Don Coles 🇭🇲

Before approving more market-entry spending, decide what evidence would make you change the plan. BCG's leadership research connects development with examining established beliefs and accepting discomfort. Its survey findings are associations, not proof of a particular expansion method. The practical application is to make a commercial assumption testable. If the plan depends on distributors generating demand, establish what would demonstrate that they can. Agree when to review it and what result would justify changing the channel. A commitment to learning needs a decision that can still change. Source: BCG, “Mind the Belief Gap” @RLDI_Lamy @sulefati7 @ILoveBooks786 @Corix_JC @FrRonconii @Nicochan33 @faryus88 @ramonvidall @ozsilverfox @jameslhbartlett @dinisguarda @PatrickCFOD @Eli_Krumova @BCAgroup @ricardo_ik_ahau @timo_vi @violetainsights @DioOmega @66Iot

A larger sales pipeline will not fix a value proposition that customers struggle to distinguish from competitors. Bain's 2026 survey of 1,125 B2B companies found that those with clear, consistently communicated value propositions reported 19% revenue growth, compared with 12% for companies with limited or inconsistent ones. Yet only 4% considered their value proposition strong. The commercial problem often begins before the sales conversation. If product, marketing and sales disagree on who the ideal buyer is, why that buyer should choose them and what evidence supports the claim, increasing outreach simply spreads the inconsistency. Before investing more in demand generation, leadership teams should test whether they can independently explain the same customer value proposition. The findings show an association, not proof of causation. But they highlight a frequently overlooked growth priority: aligning commercial execution around a differentiated offer. Source: Bain & Company, “Unclear Value Propositions Stall Growth” @RLDI_Lamy @sulefati7 @ILoveBooks786 @Corix_JC @FrRonconii @Nicochan33 @faryus88 @ramonvidall @ozsilverfox @jameslhbartlett @dinisguarda @ricardo_ik_ahau @timo_vi @violetainsights @DioOmega @66Iot @PatrickCFOD @Eli_Krumova @BCAgroup

“Customers like the demo” leaves several launch questions unanswered. Who funds the purchase? What are they paying for? What must change before they can use it? Hg's Catalyst blueprint runs pricing, sales preparation and early-access customer confirmation alongside AI product development. That is a useful sequence: test the purchase and adoption path while the product can still change. Early feedback should influence packaging, scope and launch readiness, rather than arrive after technical completion has become a fixed deadline. This is Hg's operating blueprint, not independent evidence of launch success. Source: Hg, “AI-first value creation” @RLDI_Lamy @sulefati7 @ILoveBooks786 @Corix_JC @FrRonconii @Nicochan33 @faryus88 @ramonvidall @ozsilverfox @jameslhbartlett @dinisguarda @ricardo_ik_ahau @timo_vi @violetainsights @DioOmega @66Iot @PatrickCFOD @Eli_Krumova @BCAgroup

Saving delivery hours can weaken the revenue of a business that sells those hours. Altman Solon's IT-services framework puts efficiency gains beside reduced billable hours, changes in project demand and the share of savings passed to customers. The cost benefit and the commercial benefit can move in different directions. For a supplier, the useful exercise is to model a completed project under the current contract before assuming that faster work improves its margin. Which costs disappear, what revenue disappears, and what still needs senior expertise? A fixed fee does not automatically solve the problem either. Competitive pressure can reset the next quote. Treat the delivery improvement and the contract response as one investment decision. This is a framework for testing the economics, not a forecast of any provider's results. Source: Altman Solon, “AI-Resilient IT Services: Where Value Holds for Operators & Investors” @RLDI_Lamy @sulefati7 @ILoveBooks786 @Corix_JC @FrRonconii @Nicochan33 @faryus88 @ramonvidall @ozsilverfox @jameslhbartlett @dinisguarda @ricardo_ik_ahau @timo_vi @violetainsights @DioOmega @66Iot @PatrickCFOD @Eli_Krumova @BCAgroup

An enterprise AI pilot should not be the default response to every B2B sales opportunity. BCG outlines four approaches to demonstrating value: a business-case assessment, a light-touch demo, a targeted use-case proof, and a paid multi-use-case pilot using customer data. Each requires a different level of technical involvement, customer commitment and investment. That creates a resource-allocation decision for sales leaders. A straightforward use case may need only a credible demonstration. A complex enterprise deployment may justify testing with the buyer's actual data and measurable business outcomes. Over-engineer the proof and pre-sales costs escalate. Under-invest and buyers may remain unconvinced. The competitive advantage comes from matching the evidence to the buyer's decision, while keeping the cost of winning the business commercially sustainable. Source: BCG, “Why B2B Software Firms Need a Go-to-Market Reset” @RLDI_Lamy @sulefati7 @ILoveBooks786 @Corix_JC @FrRonconii @Nicochan33 @faryus88 @ramonvidall @ozsilverfox @jameslhbartlett @dinisguarda @ricardo_ik_ahau @timo_vi @violetainsights @DioOmega @66Iot @PatrickCFOD @Eli_Krumova @BCAgroup

Who pays when an AI service needs a person to finish the job? Bain reports that only about 7% of companies in its research run fully autonomous agents in production. Much of the operating reality still includes human oversight. For a supplier, that raises a specific pricing question: does the fee cover automated processing alone, or the completed service including review? Define the exception workload and who provides it. A low software price can coexist with substantial customer effort. Compare offers using the same completion standard. Otherwise, the buyer may be comparing a finished service with a tool that leaves important work behind. Source: Bain & Company, “Realization Rate: The Metric Reshaping Enterprise AI” @RLDI_Lamy @sulefati7 @ILoveBooks786 @Corix_JC @FrRonconii @Nicochan33 @faryus88 @ramonvidall @ozsilverfox @jameslhbartlett @dinisguarda @ricardo_ik_ahau @timo_vi @violetainsights @DioOmega @66Iot @PatrickCFOD @Eli_Krumova @BCAgroup

Where could your existing experience fit in AI? The career map covers 24 roles across leadership and governance, business and adoption, and technical delivery. A financial analyst, a product manager and an AI engineer contribute different expertise. Moving towards AI work starts with understanding the problems a role solves and the skills it requires. Choose one role from the map. Compare current job descriptions, map the requirements against your experience and identify one skill to build next. The map includes established roles and emerging specialisms, grouped by the contribution they make. Sources: AI Workforce Consortium, “ICT in Motion: The Next Wave of AI Integration” (2025); Microsoft Learn, “Define roles, responsibilities, and decision rights”; IBM Think, “The rise and ROI of the chief AI officer”. #AI #AICareers #FutureOfWork @RLDI_Lamy @sulefati7 @ILoveBooks786 @Corix_JC @FrRonconii @Nicochan33 @faryus88 @ramonvidall @ozsilverfox @jameslhbartlett @dinisguarda @ricardo_ik_ahau @timo_vi @violetainsights @DioOmega @66Iot @Eli_Krumova @BCAgroup @PatrickCFOD @kkruse @brownielog @DHTJourneys