requires the courage to let go of uncertainties.

8. Shifting the Balance of Economic Power
Emerging markets are shifting the balance of economic power and for
multinationals a “business as usual” approach will no longer suffice.
The last decade has shown a disruption in the nature of consumer markets on an
unprecedented scale.
Adding to the complexity, these high-growth markets are often distinct from one
another in terms of the speed of the markets, the drivers of demand, and
consumer preferences, and the regulatory and investment climate.

9. The world in 2012
Problems
Challenges
Opportunities

10. Building A Future
The world is not adjusting well to the challenges of creating a global village

11. LEARNING
Learn everything you can about the situation and the people in it.
• Who are the people involved and what motivates them?
• What are the most salient elements of the situation?
• Why is the situation the way it is?

12. CREATING
Based on what you learned from understanding the situation and the people
involved in it, what would it "look" like for that problem to be solved or the
opportunity to be fully engaged?
What are some possible ways to achieve the ideal situation?
Of the ways available, which seems to be the best?

13. DOING
Translate your best solution into a set of definable goals that can be measured.
Create a specific plan for achieving those goals:
• Identify the people you need to help you and how you will get them involved.
• Identify the resources you need
Develop a plan for letting people know what you are doing.
• Develop a timeline with milestone

14. ADAPTING
• What worked and did not work in the prototype OR in the plan thus far?
• What needs to be changed or enhanced?
• What are the best next steps to implement necessary adjustments?

15. Customer Focus
We share client risks whilst providing high value services.

16. Polarization of Segments in Developed Markets
The value proposition of mid-range products is less and less attractive, due to the
fact that their quality is not a differentiator any more. Consumers are happy with
“good enough” quality products at attractive prices.

17. Branding and Innovation
Brands are built on many components, but a key element of brand strategy is
innovation.
Innovation is the bloodstream of a great brand.
If you don’t innovate you run the risk of being quickly perceived as “dusty” and
the competition will leapfrog you.

18. Challenges from New Global Players
The world’s center of economic gravity is shifting from developed markets to
emerging ones, and in the next 5-10 years, we will see many more global brands
coming from fast-growing economies.

19. Social Media and The Digital Consumer
Many companies are struggling to understand and exploit social media.
A related challenge is how to reach digital consumers most effectively as mobile
applications become more sophisticated and widespread.

20. Balance Local Autonomy With the Need to Achieve Global Scale
and Standardization
Does it make sense to have a headquarters any more?
Where should the talent that runs the company come from?

21. Decision Rights
Should be pushed down into the organization and the center should involve itself
only in critical enterprise-level decisions such as portfolio strategy, capital
allocation, and global brand management.

22. Organizational Structure is the “Software” that Runs On It
The set of decision rights, management processes, and control mechanisms that
brings the structure to life and determines its overall effectiveness.

23. Transparency
Increased decentralization also requires greater transparency and new
mechanisms to ensure accountability and manage risk.
Companies need to adopt disciplined and coordinated decision-making and
performance management processes.

24. Talent Issue
The talent issue for global enterprises starts at the top.
Starting with the board and senior executives, global companies need to forge
more diverse management teams able to understand the opportunities and the
challenges the business faces in its current and future markets.
Continued focus on differentiating the company’s approach to markets by
segmenting its talent pools, improving managers’
capabilities, behavior, effectiveness, and accountability; taking a holistic approach
to human capital programs and building engagement.

25. Mastery
In most fields mastery occurs through stages.
It proceeds from ignorance to awareness that the topic itself is one of value and
perhaps even importance.
This launches a quest to understand what it means.
As you search, gather more information, and test your initial ideas, you develop
greater expertise, gaining confidence while at the same time discovering that
additional layers of nuances and depth await you.
While the journey may never reach a definitive end point, your capabilities will
increase and your results will reflect this progress.

26. Strategic Source Solutions
Seeking ways to engage and share client risks to build and expand business.

27. You are important to us.
For further information please contact us at:
strategicsourcesolutions@gmail.com