Have You Topped-Up Your Oil Lately?


Do you remember the last time you bought a car? Did it come with oil already in the engine? Did you think that you'd never have to worry about oil again, because that had been 'done'? Probably not! Engine lubrication is not a one-off activity. We know we need to top-up the oil or the engine will seize up. 

AMPEAK Wrap Up 2019

AMPEAK is the premier annual conference for Asset Management professionals and this year was held in Fremantle, Western Australia. As a member of the board of the Asset Management Council, it was my privilege to be involved in this event. We had record numbers, a sold out conference, trade exhibition and gala dinner. These are all indicators of the growing awareness and interest in asset management across Australian and around the world.

A Strategy Should Not Be an Unsolvable Mystery

Outsold only by the Bible, Agatha Christie’s crime novels have sold over two billion copies. For fiction written in English, only Shakespeare comes close in total sales, but he has had a four hundred year head start. In more than eighty novels, Agatha Christie held readers in suspense as they tried to use their ‘little grey cells’ to deduce the villain in a series of nasty murders. Over the years, many theories have emerged that seek to explain the secret to Christie’s success.

Every Industry Has an Imperative to Innovate

How is your company responding to this imperative?
In the 1990s the pharmaceutical industry was in the midst of a biotech boom. Recombinant DNA technologies and biological pharmaceuticals brought novel treatments to previously untreated conditions. For my PhD I researched the top 21 global pharmaceutical companies, who together represented a discrete strategic group. By the end of my four years of research there were 14 companies left. A flurry of merger activity between the dominant players in this industry was driven by the imperative for innovation. 

Striking a Chord: Why the Strategy You Internalise Is the Only Strategy You Have​

Recently I attended a concert of fantastic contemporary music for choir and two pianos. There is nothing quite like watching a live concert pianist at work. For two pianists to play simultaneously and keep the harmony and rhythm in sync is very challenging, but amazing to watch when it's done well. ​

Keys to Sustainable Growth

One of the keys to sustainable growth through innovation is to divorce what you own from what you earn. Historically, wealth was linked to land ownership and he who had the most land had the most wealth and power. Kingdoms were built and wars were fought over the ownership of scarce land assets. While land still has value, it's no longer the only way to build wealth.

Building Your Ark: Managing Unplanned Change

Antediluvian is one of my favourite words. It has a quirky ring to it and it's unusual enough that if you drop it into a sentence you can really surprise people.
 
Its literal meaning is before the flood. Traditionally, this refers to the Biblical flood of Noah, and the term is generally used to describe thoughts, ideas or policies that are so ancient or archaic that they could have come off the Ark.

It Takes 20 Wickets to Win a Test Match

​As a kid my summers were filled with cricket. We watched it on the TV and then we'd play cricket at the beach or in the backyard with a transistor radio going so we didn't miss a ball. Some of my earliest memories are of Lillee and Thompson pounding the pitch against the Windies and Allan Border smashing it out in the Ashes. ​

Ad Hoc Innovation Leads to Ad Hoc Results

​When I was a postgraduate student I had the great privilege to spend some time in the University of Queensland's Fryer Library to examine Peter Carey's original manuscripts for the novel, Oscar and Lucinda. The purpose of my research was to study the author's writing practice. Through six boxes of archived materials I was able to observe patterns in the writer's daily habits and his approach to creating a major new work from the kernel of an idea to the finished novel. ​

Celebrating 15 Years

This month I'm celebrating 15 years in my own consulting practice. In January 2004 I resigned from the job I was in at the time and set out on my own adventure. I haven't looked back. It's been exciting, challenging, rewarding and never, ever dull.
I'm often asked why I chose to make the decision at that time and what were the factors that made it right for me.

Economic Growth Is Linked to Technological Innovation

​Economic growth is linked to technological innovation. However, many contemporary organisations are still modeled on a paradigm that pre-dates the industrial revolution. It’s like trying to win a Formula-1 Grand Prix in a Model T Ford.
Freedom, Wealth, Desire - the Role of the Car in Our Lives is Changing
​'Just as horses were once a status symbol and their pedigree an indicator of the wealth of the owner, cars in the 20th century were more than a mere means of transport. They were a symbol of freedom, a marker of wealth and an object of desire. In the 21st century, the role of the car in our lives is changing.' 
Quote from Asset Management for Directors by Dr Monique Beedles
Collaborative Innovation in Action
​During October and November I ran three BOLT Asset Management Hackathons in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne.
 I created the BOLT Asset Management Hackathons as an opportunity for asset managers in high risk environments to explore innovative ideas in a low consequence setting. 
Picture
It’s through connections, not through isolation that we create value. 
James Gleick, in his book, The Information, talks about the introduction of the electric telegraph. Gleick says that in 1852, the ‘idea of connecting Europe with America, by lines extending directly across the Atlantic, is utterly impracticable and absurd.’ The impossible was accomplished by 1858. ​
Picture

Putting on the Ritz - Understand what your stakeholders value
Knowing your customers is vital to the survival of any business, and understanding the needs of your stakeholders is the starting point of asset management. Caesar Ritz understood what value meant for his customers - it certainly didn't mean the cheapest price.
Picture
Is your board vulnerable to stranded asset risk?
While the problem of stranded assets can be seen as negative, the emphasis on a movement away from climate exposed investments also opens up new opportunities. Even if you're the best blacksmith, you don't want to be the last blacksmith when horses make way for cars.

What are your stranded assets?
​
Picture
How do you convince people to take four-minute showers?
An excellent example of how behavioural change was achieved on a large scale, without using financial incentives, was the reduction of water consumption in South East Queensland during a period of extended drought.
Picture
What I learned from Steve Wozniak
I once had the privilege to host a group of guests for a lunch where the guest speaker was Steve Wozniak, co-founder of Apple Inc. ​Steve Wozniak was the inventor of revolutionary products that have changed the way we live in the twenty-first century. ​For me, the take home message from Steve Wozniak’s story, is that every genius needs a sponsor.
Picture

​Bananas R Us: How to find and grow your market
Having a fantastic technical solution is only the first step in creating value. As well as the technical case, you need to make the business case. Part of building that business case is to identify the market.

​What are the growth opportunities for your business and how can you make the most of them? ​
Picture
Three great coaches who changed my life
Even the most talented and successful athletes need a coach. Coaching has been an integral part of my ongoing professional and personal development for many years. Three great coaches have had a significant impact on my career. They've helped me to come out of my shell, gain confidence and improve my resilience. 

Quiver

My regular newsletter has all my latest articles and insights hot off the press.
View our Privacy Policy