Although Clay and I are die-hard Georgia Tech fans, having spent our college years toiling on the Flats, last week, I took a moment to watch a portion of Coach K’s retirement press conference. The legendary Duke basketball coach spoke of the opportunities that he was afforded in his career and his good fortune to have mentors throughout his life.
In the early part of his speech, Coach K talked about his own self-doubt early in his career at West Point and Duke and how his mentors, his father, and the Duke president, respectively, shared their unwavering belief in him. These mentors conveyed their confidence in his ability to overcome the challenges and setbacks he faced and would inevitably encounter in his future endeavors. It made me think about the people in my life that had a steadfast belief in me and my abilities. These family members, teachers, and professional mentors dispensed wisdom and conveyed my need for patience, tolerance, and resilience. More so, they served as the bedrock of faith and conviction that allowed me to succeed, despite many bumps in the road along the way.
As we all emerge from an unprecedented year with the pandemic and other social disruptions, many of us were confronted with illnesses, mental health struggles, and financial setbacks. It is certain that we survived due to the belief and love of those closest to us. Professional challenges abounded, small businesses perished, front-line workers scarified daily, and many laborers were furloughed or had their wages cut. But faith and belief in each other formed the foundation that enabled many of us to endure.
One of the encouraging signs of the past several months has been the feverish activity retailers and consumer brands are taking to meet the changing demands of their customers. Whether embarking on demand forecasting, price optimization, omnichannel fulfillment, or supply chain visibility initiatives, one fact holds true; without belief at all levels of the organization, these efforts will fail.
In business parlance, we speak of executive sponsorship, cascading support, and embracing change. These are all truisms in today’s fast-paced world. But underlying the success throughout hundreds of Parker Avery client projects is a foundation of belief in the initiative and faith in those leading the charge.
We all hope that the challenges of the past year are the most insurmountable we will face in our lifetimes. The collective belief and faith in each other to overcome these obstacles provide us with a meaningful experience base on which to strengthen our resiliency.
Over Parker Avery’s 14-year existence, we have helped many retailers and consumer brand companies overcome the challenges of business transformation by instilling a belief in the people who make these initiatives successful. We would welcome the opportunity to work with you on your most important projects; helping you and your teams create a belief in the art of the possible – and turning that belief into meaningful, measurable, and sustainable results.
