I am the main operational force in our organization setting up an international business. Currently, I am in the process of drafting a shared ”master” plan for our organization. This process has raised quite a bit of thoughts, which I try to share here in a metalevel – so you could better reflect my process into yours.
First, what is our goal in the first place? Of course, it’s international success. But what is success? Having looked at the numbers, success is usually staying alive. What needs to stay alive? Your product or your company? Very few manage to build their own imperium, so why not discuss other options with people? Suddenly, lots of other options emerge. For instance, you may find an ally who welcomes you or your product into their company – even those you first thought of as a competitor. But often, it requires that you make the first move. This seems to help in creating a master plan for businesses. And this can be very confusing.
Second, any actor should be grounded on their “home”. What resources do we have, and how does every action serve the bigger goal of pursuing international business? Step-by-step, piece-by-piece. Who are my friends and allies – what they can do to serve our common goals? Do I need more of them – often, we do! Are we all on the same page and working towards the same goal – even if one’s contribution is only a sporadic one? This process is something I wish I had started 5 years ago if I had this goal in advance! This ensures that some progress is made even if we have zero money allocated to the project yet.
Third, what is our realistic window of success for the next main goals? The only thing sure is change. How long can we try, and what do we need next and most? Answers decide my actions’ urgency and perseverance level. Often the answer is that we need money – even for traveling, not to mention salaries! And money we need to ask from different counters for different purposes. And every counter wants to hear a different aspect of your story. Success in these could resource us before selling anything to anyone abroad. This is serious work – try to find the most realistic counters as fast as possible! From a starter perspective, this issue returns to a simple question when discussing with people – show me the money for my operational efforts in pursuing international business!
On the bottom line, I seem to be talking about intentions and the intuitive dialogues between people. Sometimes, it makes you wonder what you just said! And this adventure is so fascinating!
Jarkko
