The first round of the Future Print Business Transformation project workshops has kicked into high gear over the past few weeks, with feedback from the initial group of participants indicating that the value of the project is already more than evident to them.
“Informative, incisive and valuable”, said one participant, while others used words like ‘essential’, ‘energising’ and ‘relevant’ to describe the content of the intensive sessions, which are designed to help businesses identify areas in which their businesses could benefit from change, and assist them in planning and managing the process.
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| Adelaide workshop |
The workshop sessions, which each involve a group of decision makers whose businesses have signed on for the Business Transformation Project, are just one of the resources available to participants, following on from an initial ‘Business Snapshot’ which provided key assessment information in very broad terms, and other valuable resources such as Printing Industries’ new Benchmarking service, launched as part of the Business Transformation Project but intended to continue as a ‘stand-alone’ service
“This independent Benchmarking service, offered via benchmarking.com, provides very valuable, industry and sector-specific information to businesses to help them identify areas in which their business could improve,” explained Printing Industries CEO Bill Healey today.
“It’s a convenient online process which is completely confidential and is offered free of charge through Printing Industries thanks to the generous sponsorship of Media Super, who have offered to underwrite the service as part of their ongoing commitment to ensure the continued viability and success of the print and related graphic communications industries.”
More information on the Benchmarking service is expected to be released in coming weeks as more organisations take up the opportunity, but in the meantime, it is proving a popular component among the range of services which businesses seem keen to utilise in their quest to make sure they keep pace with market change.
In Adelaide, where many of the companies who have signed on for the project are regularly attending ongoing workshop sessions, response was typical of similar sessions held around the country, underscoring the value of the project to businesses.
“Killer marketing for printers and other businesses struggling in a saturated, competitive market,” commented one participant, summing up the challenge for many in the industry, while others lauded the program’s “plethora of useful tools” and “great achievable strategies” which were focused on business performance and were ‘real and achievable’.
Motivation, too, was a key theme. “Batteries are recharged!” said one enthusiastic participant; “A lot of homework to do – got some valuable ideas of concepts that need to be carried forward,” said another, while a third confided that he was “inspired to immediately put into action a new idea – I am excited to see how it pans out!”
“Over all, it is great to see the way participants are really getting involved in the process and how enthusiastically they are embracing the concepts and ideas that we discuss,” said Future Print Advisor Mark Ryan, who ran the Adelaide session, after the event.
“I think one business owner really summed it up when he said that the workshops were providing him with greater focus and clarity of direction. That’s something which can be difficult for businesses to achieve on their own; sometimes you get so caught up in the day-to-day that it’s difficult to take that step back, evaluate things objectively, and set a clear direction.
“This is exactly why Printing Industries has created the Future Print Business Transformation Project – to help businesses assess where they are, where they need to be, and how best to get there.”
The work, however, does not stop at the door of the workshop, with decision makers going back into their businesses and using other Future Print tools to help them translate the advice and information into action.
“A lot of homework to do,” said one participant on leaving, while another admitted that his brain was still “busy processing all the information”. Perhaps the best comment of the day, however, goes to the guy who used just two words to describe his experience of the workshop: “Life changing”.
“That might seem like an overstatement to some, but honestly, the information, resources and support available to businesses in the graphic communications sector through these workshops is unprecedented,” Ryan says.
“When you look at the value these businesses are getting out of the program and see the positive impact it’s having on the people involved – and you consider that an opportunity to access this type of resource will most likely never be offered again – it’s hard to see any good reason why you wouldn’t sign on and get involved.”
For businesses who find this argument compelling, an opportunity to get involved in the Business Transformation Project will open early next year, with a second round of introductory Leadership Briefings to be held in February.
For further information about the Future Print Business Transformation Project, go to www.futureprint.org.au or contact [Allan Ryan?] on [contact details?
Printing Industries Association of Australia
www.printnet.com.au
