Business consulting firms help businesses to scale their performance by solving problems and finding innovative ways of doing things. They’re not just in the private industry; numerous firms work with public sector organisations to encourage development of their services and, where necessary, reduce costs, and make savings. A consultant is a professional who offers an expert advice in a particular area such as security (electronic or physical), management, education, accountancy, law, human resources, marketing (and public relations), finance, engineering, science or any of many other specialised fields.
Step Change is a strategically led marketing agency; it’s a collective of unlike-minded people, with a shared distaste for the status quo and playing small. They start by optimising and protecting the core before developing leveraged innovations and campaigns. To do this, they draw on tools from strategy, marketing, consumer behaviour, and behavioural economics (among others) to align challenger businesses on major growth opportunities.
Step Change exists to inspire step changes in businesses and people; their ambition is to have every client beat their industry benchmark (or previous PB). They work with leaders in challenger businesses who are looking for a step change and a path to winning in a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) world.
Who Are the Challengers?
As an agency, Step Change believes that business has the power to create positive change, and so they seek out “businesses who can see a better way – those who are not just for themselves but are also out there to help create a better world. These businesses are the ones with growth on their agenda and everything to play for. These are the challengers.
Stepping Up the Strategy
Unlike some business consultants, who work with only a few industries and clients, the team at Step Change work across every major industry and with over 90 clients every year. This massive bank of knowledge, combined with a unique way of working gives their clients powerful insights and practical ideas to transform their businesses.
Over the last decade or so, Step Change has studied and helped companies break through one or more of the six major challenges that inevitably plague every business that’s playing a worthwhile game. They call it the Big 6 Challenges™ – strategy, story, scale, creativity, connection, and culture – and for every challenge, there is an opportunity to step change.
Strategy: For an aligned strategy that makes clear choices on scarce resources – Business Strategy Step Change
Story: For an inspiring brand story with a predatory edge – Value Proposition Step Change
Scale: For a best – and next-practice marketing plan that leverages a business’s assets and can scale – Marketing Step Change
Creativity: For a standout message that’s sure to get noticed and for the client to look as good as they are – Cut-Through Creative
Connect: To find and connect with customers in the digital world, coordinating all elements to work together – Digital Connection Step Change
Culture: To convert intent into action with powerful leadership and a high-performance culture – Intent to ACTION and Powerful Presence
Standing Out From the Crowd: Thinking Predatory
Step Change believes it’s not enough for business leaders to think about meeting and satisfying their customer’s needs – they also need to ask, “Who’s got my money?” This is where Predatory Marketing comes in. It’s all about striking at the weakness that arises out of a competitor’s greatest strength.
Step Change’s Chief Executive Officer, Ashton Bishop, is Australia’s leading Predatory Marketer, an expert in pinpointing how businesses can grow by outsmarting their competitors.
However, his path was a somewhat unusual one. After graduating with a commerce/law degree, he turned his hand to street performing, TV presenting, stand – up comedy, film directing, and even literally ran away with the circus.
Fortunately, Ashton eventually found his niche in marketing, where he has spent the last 14 years working internationally on some of the world’s biggest brands. He is a business owner and serial entrepreneur, challenging – sometimes even controversial – but always focused on what gets results. He has run million – dollar marketing campaigns for billion-dollar brands, created Australia’s first mobile app, received film awards, guest – lectured at leading universities, and won strategic and creative recognition from his peers.
How They Help Clients Make a Step Change
The team at Step Change don’t just create strategic plans and documents for challenger businesses – they transform them into live and agile strategic organisations equipped to deal with the VUCA environment. They align on strategy development and culture and develop leadership in order to make sure that your strategy ends up on the bottom line and not in the bottom draw.
