1. NEW STRATEGIES: Sharpening Your Business Model Mark Cook

2. New strategies: Sharpening Your Business (Model Mark Cook, Director, FE Business EMSI Conference, March 3 rd 2016 @febusinessnews www.febusiness.co.uk

3. Outline About FE Business Strategy, Culture & Capability Finding a balance Culture 6 key elements for employer-responsive providers Employer Engagement Strategy: Business Development focus 6 strategic priorities for success @febusinessnews

4. About FE Business Employer engagement consultancy, training and recruitment Supported over 40 providers nationally Focus on culture change and leadership/business development skills Results and outcomes focus @febusinessnews

5. Strategy or culture?

6. How to respond to current external drivers Important to define and communicate your competitive advantage Limitations of strategies and business models Anyone can copy your strategy, but no one can copy your culture Too much focus on strategy alone? Importance of establishing the right culture Makes strategy reliance redundant - building the ability to adapt and change Creates environment for future proofing and success However - no culture can offset poor strategic choices What does ‘commercial culture’ look like in FE? @febusinessnews

7. Recipe for employer-focused culture? All successful cultures are created from the same five components: Behaviours Values Relationships Attitudes Environment @febusinessnews

8. 6 elements of successful employer-responsive/commercial culture 1.Create a shared vision for EE 2.Define ‘preferred’ values and behaviours 3.Involve the whole organisation 4.Publicise and share ‘magic numbers’ 5.Measure milestones and performance 6.Celebrate successes (and failures!) @febusinessnews

9. New strategies: Business Development Excellence Focus on distribution, as well as product T&L – and it’s place in delivering business outcomes, not just learner outputs Product itself often commoditised Where/how it’s deployed delivers competitive advantage: understanding business objectives Matching with the best of private sector practice Not just within skills sector Balancing long-term and short-term gains Large accounts essential - deferred gratification Easier to execute with appropriate culture @febusinessnews

10. Strategic priorities: Business Development Excellence 1. Define and communicate your employer vision Mission/Purpose Values Visionary goal 2. Define your value proposition Understanding movement, drivers & measurement How do you impact your customer’s bottom line? What makes you special? Overcoming price vs. value arguments @febusinessnews

11. Strategic priorities: Business Development Excellence 3. Focus on becoming a business partner, not a commodity broker Understanding where you are – how are you measuring success? Planning to get where you need to be 4. Develop Key Account Strategies Identify your top 40 accounts and targets Identify key players: DMs, influencers, sponsors, anti- sponsors Agree objectives with your customers Generate and communicate plans Monitor milestones and progress @febusinessnews

12. Strategic priorities: Business Development Excellence 5. Build Your capability Professional Sales & Marketing: Create Employer Engagement ambassadors 6. Understand your market Matching your strengths to market need Forgetting what you already know Data vs. intelligence Mapping your stakeholders @febusinessnews

13. Final thought The combination of your culture, strategy and capability defines your competitive advantage A focus on the sharp end of employer engagement is more important than ever Peter Drucker: The only sustainable competitive advantage is the ability to adapt and change.