Before the Barclays Premiership battle even started in 2015, most people had already written off Leicester City. By the middle of September however, things were looking up for the Foxes – though of course, it was too early at that stage to make any predictions.
Why are we talking about football on a business blog, you might ask? 12 months ago Leicester looked certainties for relegation, and now, unbelievably, they are serious contenders for the title. Their recent achievements offer some incredible lessons for SME’s in how to achieve success against the odds.
It’s all about the Team
Ask anyone at Leicester City what makes them special, and they’ll say it’s their team mentality.
While many of the big clubs in football have a star-studded list of players, the focus at Leicester is definitely on the group as a whole. A tightly-knit team is far more effective than a group of talented individuals, whether they play together on a field or work together inside your business.
The Difference between Success and Failure is Often Very Little
From one week to the next, Leicester’s movement up the table has been consistent. At the end of September they were 8th, but only four or five points stood between the leaders and those in the middle of the table. Even minor modifications in formation and strategy were able to have an incredible impact.
Sometimes it’s not about the big changes when it comes to achieving your goals. It’s all about those little tweaks that perfect your strategy and ensure success.
Making the Correct Decisions under Pressure Separates the Adequate from the Exceptional
Earlier in the season, despite good results, Leicester set themselves an achievable target – enough points to avoid relegation. When everyone in the team knows exactly what they are aiming for, making the right decision when the pressure is on becomes a more manageable task.
The chance of a positive outcome in any such situation is drastically improved by having a strong culture and a robust business plan. If that plan has been clearly articulated, and bought into by the whole team, when the time comes to make the big push, everything is in place to enable a positive result.
KPI’s Are Only Good If You Measure the Right Thing
If you look at the stats, Leicester City have a very low pass completion rate, and a low possession percentage. If you only assessed their success on this information, failure would appear to be inevitable. But when you look behind the figures, things become clear.
The low pass completion rate at the club comes from the fact that Leicester take more risks, and try to make more “killer” passes than most other teams. While their possession rate is relatively low, when they do attack they make it count more than most.
For a business, this is like having a huge sales pipeline, but being unable to convert it into sales – as opposed to having a much more focused pipeline, and a high conversion rate. Which would you prefer?
This strategy has not evolved by chance; it has been part of a long term plan, started many months ago and then continually tweaked to ensure it remains as effective as possible. We may not have Claudio Ranieri on the payroll, but at BHP we have something just as effective – a team that can use the lessons learnt from the huge number of SME’s we have advised and apply them to the success of your business. Why not give us a call and understand how we can help transform your performance.
