Page 40 - How to Drive the Bottom Line with People

Built to Serve

trolled chamber until they are ready for consumption;
retransported to individual stores; stocked by employ-

ees; and sold for about 25 cents. No wonder the
supermarket industry understands what it means to
succeed on less than 1 percent of net income.

Companies counting on gross profit margins sig-
nificantly increasing in the future will fail. Only those
companies that price their goods and services as inex-
pensively as possible will thrive, especially for items
that have no differentiation from the competition. The

relentless pressure for cheaper product pricing that is
applied to organizations today has expedited the glob-
16
= alization of labor, forced the issue of outsourcing, and

destroyed otherwise healthy corporate cultures. Once
this happens, organizations become vulnerable to any
competitor that brings a lower price to the market. No
loyalty exists when the nature of the relationship
between the buyer and the seller is based on price and

nothing more.
So what can you do to ensure your organization
focuses on culture and people? How will a culture-

driven, people-centered environment create fulfillment
and meaning for all stakeholders? What benefits can
be realized by seeking a higher purpose? This book
will answer these questions.