7 Corporate Priorities

The strength of any company is in its priorities. Leaders need to realize that what they chose to focus in terms of energy, thoughts, time and finances is what will determine the growth or fall of the organization. Mixed priorities are usually the number one cause of organization incapacitation. When leaders fail to agree on what takes precedence, employees will become confused on what to do or not to do. This results in wastage of potential in individuals and in the company as a whole. While one company may focus on production, other companies have all their focus on the image they carry. Other companies also focus on their role in society. This accounts for the uniqueness of each organization.

Some key priorities

1. Image (brand) - This refers to the general impression that the company presents to the public. Above all image is what the company has in order to remain sustainable. It does not matter how nice your systems can be, when the image or brand reputation is bad outside then success is elusive.

2. Ideas (Imagination, Intellectual capacity) - Companies must create an enabling environment for ideas generation and implementation. Employees are not robots that simply act on instruction. When leaders give employees a chance to create solutions, they will be amazed that some of the things that bug them can be solved by the least expected individuals.

3. Investment - The shareholders must realize that for any idea to be a success it must be standing on a foundation of financial investment and commitment of the stakeholders. Companies suffer because share holders remain in the comfort of how many shares they have instead of focusing on how to grow the business by investing time and effort.

4. Information - A company's attitude towards information gathering and dissemination determines its success or failure. Leaders can only make decisions on given information. The quality of those decisions is based on the quality and accuracy of the information given. Information must be secured from external interested parties such as competition. Information must be secure, authentic and systematically disseminated.

5. Insurance - every investment carries a level of risk. To run a business with no insurance cover is detrimental. I have observed companies that have closed down due to insurance claims by both internal and external parties. As an investor you rather not inject funds into a business you cannot insure and whose risk you are not aware of. Insurance entails management of risks. You never know when you need it.

6. Innovation - Companies that have an unending desire to create new ways of doing things will always thrive. Those that imitate will simply fold. People know who the original innovator or inventor is.

7. Income - A company must always set its focus on increasing the cash inflows. The ability to manage the income that reflects on the books of the company enables the business to be sustainable, to grow and achieve more.