For many people, Harley-Davidson is the ultimate symbol of American individualism, and perhaps why the company takes up space so important in the cultural history of the United States. However, in the 1980s, it almost abandoned the business after finding that, even as a national icon, losing more and more space for the bikes imported.
Through a series of initiatives strategically coordinated, Harley-Davidson was able to revolutionize their products and create a new identity in the industry call "lifestyle". During the process, the company revitalized its vision and redefined its energies, improving quality, productivity and relationships with employees.
Extended the brand to related businesses and became leader of the sector. When designing and pursuing a vision of enthusiastic customers and employees, was again one of the most dynamic organizations of the United States.
How did this happen? Simply put, the company has a vision in the center of the strategic process, creating the momentum necessary to overcome the limitations of the past.
She has acted on the view, also called "vision for design," a strategic tool to get rid of these restrictions and may be a source of transformation.
Contrary to popular belief, the view is not a magical process isolated from the realities of business. Throughout the experience with companies of all sectors, it was discovered that the process works best when based on knowledge of the existing teams of leaders. The most valuable lesson was that the power of visualization, in any case, the commitment is reflective of the leaders with a dimension of past, present and future. Reflection is the ability to consciously distance themselves from what is immediately to take into account the key issues and generate alternatives through the speech. The visualization process encourages reflection and open space for dialogue to question the assumptions and introduce new possibilities.
It was shown more than once that visualization leads teams to develop strategic, solidly and realistically, a better future.
The main purpose of this hub is to show that vision is a practical tool of management and is essential for the development of the strategy. Another objective is to demonstrate that, when the display is used reflexively, it contributes to improving the quality of strategic decisions. Finally, I warn that it is essential that strategic leaders develop a vision of 360 degrees, based on the present and toward the future. The visualization helps companies target time, energy and resources to initiatives aimed at transforming.
To prove the essential qualities involved, I present a model visualization in four dimensions, which facilitates the evaluation of internal and external environments of business. Its advantage is that the division into parts, which brings structure to the process. Take the case of Harley-Davidson.

What is vision?

Although widely used, the term is usually defined and applied as incorrect. The vision brings together the ideology or philosophy that drive a company, expressing the values, purpose and direction through a mission and a set of corporate goals.
The core values and purpose should be preserved, but all other factors may change. The basic principle is that the vision should be both constant and flexible. The studies say little about how to formulate, communicate and implement the vision, and are reluctant to implement the view in depth, as a means of conducting strategic conversations. Several aspects of visionary executives associate the lack of reality, a synonym of high ideals and goals complicated.
I believe the best way to release the vision of negative perceptions is through a practical demonstration. The vision is a strategic product deliberate. The view is a communicative technique used to create a vision. To determine an agenda for organizational development and set the foundations for a more detailed strategic work, the vision must meet three conditions: be fully and reach all aspects of business, be inclusive, bringing together internal and external areas of the company and the main stakeholders, and establish a path of dynamic change. For this, we must tell, in fact, with two views: one static, which shows where the company is, and other dynamics, showing the place where it can be if given the appropriate steps.
It is easy to develop a comprehensive vision, inclusive and dynamic. Sometimes it just comes from the hands of leaders like Katsuaki Watanabe (Toyota) or Steve Jobs (Apple).

Vision and reflex

How to ensure that the vision is comprehensive, inclusive and dynamic? This is achieved through the process of drafting the vision, "which involves a critical reflection on each of the four key dimensions of the parent organization, culture, markets, and relationships, designed to turn its constituent parts. The culture, for example, is defined by the values (the beliefs that guide their relationship with the world), management style (style and behavior of leaders) and relations with employees (quality interactions between managers and employees).
By examining each item, identify the essential characteristics that should be reflected in the overview. Taken together, the 12 attributes of vision form a realistic picture of what the company can be a few years.
We use the development of vision to facilitate strategic conversations first step. You are invited to team leaders for a critical reflection on each of the dimensions of the model. With respect to each attribute, the question arises where the company is currently and where you want to be in three years. This seemingly simple process enables the expression of a variety of views and intense debate, as the participants strive to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the existing framework and how best to improve it in the future. In thinking about "what", "why,"
"When", "where", "who" and "how" you can identify problems, questioning certainties and raise aspirations. Participants fail to see the here and now and take a static orientation towards more dynamic ideas. Reflection refreshing ideas.
The view becomes a practical tool of the strategy to describe a set of transitions from static state to dynamic. In general, asked to describe the team, for each dimension, the current state and prospects for the future desired. In the case of Harley-Davidson, the static view contemplating the manufacture of heavy motorcycles, while the dynamic view pointed to the transformation into a brand associated with lifestyle. The catalyst for change was strong competition from Japanese manufacturers low cost, forcing the renewal of the brand and focus on higher profitable value chain.

New look at Harley-Davidson

The resurgence of Harley-Davidson was guided by a vision sensitive to customer is focused on partnerships, which identified that the company was and where it should forward its future. For many, the revival began with the creation of the Harley Owners Group (HOG, symbol, or group of owners of Harley-Davidson), in order to encourage loyalty and involvement of customers. Soon, the HOG has become the largest club of its kind in the world, bringing nearly 1 million members. The bike rides, meetings and events sponsored by the factory generate high visibility that can benefit both the marketing and service customer service, and position the brand as a choice associated with the lifestyle.
The second essential component of the Renaissance was the product launch further, that increased the emphasis on lifestyle. Extensions mark included upgrades and accessories: clothing for motorcyclists and apparel common household items and a series of badges played by "harleymaníacs. In 2006, sales of items such as accessories and other totaled $ 862 million, and general marketing accounted for an additional $ 277.5 million (total sales were U.S. $ 5.8 billion).
At the same time, Harley-Davidson began to diversify into activities next. The purchase of Eaglemark, renamed Harley-Davidson Financial Services (HDFS), allowed the company to offer insurance for motorcycles and extend lines of credit. The business unit is growing at a double-digit increasingly contributing to operating profits of the parent. Today customers can, for example, learning to ride a bike at a dealer's mark or rent a vehicle during a test period. The promotional activities include sponsorship from
Race to the supply of vehicles to escort the official policies of the ceremonies.
The transformation of the vision and the business can be understood through pictures. The organization before, and based on the hierarchical system of command and control, was replaced by a flatter structure and integrated with practices and procedures more flexible and inclusive. Harley-Davidson also renewed its corporate culture, but without the need to change everything. The values promoted by it, as truth, accuracy, integrity and respect for the individual, always worked, it was necessary to improve the management style

Four dimensions of a company

The company abandoned its focus on short-term goals and management vertical, with an eye on continuous improvement and commitment of employees with quality, productivity and innovation. Instead of occupying the role of antagonists, unions have agreed to act as partners and not missing at Harley-Davidson was room for improving relations. Since the early 1980s, the company was placed in a protective relationship with the regulators, taking advantage of his position as a national icon to contain, through obstacles, the advance of foreign competitors, especially Japanese. Two decades later, the world had changed and was very difficult to justify protectionist stance.
What's more, the World Trade Organization has condemned such tariffs and for the Harley-Davidson, it was appropriate to enter into more open and more fair. For this, it was necessary to have standards higher across the value chain. In order to reduce costs and improve its responsiveness, the company deployed just-in-time and began to act cooperatively with partners in the supply chain. At the same time, free competition was replaced by an approach that recognized the potential benefits of cooperation for all competitors.
As regards markets, Harley-Davidson became aware that his customer base was very limited, it was restricted to male viewers aged between 30 and 50. The launch of the Harley Owners Group (HOG) has to increase its offer and the brand is bringing in women and younger consumers, through items such as perfumes and clothing. Another important measure was the abandonment of the image exclusively American, seeking a more global presence.

But how all this happened?

It is not easy to change the culture of a company or change the behavior of officials, especially when people do not accept that the behavior
the company could be better. This was the situation of Harley-Davidson in early 1980, and the transformation required several years of constant effort.
The brain of recovery was Richard Teerlink, director of finance (1981), Operations (1987) and president (1989). After solving various problems, he realized that the difficulties of organization, culture, markets and relations of the company were closely linked and that would be difficult to untie that knot.
Teerlink really believed that human resources were the most important asset and expanded opportunities for participation of employees. With the support of a consultant in organizational development Ozley Lee, the executive set a process of change, guided by what was later called "joint view. The central idea was that employees could feel "own" the vision to participate in its creation.
A comprehensive visualization enabled us to integrate the contributions of employees previously excluded, as the workers. To facilitate their access to top management, were eliminated hierarchical levels. These efforts have resulted in rapidly increased employee commitment and advances in productivity and quality.
The impact of recovery of Harley-Davidson and this broader view was considerable.
In late 2000, the average annual growth of the company was 15%. In
2003, the centenary of its founding, it sold 291,147 motorcycles, almost double the total submitted five years earlier, and the HDFS operating income increased 61%. Harley-Davidson returned to lead the production of heavy bikes, with 50% stake in the U.S. market and 25% in the world. Its main divisions (motorcycles and related products, and financial services) outperform the results of almost all large companies and automobile accessories. More than 21% of total sales were international.
The company continues to grow at a double-digit rate in Europe and maintains
leadership in the Japanese market for large motorcycles. Currently, pointed his sights to emerging markets of China and India, where the vision of lifestyle is highly attractive to many fanatics bikes.

Show must

Harley's case illustrates the role of vision and view the recovery of a company. The direction and vision has brought new meaning to the objectives of the organization and various stakeholders were inspired and renewed their confidence in it. The view looked both individual and collective interests and provided strategic conversations that would not have dawned otherwise.
What happened at Harley-Davidson is a magnificent example of how to get the most
possible use of vision and visualization. It is important to highlight three aspects:

• The vision that emerged in the process was absolutely realistic and linked to the trajectory and the circumstances of the Harley-Davidson.

• The visualization process was transformative, because it gave rise to strategic talks with the participation of employees, customers, partners and investors.

• The company recognized the need for a vision of 360 degrees which was the samefull-time, inclusive and dynamic. In doing so, set an agenda for organizational improvements that functioned as a platform for sustainable growth.

The power of visualization as a practical tool for organizational development is in fact leading the teams leading to a reflective thinking and asking questions about the organization, culture, markets and relationships, which can occur only contemplate the dimensions of past, present and future. The result is a deep understanding of the problems and prospects of the company. This process, naturally arise different solutions and ambition.

Finally leave the link for one of the greatest representatives of this great brand:

Davis Harley Davidson: http://www.davishd.com/