Arynne SIMON SAYS: A leader deals in hope and much more.

A leader continually updates, explores, and redefines what it takes to be successful. Success for small start-up businesses is, in fact, still attainable. But it now requires leaders who combine hope with updated and pragmatic concepts.

Leaders know that success will require a new entrepreneurial flexibility, courageous acceptance of change, and the understanding of a new paradigm for leadership. Companies are now uniquely challenged to redefine their approach to satisfying client and customer needs. Young companies, especially, must evaluate, redefine and articulate their objectives. It is up to a leader to model that clarity of purpose.

I believe the leaders of all companies, especially (but not only) new ones, would do well to consider being coached in five areas: Professionalism, Client Focus, Strategic Partnering, Learning Culture, and Leadership Through Responsibility.

When its leaders fully embrace the following specific five concepts, their firms will become responsible to its clients and customers. And it will succeed.

Professionalism

Professionalism is an attitude, a commitment, and a belief that one’s company or product can produce positive results for customers. Professionalism is not a quality granted by initials after one’s name, but an attitude that must be nurtured and polished to a high shine.

Client/Customer Focus

Having a client/customer focus seems like an obvious strategy but I am often amazed that businesses do not treat every client/customer as their only client/customer.

Clients and customers are more knowledgeable these days about what they need and more sophisticated in their selections. What distinguishes a company or consultant is often a direct result of their customer focus.

And a new intense focus on customer feedback is not only strong human relations, it's good bottom line business. So do not ignore your feedback. Disregarding negative feedback is likely to reinforce what is already a counterproductive way of doing business.

Arynne SIMON SAYS: An ignored client is a problem waiting to happen.

To aspiring consultants I often say: "The client doesn't care what you know until he knows you care." I learned this from David Ogilve of the advertising firm Ogilve and Mather.

Your company’s technical competency is widely prevalent and available from the competition. What sets you or your company apart is packaging your competence with an attitude of client empathy and client focus.

Strategic Partnering

Customers and clients these days are concentrating more on the value rather than the cost of a product or project; the competition has become considerably more complex with service and support being factored in as high priorities.

I predict that during the next several years, more and more customers will appreciate the value of sustained relationships. Leaders will place a new emphasis on continuing relationships that will result from intense customer awareness. Dealing with tried, tested, and loyal vendors and products requires less effort and saves many budget dollars. Leaders must get this concept across to all their people.

And they must fully appreciate the new importance of strategic partnering. Rather than considering partnering as a way to dilute responsibility, wisely coached business leaders use partnering to increase their ability to better fulfill responsibilities.

Creating a Learning Culture

Leaders must learn to make the most of a major shift over the last ten years as relates to staffing. Currently, there are greater differences between cultures and operating styles of companies who are competing for the A players. These people are always in high demand, even in down market situations. Unfortunately, many companies have suffered the expensive lesson of losing their best players and have paid dearly for the cost and time of hiring and training new people. Companies must attract and retain the A players; it’s the leader’s job to know how best to do that – to create a company where everyone is encouraged, praised and acknowledged for being on the upside of the learning curve,

Leadership Through Responsibility

Leadership — often defined as articulating the vision and setting the direction for the firm — must now also include the ethic of responsibility. This means being accountable (and not delegating the responsibility) for the quality of product and service that clients receive. From a client/customer perspective, respect and business will go to those companies that assume full accountability.

Leaders are now learning that a winning strategy must include leadership through responsibility and make it a tenet of the firm's mission. The company under superior leadership will seek only clients with needs and expectations compatible with its own capacities and goals. By the same token, it will decline assignments where it cannot confidently claim responsibility for project success and client satisfaction.

Arynne Simon Says: Professionalism, client focus, responsibility, strategic partnering, and a learning culture will distinguish a winning strategy in 2005.