This data was originally featured in the April 10th, 2024 newsletter found here: INBOX INSIGHTS, APRIL 10, 2024: 5P FRAMEWORK FLEXIBILITY, MARKETING HIRING DATA
Staring at the blank page before you, open up the dirty window…
I don’t know about you, but where I live the sun is finally out and the weather is actually nice.
I’m totally distracted. The nice weather is temporary. It’s going to rain in the next day or so (again). While we have the sunshine I want to soak up as much of it as I can which means I am not focused on sharing valuable information.
Here’s where my brain is at today; let’s see what we can do.
I keep thinking I could write about my recent changes to the 5P Framework. I adapted and created the 5P Framework from Digital Transformation (DT or DX). DT is People, Process, and Technology. The challenge with DT is that it’s platform first, people last.
The 5P Framework is Purpose, People, Process, Platform, and Performance. The emphasis is on people, bookended with purpose and performance.
And then it struck me, that’s wrong.
Well, it’s not wrong so much as it’s not always right.
In an ideal scenario, you would always put people first and choose the platform last. But that’s limiting the 5P Framework to net new situations. My goal with the 5P Framework was to make it a flexible decision tool. The framework will help you get organized, define a meaningful purpose, and measure your outcomes.
However, if I’m over here insisting that you always put people first, I’m missing the mark. Let me explain.
The 5P Framework is going to help new AND existing situations where you already have a platform. Someone chose it. The team inherited it. However it came about, you’re locked into a platform.
So, now what?
In the very likely event that you already have a platform, I want you to feel confident using the 5Ps.
When I talk about setting your purpose, I encourage you to keep the platform out of it. Now we know that many times, you are trying to figure out what to do with the hunk of junk that landed on your to-do list. Now, your purpose should include the platform.
For example, this would be my purpose statement:
“As the CEO, I need to figure out how to get the data out of my existing CRM, so that I can make decisions with the data.”
Because I have the platform, I need to focus heavily on process development and who to involve. The first thing you would want to do is to walk through the 5Ps as if you did not have the platform. This will give you your base set of requirements.
The revised purpose statement would be:
“As the CEO, I need reliable, daily reporting about my customers, so that I can make tactical marketing decisions”
From here, I’ll list out the decisions I need to make. I’ll engage the people who will help build reports and take action on the data. I’ll define my performance and measure of success.
Once I have those requirements, I can do a gap analysis. How many of my requirements can my existing platform satisfy? If there is a large gap between what I need and what the platform can do, I have some big decisions to make. Is it worth starting over with a new platform? Can I add onto the existing platform to get it more closely aligned with the needs?
All this to say, I wasn’t using the 5P Framework in a flexible way. I was too rigid with the order of people, process, and platform. They should not be dependencies like in waterfall where you have to complete one before moving onto the next step. You can reorder them. You can define them in parallel. Provided you end up with each P having its set of definitions, how you get there is less important.
I’m still refining the details, but the core use is still the same. You start by defining your purpose, you walk through people, process, and platform, and you measure your performance. The difference will be how you approach understanding people, process, and platform.
Hey! Look at that! I managed to focus long enough to share what’s going on.
Ok, back to soaking up the sun.
…let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find…
How are you approaching making the most of your existing platforms? Reply to this email to tell me or come join the conversation in our Free Slack Group, Analytics for Marketers.
– Katie Robbert, CEO
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