Nicole Vullo
on
The Strategic Evolution Blueprint for Funeral Home Owners
In our next installment of Ask the Owners, Stephen and Diann Anderson, formerly of Anderson Funeral & Cremation Services discuss strategies funeral home owners and cemetery operators must take in order to elevate their businesses:
Embarking on Strategic Evolution
We are continuing in our series of articles; we hope that last month’s insights prompted you to have meaningful reflection. We laid the groundwork, urging you, as a business owner, to embrace the transformative journey of strategic evolution. We explored the historical backdrop of our profession, the pitfalls of resisting change, and current funeral industry trends. Introducing the concept of Purpose Beyond Profit, we encouraged you to ponder the profound impact of your work. In this installment, we delve deeper into Strategic Evolution, emphasizing its pivotal role for your company. We’ll also underscore the significance of establishing a clear mission as the bedrock for crafting an effective business strategy. Join us on this crucial exploration of elevating your business through purposeful evolution.
Round and Round We Go – Understanding Strategic Evolution
Strategic evolution is the dynamic process of intentionally adapting and innovating over time to thrive in a changing environment, ensuring sustained growth and relevance.
Our world is a dynamic environment and always changing. Every person who has ever walked the face of this earth has had to deal with this reality. You may have never thought about it, but every day you are changing and so is the environment you live in. Round and round you go; every day brings a continuous stream of developmental milestones in your life, all occurring within the dynamic environment you inhabit. Almost one year ago, our fifth grandchild was born into this dynamic environment called the world. We have experienced great joy watching her change before our very eyes as she is adapting and thriving in her dynamic environment.
Babies excel at adapting to their surroundings, learning to see, hear, and feel, and as they grow, they master the art of movement, interaction, and communication. They form bonds with their parents, making them feel safe to explore. As they grow, they start understanding language, sleeping at regular times, and trying different foods. Babies are curious and learn about the world by touching, seeing, and hearing. They also learn to manage their feelings and find ways to comfort themselves. All these adaptations help babies grow and thrive in the world. As children, we take change for granted and even look forward to change. Ask a child their age and they will always enthusiastically tell you their current age but preface it with how old they will be on their next birthday. Young children are always looking forward to the next milestone and change in their life. They look forward with excited anticipation to challenges and new accomplishments.
Around the time of adolescence, you started to resist our changing world. It was during your teenage years when you developed more concern for conformity and peer pressure. Chances are you strove to “fit in” because of your need for stability and social cohesion; looking to others as a mirror to examine yourself to make sure that you “fit in” with your chosen peer group. The changes you embraced during this stage of development were based more often out of fear than excitement to grow and live into your God given potential.
As you navigated through your early adulthood the cycle changed back toward acceptance and a spirit of anticipation to your changing world. You may have found yourself rapidly experiencing many positive changes. Graduations, diving into your career, possibly relocating to a new area of the country, marriage, purchasing a home, and starting a family all seemed to happen in the blink of an eye. These shifts came from decisions made in the spirit of chasing success and embracing the ride.
But wait! Approaching middle age, life appears to settle somewhat. Yet, behind the scenes, your dynamic environment is at work, altering your developmental cycle, and you may find a resurgence of resistance to change. By the time you are experiencing middle-age you’ve established routines which bring you a sense of stability and comfort. There may be career stability; you’ve gained experience and achieved a certain level of success or great success. Even with success there are inevitable changes that occur at work such as new processes or technologies which can cause resistance. It’s our dynamic environment once again poking the bear so to speak. It’s also during this phase in life where you may experience significant family responsibilities. These responsibilities are not only for your own family, but your extended family as well. It’s at this point where you may be caring for elderly parents while raising your own family. The added responsibilities can create a preference for stability and a resistance to changes that may impact family dynamics. There are many changes taking place during our middle age besides the changes I just mentioned. Many people find that they have a looming fear of the unknown because they are stepping into unfamiliar territory as they see their parents aging. Financial concerns are a focal point for most middle-aged people too. Changes, especially those with potential financial implications may be met with resistance due to concerns of how they may negatively impact economic well-being. During this time in your life, you will experience another struggle with identity. It’s as if you are back in middle school and trying to figure out how or where you “fit in”. You are confronting the different aspects of aging. The challenges and changes of aging are making you question your identity and purpose in life. This can make you more resistant to change or conversely give you the drive to make positive changes.
We Are People of Patterns
As you are reading the descriptions of the different stages of life are you noticing a pattern? The dance of life involves a constant tension—an ebb and flow between embracing and resisting change. Socrates is quoted as saying “The secret of change is to focus all of your energy not on fighting the old, but on building the new!” As creatures of habit, we often find comfort in the familiar, sometimes veering towards a certain laziness. We will resort back to what we hold as familiar and stay stuck in destructive patterns. We are more comfortable in the destructive patterns or “fighting the old” because that’s a known entity. Victor Frankl believed that “When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.” Embracing change and exploring uncharted territories demands effort and purpose—what we call strategic evolution.
My Business is Like a Living Organism?
What does all of this have to do with your business? Businesses experience dynamic environmental tensions and as the leader of your organization, how you navigate the always changing business environment affects your business. When Steve and I operated our funeral home, we metaphorically viewed it as a living organism. The business had elements of growth, adaptation, and interconnectedness – it was by itself a dynamic environment operating within the bigger dynamic environment of the world.
Work Harder or Work Smarter, It’s Your Choice
General Colin Powell said, “The day you are not solving problems or are not up to your butt in problems is probably a day you are no longer leading.” It’s the nature of the beast when you own a business to always have problems to solve. There’s also a saying “I don’t have to work harder, just smarter.” Taking the time to not only work in your business but also work on your business is called strategic evolution and it will help you to work smarter.
The word “strategy” is derived from the Greek word meaning army or host, and “ago” means to lead or to command. In its earliest use, “strategia” referred to the art of leading an army. The original meaning of “strategic” was related to the planning and execution of military actions or movements to achieve a specific goal. The term “evolution” has its roots in the Latin word “evolutio,” which means an unrolling or unfolding. You may be wondering why it’s necessary to unpack these words. Understanding the essence of words is important because it helps to give vision to a concept that may not be familiar. When you put the words strategic and evolution together it paints the picture of looking at your business as if you are in a battle and want to win. This idea refers to the process of intentionally and strategically adapting and changing various aspects of your business to ensure its growth, resilience, and relevance over time. It’s the sounding of an alarm that should make you sit up and take notice – a call to action. Navigating a dynamic and competitive business environment requires intentional adjustments—modifying strategies, processes, products, services, and organizational structures.
Homework Assignment
Over the next month, think about this question “What’s my vision for my business?”. You must have a specific vision and be able to articulate the vision if you are going to win the battle. It will do you no good if only you know the vision for your company. You must be able to cast your compelling vision to your team. Articulating the vision of your business is like casting a guiding light in the dark – it not only illuminates the path ahead but also inspires and aligns every step, turning your strategy into a shared journey of purpose for your team.
Join Us Next Time
I hope you keep learning with us because next time we are going to talk about the importance of vision and mission. Good business leaders have a vision for their company and are passionate about their vision. They have a laser focus on their vision and are experts at communicating their vision. Author, Speaker and Leadership Development Consultant, Simon Sinek believes that “Vision is a destination-a fixed point to which we focus all effort. Strategy is a route-an adaptable path to get us where we want to go.” Next month we will continue to unfold specific elements of vision and mission. But in the meantime, start the process of dreaming, and developing your vision for your company. You have but one life and you have been placed in this timeline of history for a purpose. What you do each day matters and has the potential to make a positive difference in the lives of those you interact with.
If you have a question or need a boost in moving forward, please call us at 815-601-3247.
With warm regards,
Steve and Diann Anderson
Anderson Funeral Consulting
Loveland, CO
Do you have a question for Stephen and Diann? Email info@theforesightcompanies.com today for a chance to have your question spotlighted in their upcoming blogs!