Susan Boyle, Business Model Parable

Kay Plantes
March 10, 2010 | COMMENTS

Susan Boyle, a 47-year-old unemployed woman appeared as anything but a leading candidate for British Idol success (blockbuster American Idol and its British spin-off are talent shows for amateur singing talents). Prior to her appearance, Boyle had spent her adult life caring for aging parents in a small Scottish town. No wonder the judges and audience laughed as the overweight, seemingly backward woman walked onto the stage in a frumpy dress, with a 1950-ish haircut and challenging accent, claiming she wanted a career as a singer.

Boyle's moving rendition of “I Dreamed a Dream” from the Broadway Tony Award-winning musical Les Miserables drew gasps, then cheers, and then a spontaneous standing ovation from the audience. With a voice which made Julie Andrews, star of Sound of Music and Mary Poppins, sound amateurish, Boyle's try-out became You-Tube's most watched video in 2009.

Talent Boyle had in spades. But it takes more than talent to be a star. Since the April show, Boyle has transformed her persona to meet all the requirements for a successful performance career. Publicists at her side, a caring agent, a broader singing repertoire, and a stylist transformed this raw talent into a stellar performer.

Along the way Boyle was forced into challenging personal learning, necessitated by the crisis that occurred when the reclusive woman could not emotionally handle her sudden fame. Today Boyle stands confidently, totally enjoying the thrilling life she has created.

Every organization has a latent talent, waiting to be developed and deployed to serve others. Like Boyle, other changes may be necessary to build a winning business model and secure success. Crises all too often induce these changes.

How might your organization—a collection of individual talents and organizational capability—shine? What customer group can you most delight and turn into raving-about-your-organization fans? What could you do to earn their standing ovation? With this in mind, what changes should your organization make to turn your talent(s) into an organizational advantage that lets you compete as one–of–one in an attractive market?

Build a business model around this talent. Define your target market. Decide on the scope of your business—what you are and what you are not. Capture and communicate the value promise that will lead customers to consider you. And identify, besides your talent, other aspects of your organization that will make your value promise challenging for competitors to copy. Finally, define the structures and strategies you'll deploy to ensure profitability. With these decisions in hand, go execute.

Watch and listen to the Boyle video. The emotions you feel tap the universal desire of humans to express our innate talents and shine in the eyes of others.

Kay Plantes is an MIT-trained economist, business strategy consultant, columnist and author in Madison, Wisconsin. Reprinted with permission from her blog at www. plantes company.com/ blog.