Your Pricing Sucks! 6 Things to Do About It

Your Pricing Sucks! 6 Things to Do About It

Pricing is a painful subject at most enterprise software companies.

No one is happy with their current pricing (regardless of what it is).
Everyone thinks they can fix it (or at least make it better).
Sales, Finance, Product Management, Legal, Product Marketing all think they should own it (or at least have majority vote).

The biggest issue? Different groups have their own agendas when it comes to pricing. With conflicting input and the lack of an overall pricing strategy, companies make sub-optimal pricing decisions where no one’s needs are fully met, and everyone involved is left frustrated.

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The Importance of Thinking (and Talking) Big

The Importance of Thinking (and Talking) Big

Starting with why

I am a huge fan of Simon Sinek and his Golden Circle framework.

Having a clear, precise vision that you can articulate both internally and externally can serve as a powerful tool for inspiring and motivating others as Sinek explains using the examples of Martin Luther King Jr, the Wright Brothers, and Apple.

Oftentimes, people and organizations spend too much time on ‘what’ and little time understanding ‘why’. As such, vision is little more than a generic statement on a web site: it lacks meaning and is disconnected from everyday life.

Investing time to determine the right ‘why’ and then explicitly articulating it (i.e., talking big) can have very practical benefits for your company in terms of credibility, trust, and value.

Similarly, individuals can also benefit by better understanding their sources of motivation.

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The Biggest Thing Holding Back Big Data in the Enterprise (it’s not what you think)

The Biggest Thing Holding Back Big Data in the Enterprise (it’s not what you think)

As the father of young children, I take a keen interest in parenting and child development.

One of the most insightful and powerful concepts I have discovered comes from Carol Dweck, professor of psychology at Stanford University.

In her book, Mindset, Professor Dweck discusses two differing views of intelligence: one where intelligence is deemed innate/static (a fixed mindset) and the other that believes intelligence can be developed given sufficient effort (a growth mindset).

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IT is from Mars and Development is from Venus

IT is from Mars and Development is from Venus

Last week, I was having lunch with a former colleague. He wanted to get my feedback on a new online service he was developing. When we started discussing target markets and users (which he had not considered deeply), he immediately mentioned ‘developers and IT.’

This is not the first time I have heard developers and IT used synonymously and interchangeably.

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