Matt Fleming President

What are Core Competencies?  Key things you are really, really good at that you should be really, really good at  Your Organization’s greatest areas of expertise  The things that make your Organization so great  Not 100, more like 5 or less big ones (Focus)  Simple on the surface; but not so simple  We all want to be good at everything  We all have to decide what we SHOULD be good at

Why are Core Competencies Important?  Every Organization should want to be great at something important  Core Competencies make you special to your Customers, Students, Patients, Fans, etc.  Core Competencies keep your Competitors awake at night  Core Competencies provide Strategic Advantages  Core Competencies aid in Sustainability  Baldrige asks “What are your Core Competencies” in the 5th of 277 questions  Baldrige mentions Core Competencies 32 different times

How do you Determine Core Competencies?  What should you be good at?  What is your Mission?  What does your Mission say you should be good at?  Who are your Stakeholders?  What do your Stakeholders (especially your Customers, Students, Patients, Fans, etc.) say you should be good at?  What are your goals?  What are your Key Work Systems?

How do you utilize Core Competencies?  Design your Work Systems  To have a Core Competency in a Work System, you have to have Core Competencies in the Key Work Processes within that Work System.  Design your Work Processes  The capabilities provided by your Key Work Processes should make you special to your Key Stakeholders and provide a competitive, strategic advantage.  Create your Strategies  The strategies within your Key Work Processes should make you special to your Key Stakeholders and provide a competitive, strategic advantage.  Strategic Planning should focus on building or strengthening your Core Competencies  Innovation should be directed toward developing or improving Core Competencies  Your Workforce should capitalize on your Core Competencies

What do you do well? (Miami Dolphins example)  Mission: A professional football team dedicated to winning championships and entertaining fans  Stakeholder: Fans  Stakeholder Key Requirement: Win Games  Operational Goal: Fan Satisfaction  Work System: Offense  Key Work Process: Rushing  Strategy: “Run First”  Strategic Advantage: Ability to score more points than their Competitors  Result: #1 Offense (Super Bowl Champs)

 Mission: Internet retailer of shooting, hunting and outdoor products  Stakeholder: Customers  Stakeholder Key Requirement: Product Selection  Operational Goal: Customer Satisfaction  Key Work System: Merchandising  Key Work Process: Product Offering Management  Strategy: “Just About Everything”  Strategic Advantage: One-Stop Shop for shooting, hunting and outdoor products  Result: 93% Customer Satisfaction What do we do well? (MidwayUSA example)

MidwayUSA’s Overall Core Competencies  Merchandising  Marketing  Customer Support  Logistics  Business Administration

What SHOULD make you Great?  For the most part, every Organization has to figure that out for themselves  Strategy - “We want to be everything to everybody”  Not a good strategy!  Every Organization should want to be great at running a great business  The 7 Baldrige Categories

How do you know you have Core Competencies?  Results  The Ultimate, impartial Judge  Core Competencies are evidenced by great results

Matt Fleming President