The Future of the Future: Building the enterprise of the future: a framework for transformation

In the table, we have captured the main attributes that an EOF must exhibit. No single enterprise excels in all of those areas. Nor is it likely you will have the resources to develop the capability to achieve a perfect score. The score is merely an attempt at putting a number on where you are today, and to compare that number with whatever score you receive one or more years down the road. The objective is to identify the areas, which are most critical to your success, given the changes that are occurring in your market. Then you can focus on making improvements in those areas.

Achieving balance

For example, in the leadership area, the transformations are directed toward establishing entirely new business ecosystems and novel strategies for dealing with complex, dynamic markets. In order to do that, you need timely, accurate business intelligence, and the ability to act on it. In some organizations, business intelligence may be a strong area, as is decision-making, but the execution may be flawed. In the organization area, collaboration may be widely practiced, but is ineffective because the organization doesn't really "know what it knows."

Because of space limitations, we are unable to define each attribute in detail, as we would normally do in conducting a formal assessment. If you're not sure what is meant by a particular attribute, don't worry. Just score it a "1" for now, and stay tuned to this column. We'll be covering each area in greater depth in future issues. The intention is not to be able to do everything perfectly, but to achieve a reasonable balance across all four pillars.

This should get you started on the road to becoming an EOF. If you feel we've left something out, or if you have any examples of organizations that exemplify one or more of these attributes, please drop us a line. And we hope you will join us in co-creating the future in San Jose on Oct. 30.

 

Enterprise of the Future Capability Assessment

 

 

Leadership: New business ecosystems and strategies

Guiding Principles	Focus Areas	Rating (1-5)*
Business decisions are intelligent, strategic and enlightened; strategic alignment is maintained throughout the enterprise	Business Intelligence Anticipatory business intelligence systems are employed Industry clock speed is known and compared to internal development cycles The value of tangible and intangible assets is known and tracked	____
	Strategy Development The process for developing, planning and executing a strategy is understood and practiced Key organizational performance drivers are known and managed	____
	Business Decision-Making Business decisions take financial, ethical, societal and environmental stewardship into account	____
	Execution The overall strategy and rationale are clear to everyone in the organization Everything the organization does is aligned with the strategy Performance measurement and tracking systems are implemented	____
	Rating total (maximum = 20):  ______
Total Leadership Score (maximum = 25):  25 x (rating total) ÷ 20  =  ______