Differentiation Forward causes movement. It begins with the first wrinkle, the push of the envelope, the first outlier, the significant exception. And for your competition, the uncomfortable new truth.

Most differentiation moves sideways. Differentiation Forward creates your departure forward.

The Differentiation Forward Process:

History: Identity of your founders and sources, examine your history, interview the full range of stakeholders.

Environment: Examination of your competition — assess their identity and their language. Create Ackerman Identity statements for all significant competition

Language:  Examination of all products, offerings, and communication — print, web, speeches, proposals, manuals, systems, email templates

Offerings: Who needs you? For whom is your work invaluable?

Ackerman Identity: Who are you? What is your genius and what are you driven to bring to the world?

Mythology: Creation of the language and story unique to the organization, its leaders and its future

Franchise: Clear understanding of how you want your ideas, yourself, and your organization to be perceived

Destiny: Where do you want to go? If you succeed in the marketplace, what will you have accomplished?

Naming:

• Enterprise
• Major programs
• Publications
• Philosophy and guiding insights
• Single or multiple characterizations of the competition—to place them and their IP in time to highlight chronological competitive differentiation

Language: Unique for the enterprise to be used in all communication

Ackerman Identity-based systems and training throughout the organization: all stakeholders with urgency regarding recruiting, retention, orientation and leadership development.

Develop feedback systems that bring continuous identity-based development to maintain the Differentiation Forward advantage to the organization.

Establish Ackerman Identity guardians within the organization who are recertified on a regular basis.

Conduct annual Differentiation Forward audits.