You are not in the business of doing things. You are in the business of achieving Successful Customer Outcomes.

Through my time with many amazing organizations and leaders I seemed to have acquired many quotes and sayings, sometimes from the inspiration of others sometimes slipped in to make a point as firms grapple with the needs of the 21st century. If you said some of these then thanks for your inspiration. If you heard me saying them then credit where it is due!

At a recent consulting engagement one of my clients captured more than ninety such quotes in a six month period. Let’s share some (with an explanation) over the next few weeks.

You are not in the business of doing things. You are in the business of achieving Successful Customer Outcomes.

A lot of work can be busy work. Are you actually contributing to a Successful Customer Outcome, or just moving the chairs around the deck of the Titanic?

How can you know? Simply put everything an organization does, from the tasks and activities through to strategy should be explicitly linked with a Successful Customer Outcome. If it isn’t you may get very good at doing things, but you won’t be doing the right things.

Is your work directly linked with a Successful Customer Outcome?