Transform Your Business: Mary Enright, goldsmith & jewellery designer and previous TrYB programme participant with David Tuohy, West Cork Development Partnership and Owen O’Brien, Lecturer and Resident Entrepreneur, UCC and TrYB programme facilitator pictured at the launch of the TrYB 2014 business development programme.
Delivered in six workshops spread over twelve weeks, from the outset the TrYB programme challenges business owners to look critically at their business and identify what it is that they are trying to achieve, what is working, what can be improved, what are they not doing that they could or should be doing. Moving past that, the programme offers processes and strategies for continually evaluating your business, testing new ideas and identifying & capitalising on new opportunities.
This testimonial from Geoff Wycherley of Smugglers Cove Adventure Golf, Rosscarbery really captures the impact of the programme:
“When starting the “Transform Your Business” course I didn’t know what to expect. A lot of these courses can be the same old information rehashed, but not this one. From the start the course helps you to look deep into your business model. Sometimes this can be daunting for entrepreneurs but as I have realised it is vital in transforming your business into something you can be proud of but most importantly profitable. I found the open discussions amongst the like minded people very refreshing and a great help in looking at how I can improve my business. This course has given me clear direction on the parts of my business which I need to concentrate more closely on. Expert tuition has been provided by the course facilitators and I would strongly recommend anyone in business to give it a go.” Geoff Wycherley, Smugglers Cove Adventure Golf, Rosscarbery
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Here is a preview of the workshop series:
Workshop 1: Getting the Mind Sets Right
[Participants asked to read an extract from Drucker on mission in advance].
– This first workshop will pay explicit attention to what is required from participants in order to meet the objective of ‘transforming your business’
– Surfacing the questions participants want to answer in workshops.
– Forming a contract between participants to forge a culture for the workshop that is ‘demanding of change’
– Techniques for effective workshops are likely to include:
- How to do effective brainstorming
- Basing action on evidence.
– Assessing the competitiveness challenges and opportunities from operating in West Cork using PESTEL and diamond frameworks – survey and discussion during workshop
– Taking responsibility for your own destiny by challenging assumptions about the business environment of west Cork
– Homework: describe your business potential/mission.
Workshop 2: Preparing to Innovate
– Report back: each business given 1 minute ‘elevator pitch’ on the potential of your business.
– Revisiting your assumptions – using ‘blue-ocean‘ strategy to find a niche for your business
– Identifying the business that each participant is in – assessing business viability using Porter’s 5-Forces framework.
– Working in groups businesses conduct 5-Forces analysis
– Homework: What business are you in and what is your blue-ocean strategy? [report back to next workshop].
Workshop 3: What are your sources of Competitive Advantage?
– Report back: each participant describes their business and their ‘blue-ocean’ strategy
– Customering your business
- Who is my customer? Where is my customer? What does my customer value? How do I get to my customer?
– Using the value-chain framework to identify the sources of competitive advantage in your business
– Homework: describe the existing sources of your competitive advantage based on value chain analysis [report back to next workshop].
Workshop 4: TransformAction (1)
– Report back: each participant describes the existing sources of competitive
– Transformation Action 1
- Brainstorm on innovation ideas for 2 selected elements of the value chain
- Identify safe tests for each of these ideas.
– Homework: each business formulates and conducts a safe test on 2 ideas associated with the 2 elements of the value chain [report back to next workshop].
Workshop 5: TransformAction (2)
– Report back: each participant reports on the results for safe tests of 2 ideas
– Transformation Action 2
- Same process as in Workshop 4: TransformAction 1 in 2 other selected elements of the value chain
– Homework: each business formulates and conducts a safe test on 2 ideas associated with the 2 elements of the value chain [report back to next workshop].
Workshop 6: Finalizing your TransformAction for the Next 6 Months
– Report back: each participant reports on the results for safe tests of 2 ideas
– Prioritizing your innovations
– Designing your 6 month strategy
– Identifying milestones to be delivered
Review and Feedback after 10 weeks
Are milestones being met? Tweaking the TransformAction strategy.
