Crackerjack Visual Thinking

Category: Business Development

  • Visualising complex product ecosystems

    Visualising complex product ecosystems

    Organisations like SAP, Siemens, and PTC offer comprehensive solution ecosystems that span multiple domains—PLM, simulation, digital twins, IoT, and more. While these solutions are powerful, they are also complex. As a result, many customers struggle to understand how the various tools relate to one another and, more importantly, how they align with their own operational challenges and transformation goals.

    The Communication Gap

    • Customers often focus on immediate problems and can’t always see how a broader platform approach addresses their needs.
    • Sales and product teams may describe capabilities from different angles, leading to inconsistent messaging.
    • Internal stakeholders may lack a shared view of how the offer is positioned for different markets or maturity levels.

    A Visual Thinking Approach

    Using a facilitated visual method—such as the creation of a rich picture—can help bridge the gap between technical solutions and customer understanding. A rich picture is a large, illustrative diagram that captures:

    • The customer’s operational environment and key challenges.
    • How different products or tools contribute to solving those challenges.
    • The broader transformation journey and how solutions align to that trajectory.
    • Dependencies, touchpoints, and contextual factors that are difficult to convey in text or slide decks.

    Benefits of this Approach

    • Customer Understanding: Provides a visual narrative that helps customers see where they fit and how the solution supports their goals.
    • Sales and Marketing Alignment: Offers a consistent, reusable asset that can guide strategic conversations and value positioning.
    • Internal Clarity: Acts as a reference point across teams—helping product, sales, and delivery functions align on message and intent.
    • Adaptability: Can be tailored by sector, persona, or maturity level to suit different engagement scenarios.

    Common Use Cases

    • Industry-specific product overviews.
    • Executive briefings and stakeholder workshops.
    • Onboarding tools for new clients or internal teams.
    • Strategic planning, partner enablement, or bid development.

     If you would like to explore how visual thinking can help you engage clients with your product, please contact us.

    #VisualThinking #CustomerEngagement #ComplexitySimplified #SolutionSelling #DigitalTransformation #TechMarketing #EnterpriseSoftware #StrategicAlignment #IndustrialSoftware #SystemsThinking #EngineeringDesign #CustomerSuccess #InnovationConsulting #VisualConsulting

  • Strategy is 3D – So Why Do We Still Treat It Like a Flat Plan?

    Strategy is 3D – So Why Do We Still Treat It Like a Flat Plan?

    Strategy isn’t a flat line from A to B. It’s layered, shifting and often messy. It involves people, context, culture, timing—and a fair bit of uncertainty. So why do so many strategic plans still live in long documents, static slides, or linear timelines?

    In reality, strategy is 3D.

    A wireframe box with the three axis (length, width and height) shown as arrows. The image represents 3D Strategy.
    3D Strategy Cube

    It has depth (what’s beneath the surface?), breadth (how do all the moving parts connect?), and height (what’s the big picture?). It changes when you look at it from a different angle. And it only really makes sense when people can see how their part fits into the whole.

    That’s where visualisation comes in.

    When you visualise strategy, you stop relying solely on words and bullet points. Instead, you map, model and frame ideas—so people can explore and understand them together. It’s not about pretty diagrams. It’s about giving shape to what’s otherwise abstract.

    Think about trying to align a senior team. Or communicating a transformation to hundreds of people. Or even just figuring out what kind of change is needed. A well-crafted visual can become a shared thinking space—one that invites questions, highlights tensions, and helps decisions stick.

    Strategy needs to flex and breathe. Visualisation helps it do that.
    It makes the 3D nature of strategy easier to hold, explore and share.

    VisualThinking #StrategyDesign #BusinessStrategy #TransformationLeadership #ChangeManagement #OrganisationalDesign #LeadershipThinking #InnovationStrategy #FutureOfWork

  • Visual Thinking saves a business many £100k’s!!!

    Visual Thinking saves a business many £100k’s!!!

    Visual Thinking saves a business many £100k’s!!!

    Those of you who read my posts or have worked with me know that I’m a firm believer in driving real tangible business benefits from the visual thinking approaches I use. I see visual thinking as a ‘need to have’ rather than a ‘nice to have’. I was therefore extremely pleased to receive the following feedback about the real tangible business benefits that a series of whiteboard animations I’d created for a large aerospace organisation achieved:

    “You saved us many £100k’s with your visual thinking work on Aircraft Assembly Build. You turned what would have been 1000’s of pages of specifications in 6 languages into a series of simple animations.​”
    Mark S
    Supplier Quality Specialist | Aerospace Industry

    Results like these reinforce my belief that visual thinking approaches create real tangible financial benefits for organisations in addition to the well known engagement and communication benefits of helping people see the big picture.

    John Ashton

    Founder of Crackerjack Visual Thinking


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  • Create a SHARED UNDERSTANDING of your business​

    Create a SHARED UNDERSTANDING of your business​

    How rich pictures create a SHARED UNDERSTANDING of your business

    Creating a shared understanding of your business across your people, partners and customers creates opportunities for discussion, cooperation and new ideas that will benefit everyone

    Rich Picture Shared Business Understanding

    The benefit of using a rich picture to create a shared understanding…

    The example image above shows how a single rich picture image can create a shared understanding of your business for your people, partners and customers.

    The example image visualises the following elements to help achieve this understanding:

    • Current business issues.
    • How effective Knowledge Management will resolve these issues.
    • How data will flow around the business.
    • How suppliers will be linked in with the new knowledge management process and data flow.
    • The benefits of the Knowledge Management process for customers.

    This shared understanding of your business results in:

    • Your people understanding how their role fits into the business helps drive it forward.
    • Your partners understand how they link with your business and can support it effectively.
    • Your customers understand your business and the benefits to them of working with you.

    This shared understanding of your business across these key groups of people creates opportunities for discussion, cooperation and new ideas that will benefit everyone.

    Why rich pictures work so well for creating a shared understanding…

    Having a single visual overview of the various elements of your business allows people to see connections and linkages that may otherwise not be apparent. This builds on the brains ability to process visual data extremely effectively and creatively (which is based on the way the brain itself connects information via its neural pathways).

    In addition, the visual impact and engagement a rich picture creates encourages people to want to look at the picture and understand the key messages it’s trying to communicate.

    Find out more…

    If you would like to find out more about how we can help you create a shared understanding of your vision for your business, please contact us by calling us on +44 (0)115 6483381 or using the contact form below.

    You can also find out more about rich pictures on our Strategic Visioning Rich Picture page.

    Our other services for individuals: SEE Your Future™ Visual Goal Setting | Personal Vision Rich Pictures | Visual Coaching

    Our other services for teams and organisations: Visual Meeting Facilitation | Strategic Vision Rich Pictures | Whiteboard Animation | Live Scribing


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  • Business Development using Visual Thinking

    Business Development using Visual Thinking

    Business Development using Visual Thinking

    Earlier today I was asked about business development using visual thinking. As you would expect, I drew a diagram to answer the question!

    I’ve turned my back of a napkin style sketch into the diagram shown below which I hope you find helpful.

    The short answer is that visual thinking tools and techniques can help at all stages of the business development cycle – particularly when they are an embedded part of the process (and not just used as an occasional ‘nice-to-have’ activity).

    I’d be happy to talk more about the links between visual thinking and business development, so feel free to give me a call on +44 (0)115 6483381 or use the contact form below to get in touch.

    All the best,

    John


    Develop your business using Visual Thinking

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    Our other services for individuals: SEE Your Future™ Visual Goal Setting | Personal Vision Rich Pictures | Visual Coaching

    Our other services for teams and organisations: Visual Meeting Facilitation | Strategic Vision Rich Pictures | Whiteboard Animation | Live Scribing

    Contact
    Us

    Please use the form below to contact us or call us on +44 (0)115 6483381 for a FREE consultation to discuss how we can help you.

  • Engage your customers during the sales process with a Rich Picture

    Engage your customers during the sales process with a Rich Picture

    Over the last couple of years, Crackerjack Visual Thinking has been working with clients to support their sales processes by creating bespoke rich pictures showing how their products and services align with their existing and potential customers needs.

    Rich pictures help customers ‘see’ how our clients products and services fit into their customers world (with its complexity, challenges and opportunities) and will help them achieve their aims and objectives. This results in:

    • Customers understanding how my clients products and services will benefit their business.
    • More effective conversations between my clients and their customers due to having a rich picture image to talk through and explore together.
    • Customers appreciating the investment and time my clients have taken in preparing the bespoke rich picture for the sales meeting. It demonstrates my clients commitment to wanting to understand their customers needs on a deeper level.

    Following successful sales outcomes with their customers, the multiple benefits of rich pictures during the sales process have led clients to adapt this visual thinking approach into their sales processes. We look forward to continuing to support them in achieving successful sales over the coming years.

    John Ashton – Crackerjack Visual Thinking

    We’d love to talk about your ideas and see if we can help you visualise them!

    Click on the button below and let’s start a conversation…

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  • A quick infographic showing the practical business benefits of using visual thinking tools in your work

    A quick infographic showing the practical business benefits of using visual thinking tools in your work

    Visual thinking is a term that you may have heard of, but it isn’t always clear what practical business benefit can be derived from using visual thinking approaches in your work.

    To help with this confusion, I’ve put together this quick guide to the Visual Thinking Toolkit that describes how each tool can help you in your business and what the high level result of this approach will be. I hope you find it useful.

    click here To print or download a copy (no email address required!)

    John Ashton – Crackerjack Visual Thinking

    We’d love to talk about your ideas and see if we can help you visualise them!

    Click on the button below and let’s start a conversation…

    CONTACT US
  • THE THREE KEY ACTIVITIES REQUIRED TO SUCCESSFULLY ACHIEVE YOUR VISION ACROSS YOUR ORGANISATION

    THE THREE KEY ACTIVITIES REQUIRED TO SUCCESSFULLY ACHIEVE YOUR VISION ACROSS YOUR ORGANISATION

    Having a Vision and successfully achieving it requires three key activities: Communicating, Enabling and Embedding. In these short videos, I share my thoughts on the importance of having a joined-up approach to these key activities and the 3 Steps to successfully achieving your Vision.

    A joined-up approach is vital to achieving your Vision!

    In this introductory blog episode, I share my thoughts on the importance of having a joined-up approach to these key activities – and what can happen if you don’t!

    Step #1: Develop your Vision

    In this blog episode, I talk about how visualising your organisations Vision can improve communication, understanding and business performance. This is the all important first step to embedding your Vision!

    #2: Develop your People!

    In this blog episode, I talk about how aligning the skills, knowledge and behaviours of your people to your Vision is vital in enabling your Vision to be achieved.

    Step #3: Develop your Organisation

    In this blog episode, I talk about the importance of alining your systems, processes and organisational behaviours with your Vision to deliver a great customer experience and build trust in your organisation.

    COMING SOON – We will shortly be launching our new Achieving Your Vision members area on our website which will provide you with support, resources and guidance to help you successfully implement your Vision across your organisation. Click on the subscribe button below to keep up to date!

    If you would like to discuss how to successfully implement your Vision across your organisation, please call +44 (0)115 6483381 or contact us to discuss your requirements in more detail.

    John Ashton – Crackerjack Visual Thinking

  • Creating your organisations vision for 2022 (now is the time!)

    Creating your organisations vision for 2022 (now is the time!)

    With just under 3 months to go before 2022, have you got a clear idea of your vision for 2022? If not, now is the time to create that vision and begin sharing it with your people!

    For various reasons, many organisations only begin planning for the new year ahead a month or two after it has begun! That’s a couple of months where people may not have the clarity or direction they need to lay the foundations for a successful year ahead.

    Creating a clear vision for 2022 ahead of time allows people to prepare themselves, their teams and their organisations ready for the start of the New Year. Investing time and resource into creating your vision now will pay dividends (metaphorical and literal!) in the coming year.

    To discuss how best to visualise your vision for 2022, please do give us a call on +44 (0)115 6483381 or contact us.

    John

    John Ashton – Founder of Crackerjack Visual Thinking