Reflecting on the recent announcement that Capital One plans to acquire Discover, it is impressive to see the strategic positioning and drive for Capital One to continue its growth patterns. Capital One has a good track record for growth, as it boasts that it has exceeded numerous growth targets since its creation in 1994. This type of track record doesn’t happen by accident. It takes a clear strategy and, most importantly, a dedicated focus on execution.
An effective short-, mid-, and long-term strategy is rooted in having a clear understanding of and focus on your company’s unique advantages, which then translates to a winning proposition in the marketplace. Also, it is important to plan for execution to meet organizational goals. This requires a commitment to focus and relentless attention on many execution details daily to achieve success. Then, enterprising, growth-minded companies drive growth and set even higher goals to achieve success within their marketplaces.
This is what brings Capital One to the plan to acquire Discover….an internal strategic drive to move on to the next step of change in performance for the company and its investors. By acquiring Discover, Capital One moves strategically into a new world where they can compete with Visa and Mastercard to provide a globally competitive payments network while also capturing numerous other synergies in the card business from the combined companies. I bet Capital One delivers on its aspirations since they have a demonstrated track record for solid execution – the most important predictor of success being past performance. More competition in the card payments field should also benefit retailers and consumers!
Does your organization have an established strategic plan and leveraged pathway to success? If not, contact us to learn more about the various models we implement to help organizations activate their mission, vision, and values.
