Surface Ripples

When is “Good Enough” “Good Enough”?

I’ve had the privilege of watching several entrepreneurs building their businesses over the years. What interests me most is their approach to what we might call “getting it right“.

For some, “perfection” is the only standard.  For others, “good enough” will do and they then refine the product or service.

Both have their pros and cons. “Perfection” means that a lot of work will go into producing a product or service that genuinely meets customer needs.  Inevitably, a number of elements have to be combined to make this happen: concept, assembly (if it concerns an actual product), delivery to customer and after sales service.

The downside is that getting to that final stage of perfection can take an awfully long time and delay product or service launches.

In some cases, perfection must be mandatory. We see this in buildings, automobiles, aircraft, bridges where if the product fails, a considerable number of lives can be lost.

On the other hand, especially in the IT industry, “good enough” will do.  A programme or service can be launched and then, as customer feedback filters back, it can be “tweaked” to refine the product or service until it meets needs.

In some cases, “good enough” may be preferable both to take the market lead and to make sure that the product can be scaled or changed as needed.  A very simple example would be the Apple Watch.  Apple were by no means the first in the smart watch market, but when they entered some years after competitors such as Pebble and Samsung, they brought a totally superior product to the table.  They’ve continued refining it as well (although battery life still seems to be their main hurdle).

For every entrepreneur among us, deciding when “good enough” is “good enough” and when to strive for perfection is very much a personal and business decision.  For example, can Ford afford to aim for perfection every time?  When should it do so?  Power and transmission (engines) and safety issues such as indicators, lights, airbags, brakes and seatbelts need to be perfect.  However, “small” refinements like tone of dashboard colour may mean they miss taking the market lead by getting the product out there faster, earning some money, and then improving it based on feedback.  Look at every iteration of the same model every year – does the basic design change?  Of course!

My personal view is that it depends on circumstances. If one has the resources and time available to achieve perfection, why not?  In a fast-changing business and competitive landscape, being “second past the post’ may be the difference between success and failure.  It will be for each and every business owner to decide for themselves.

I’ve spent more than half my life delivering change in different world markets from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With a wealth of international experience in international financial services around the world running different operations and lending businesses, I started my own Consultancy to provide solutions for improving performance, productivity and risk management.  I work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email. My website  provides a full picture of my portfolio of services.  

Labels: Customer Care, Leadership, Productivity, Selling, Strategy

posted by William Martin @ 11:17