Dont let your CD (Corporate Disconnect put you out of business

 Don’t let your - Corporate Disconnect (CD) put you out of business.

The single biggest cause of business malaise, dysfunction, slow growth and ultimate failure is Corporate Disconnect (CD). Don’t risk ignoring it in 2019.
Blockbuster had Corporate Disconnect (CD).  Toys R’ Us had CD.  Borders had CD.  US Airways had CD.  Want more? Kodak had CD. Sharper Image.  Polaroid. Fruit of the Loom.  Planet Hollywood.  Howard Johnson's. I could go on for pages.  Want to bet whose next?  Sears?  Macy's? Sprint?  AOL? The single biggest common denominator in all business failure is - Corporate Disconnect.
If you are losing market share you have CD.  If you are losing good employees, you have CD.  If you have communication breakdowns you had CD.  Want more?  If you have slow sales growth you have CD.  If you are losing customer relevance you have CD. Do you have CD?  YES, every organization and every business suffers from some degree of CD.  Two questions – is it slowly putting you out of business? Do you know where your CD is killing your organization’s growth, effectiveness and performance?  Request my FREE 100 CD Employee Questionnaire/Survey form. Email or call me. Here are a few of the details;

If you have ever been in an airplane at 40,000 feet on a clear day, I’m sure you’ve had the experience of looking out the window and being able to see for hundreds of miles, but also realizing that you couldn’t see any detail on the ground.

To describe CD, I’m going to use the illustration of flying as a passenger on an aircraft. This illustration is straightforward and easy to apply to the concept of CD and all its ramifications, symptoms, causes, and solutions.

Let’s say you are returning from a business trip and are now flying over the western part of the US heading toward Los Angeles. As the pilot announces that you are flying over the Continental Divide, you peer out the window and realize that you can see the topography of several states: Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, New Mexico and maybe even a few others. No matter how far you can see, however, you can’t see any detail. No cows, trucks or houses. You are just too high to make out anything other than the vast expanse of raw land. Later, the pilot announces that he is beginning the descent. As you descend through the 20,000-foot level, you notice that you can’t see quite as far, but the details are getting a bit clearer. You can see houses, roads, and factories, but you still can’t tell if that’s a cow down there or a truck. As you get closer to the ground, you notice that you can’t see as far off on the horizon, but the details are getting clearer. At 500 feet, your view of the horizon no longer exists, but the details are quite clear. You can tell that there’s a red truck traveling on the highway off to your right. You land, and another safe trip is behind you.

The analogy: Presidents, CEO’s, CFO’s and other senior executives are typically flying at the 40,000-foot level in their organizations. They can see a long way. Their vision for the future is clear and they can easily be aware of major storms or opportunities at this altitude. But details? Not a clue. Middle managers, directors or senior staff employees are typically flying at the 20,000-foot level in their organizations. They don’t have as clear a view of the horizon as their superiors since they are 20,000 feet lower, but their view of the details is a bit more evident; not totally clear, but better than at the 40,000-foot level.

Then there are the employees in your organization who are flying at the 500-foot level, almost at ground level. They don’t have a clue what’s going on beyond their desk or the building next door, but they can tell you what customers think, what policies or procedures are working or not working and what is generally going on in the bowels of the organization. They know the details, they live them every day; but they, for the most part, don’t always see the connection between the reality at 500 feet and the vision or decisions at 40,000 feet.

Here’s the simple truth in two sentences: If the reality of what is going on in the marketplace, with your customers, with your competitors and/or with your employees is not getting to the 40,000-foot level, I will guarantee you are experiencing CD. Likewise, if the vision, leadership or goals at 40,000 feet are not finding their way to the 500-foot level, I guarantee you are also experiencing many of the negative issues of CD in your organization.

So, what is Corporate Disconnect? It’s when your employees who do the work don’t see a connection of their efforts to the vision of your senior management. It’s when your senior management makes decisions or takes actions at the 40,000-foot level – new policies, new products or services, acquisitions, new divisions or branches, new anything – and they do it without getting in touch with the reality at 500 feet.

Beware! This is a recipe for lost customers, lost revenue, lost growth, poor employee retention, and any other negative corporate malaise you can think of.

Got a bad case of CD in your organization? Here’s a little truth to consider. In my 40-year speaking and training career, I haven’t found a single organization that didn’t have some degree of CD going on. So, would it appear that having a case of CD is normal? Yes, every company has it to some extent.

Here’s the bottom line. No matter how bad your case of CD is or whether you are aware of it, fixing it, ignoring it – whatever, as long as your CD doesn’t ever touch your customer or the marketplace, there is no critical problem; you will most likely survive CD’s symptoms. However, if your CD does touch your customers, suppliers, the marketplace and/or your prospects, watch out. You may be in for a long and difficult recovery period with a few emergency room visits along the way.

So, now you know what CD is. Want to know how bad you have it – whether you need surgery or over-the-counter meds?

Let me summarize; Corporate Disconnect is -

1.      When the realities that exist at the lower levels of an organization and in the marketplace do not find their way to the highest levels of the organization – where the direction is set, goals are established, vision is created, and major decisions are made – with accuracy, continuity, clarity, and consistency.

2.      When the vision, purpose, direction, and leadership at the highest levels of an organization do not accurately radiate throughout the entire organization with integrity, accuracy, clarity, accountability, and consistency.

3.      When lack of corporate-wide congruence negatively impacts sales, profits, effectiveness and consistently healthy growth.

Fail to manage your CD and I will guarantee you-you will continue to lose market share, sustained growth, good employees, customer loyalty and even become a statistic.  Don’t risk it – let’s overcome your CD together – call me.