The A-Team approach to really Love it… when your plan comes together!

Business gurus are plentiful all over the Internet. They usually tell you how to be more efficient at work, they give you “solid” advice on how to make your daily schedule more productive, adding massive heaps of motivational swill that you end up eating way too early in the morning just before turning the engine of your car on. 

However, chatting with a friend of mine over Facetime, I wondered why not having fictional role models that get the things done and make things happening? Let’s face it, the odds that any of us becomes the next Amazon CEO are pretty similar to becoming King Kong, as a matter of a fact. 

My choice is a no-brainer: The A-Team. Because for us Gen Xers, they are the definition of a perfect and well-oiled Business Unit that shares a common goal: every member knows perfectly his purpose inside of the team.

• Howlin’ Mad Murdock depicted the technical skills as a pilot and the need of disruption and crazy ideas as well as being someone pushing the team boundaries.
• “Face” was able to get anything in very short notice with very few resources, convincing anyone, using his savoir faire and appeal as the perfect marketer & salesman.
• B.A. “I pity the fool” Baracus was the strength and the engineering needed to overcome serious challenges and solve complex daily hurdles…. He depicted also the business ethics: despite being so grumpy, deep down, goodness was his motivator.
• Amy, the journalist, who links the team with the market, the Business and Competitive intelligence wizard and the pipeline conversion sales funnel.
• Col. Hannibal Smith, sitting on the side seat of THAT red-stripped black GMC van, taking puffs to his cigar, and leading the strategy and the vision.

If I was Hannibal, give me that license for a sec, I 'd apply the following rules:

1.      Ask B.A. to assemble a freaking tank of all the scraps (inefficiently used company resources) sitting right now in the backyard: this means that you’ve already got the resources (people, tools, know-how, intangible assets, etc.) to make it happen but you tend to do the same over and over with those, bringing poor outcomes. Most of the times, the solution, is inside of the garage. You need to reshuffle the “scraps”, throw the waste away, and somehow, refurbish the whole strategy applying different methods.

2.      I’d plan it 100x … Scenario planning should be the rule of thumb in order make decisions and foresee the worst, don’t getting anything for granted: Remember, Col. Decker could be just behind your back! In a nutshell, you need to understand how to react when the unexpected comes... and be ready. Make sure that you’ve always got a plan B (THE escape!) and some other contingency minor plans in the pocket. Was your company ready for remote work these covid19 days? Was your short-term debt covered? Your cashflow 6-month projection ready? Was your team trained and prepared?

3.      Make decisions no matter if they’re right or wrong. Hannibal had to make harsh decisions in every episode. Thus, become a real decision maker. I always say to my team members that the only wrong decision is not making one! I never get angry if they make a bad decision, but it really pisses me off when they don’t make one.

4.      I’d wear always the right costume and design a Tailored-made marketing approach. Marketing cannot be generalist anymore, needs to target specifically each customer. Hannibal was easily recognizable, let’s be honest, but he was very convincing and had a specific marketing approach, always! Times like these require open-minded outlooks and new disruptive tailored-made marketing approaches, focusing on Digital and AI, using the digital data correctly and going beyond Porter’s 4P.

5.      Don’t hurt anyone but say NO: remember, nobody was killed in any A-Team episode, EVER. This means that you must be calm and make sure that you share the truth and that you honor your principles. So, make sure to say no when someone tells you what to do if that’s not right with yourself. Make your position solid. It will lead you to peace of mind with yourself. Remember, Hannibal never lost his temper and never cursed either! (I curse a lot, I should change that!).

6.      Get yourself together and don’t be so harsh and demanding with yourself. Sometimes, the problem, deep down, is out of your control and that’s why you need to delegate in your specialists, who are way better than you in their fields. Put that stubborn you resisting to change aside and start again without punishing yourself. You’ll be happier and the plan will definitely come together. Word.

Pedro de Castro, May, 26th. 2020