New research finds companies are missing opportunities and wasting resources by not focusing upon critical success factors for key corporate activities

Companies are missing opportunities and wasting resources because their people are not focusing upon critical success factors for key corporate activities, according to new research by Adaptation business expert Prof. Colin Coulson-Thomas. Speaking this week he will be advising members of the British American Business Council (BABC) and Midlands businesses on the success factors which make a company world class.

Professor Coulson-Thomas will share the results of his research with over 4,000 companies worldwide, revealing what factors distinguish winning companies from losing companies at a BABC Midlands breakfast event for business leaders. The findings summarised in his book ‘Winning Companies; Winning People, the differing approaches of winners and losers’ suggest every company so far examined could significantly increase performance in important areas such as bidding for business and building customer relationships by putting additional critical success factors in place.

According to Coulson-Thomas: “In many sectors competing businesses offer similar products and services, employ similar people, use similar processes and systems and are advised by similar consultants. Yet if we examine an area such as purchasing or pricing, or creating and exploiting know-how, we find that some businesses are much more successful than others.”

Professor Coulson-Thomas is an experienced chairman of award winning companies and an active international business consultant. He has worked with many large American and British companies helping them to develop the success of their business. He believes “It is important to understand the factors that distinguish average performers from high achievers and world class business teams. The lessons from over twenty studies we have completed covering various sectors and professions can be applied to companies large and small, and there are practical and cost effective ways of helping under performers to raise their game.”

Coulson-Thomas reveals that: “Companies are devoting considerable resources to initiatives and activities that are not critical success factors. In many cases important success factors are not explicitly recognised and addressed. Successful and unsuccessful individuals and groups in the areas we have examined behave very differently. Quite simply, the most successful have more of the critical success factors in place and adopt more of the winning ways we have identified.”

The Professor believes his findings are good news for companies: “Most of the critical success factors are behavioural, and even the most successful teams in the top quarter of the league table of accomplishment are only very effective at less than half of the success factors we have found in key areas. There is enormous scope for improvement as further success factors can usually be adopted without the need for ‘management of change’ programmes, or initiatives to get people to change their values and beliefs.”

The latest research suggests most companies could achieve performance improvements relatively quickly. Coulson-Thomas explains: “People don’t jump out of bed each morning eager to get to work and fail. They want to succeed. Once a better way of working is explained people instinctively identify with it and quickly embrace it. Many companies would benefit from focusing upon getting the basics right for competing and winning.”

Coulson-Thomas’s research concentrates upon identifying critical success factors and what high performers do differently in areas that are vital for corporate success. Findings are summarised in a series of research reports and his latest book ‘Winning Companies; Winning People, the differing approaches of winners and losers’ which is published by Kingsham Press ( Price £19.95 plus postage and packing) and can be ordered from http://www.coulson-thomaspublications.com

Details of reports presenting critical success factors and winning ways identified by the Winning Companies; Winning People research programme and related bespoke benchmarking reports and workshops can be obtained from http://www.winningnewbusiness.biz/ Information on support tools that can incorporate critical success factors and winning ways can be found on http://www.cotoco.com

Companies can also now compare their winning business, customer relationship and purchasing practices with their peers and high performing winners. Details of bespoke benchmarking and other services can be obtained from http://www.ntwkfirm.com/policy-publications/benchmarking.htm

Prof. Colin Coulson-Thomas has advised the boards of over 100 companies on how to improve board and/or corporate performance, reviewed the processes and practices for winning business of over 100 companies, authored over 30 books and reports, and presented at over 200 national, international and corporate events in 35 countries. He can be contacted by Tel: + 44 (0)1733 361149, Email: colinct@tiscali.co.uk or via http://www.adaptation.ltd.uk or http://www.coulson-thomas.com