Norton CCO interview in British Dealer News mag

Stu Bodycote · Jan 17, 2023

Let me know if these aint legible, and I'll try and do better than just a screen grab.

BritTwit · Jan 17, 2023

Stu the documents are excellent, but there appears that there may be a 4th one that is not included in you shots.

Stu Bodycote · Jan 17, 2023

Nope, just three pages. I'd got them in the wrong order though, sorry.....edited it now.

concours · Jan 19, 2023

For the past five years, I have had a front row seat, to "CEO recruited from outside the industry"

A sheer, unmitigated, full-tilt bozo DISASTER.

kommando · Jan 19, 2023

I know 'BS' squared when I see it and there are 3 pages of it in that article.

Stephen_Spencer · Jan 19, 2023

Surely it‘s only BS squared if?

- Norton has no intention of applying the elements of business Gladwell outlines; or
- They apply this business approach and it fails miserably.

I guess we can remember that there was plenty of opinion on the site a few years back that Birmingham Norton had no intention of even building motorcycles.

mdt-son · Jan 19, 2023

What is a chief commercial officer (CCO), sometime referred to as the chief business officer ?
By common definition, the CCO is "an executive-level role, with the holder being responsible for the commercial strategy and the development of an organization. It typically involves activities relating to marketing, sales, product development and customer service to drive business growth and market share. As a corporate officer position, the CCO generally reports directly to the chief executive officer (CEO) and is primarily concerned with ensuring the integrated commercial success of an organization. The role typically must combine technical knowledge of the relevant field with strong marketing and business development skills."

So, does this guy have the knowledge and skills to fill this role? Judged by his superficial views on the Citroen SM, I take it he lacks in-depth technical knowledge. Coming from the Interior decoration and styling business serving aged very conservative and wealthy consumers mostly, he has no knowledge of market trends and actual customer requirements. So how is this guy, who lacks specific marketing and business development skills, going to bring the Norton brand forward to the 21st century, I wonder? Maybe he will launch an electric Norton Golf cart? Now, that would NOT surprise me.

A business striving to capture its market share, one would expect them to attract someone with a similar role in a competing business, like Triumph or Yamaha. But not TVS Norton. Hmm. Being optimistic is difficult sometimes.

- Knut

Stephen_Spencer · Jan 19, 2023

mdt-son said:
What is a chief commercial officer (CCO), sometime referred to as the chief business officer ?
By common definition, the CCO is "an executive-level role, with the holder being responsible for the commercial strategy and the development of an organization. It typically involves activities relating to marketing, sales, product development and customer service to drive business growth and market share. As a corporate officer position, the CCO generally reports directly to the chief executive officer (CEO) and is primarily concerned with ensuring the integrated commercial success of an organization. The role typically must combine technical knowledge of the relevant field with strong marketing and business development skills."

So, does this guy have the knowledge and skills to fill this role? Judged by his superficial views on the Citroen SM, I take it he lacks in-depth technical knowledge. Coming from the Interior decoration and styling business serving aged very conservative and wealthy consumers mostly, he has no knowledge of market trends and actual customer requirements. So how is this guy, who lacks specific marketing and business development skills, going to bring the Norton brand forward to the 21st century, I wonder? Maybe he will launch an electric Norton Golf cart? Now, that would NOT surprise me.

A business striving to capture its market share, one would expect them to attract someone with a similar role in a competing business, like Triumph or Yamaha. But not TVS Norton. Hmm. Being optimistic is difficult sometimes.

- Knut

Agreed Knut, he isn’t a natural fit so I guess we’ve got to trust that TVS, a very successful company, have seen something in Gladwell and whatever vision they/he may have for Norton’s future. The fact that they have a shot at a successful future and significant backing to do so is fantastic IMO, in comparison to bankruptcy and oblivion.

Maybe sometimes ya just gotta step back to get a more optimistic viewpoint

.

BritTwit · Jan 20, 2023

I don't really understand the need for all of these "Chiefs" of industry, but today it seems all companies are hiring a plethora of these folks for various business purposes. TVS/Norton is apparently no different.
Like anyone attempting to popularize his/her company, the resulting publicity stream will inevitably contain some portion of BS.
The rules of marketing virtually require it.
Mr. Gladwell is simply Norton's new front man, getting a message out to the public, nothing more.
Being super critical of every move that Norton make today will not change the path that they have chosen.
Don't get all worked up, relax and wait for their future product introductions, then bitch, if necessary.

Gojuu · Jan 24, 2023

BritTwit said:
I don't really understand the need for all of these "Chiefs" of industry, but today it seems all companies are hiring a plethora of these folks for various business purposes. TVS/Norton is apparently no different.
Like anyone attempting to popularize his/her company, the resulting publicity stream will inevitably contain some portion of BS.
The rules of marketing virtually require it.
Mr. Gladwell is simply Norton's new front man, getting a message out to the public, nothing more.
Being super critical of every move that Norton make today will not change the path that they have chosen.
Don't get all worked up, relax and wait for their future product introductions, then bitch, if necessary.

Nah, all the old blokes on here know way better than that.

You don't even need to ask 'em, they'll just tell you they do.

They make great and valuable contributions.

Maybe a couple of them could be the Access Norton Chief Contributions Officers, cause from what I see - they are waaaaaaaaaaay ahead of Gladwell on bullshit already.

Norton CCO interview in British Dealer News mag

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