Reveal™ Services

My name is Chris Zaugg, Managing Director of the OPIN Consulting Group. I recently  had the privilege of having a “hot pit pass” to the Brickyard 400…one of the premier races in NASCAR.  This pass gave me the privilege of going anywhere I wanted on the race track.  I was actually standing in the winner’s pit when he won the race!  Watching his pit crew go crazy was pretty cool.

Now, back in the early days of NASCAR, the drivers would just buy a car, soup it up and race on the beaches on the eastern seaboard.  As the sport gained popularity, however, these would-be entrepreneurs began to see an opportunity to make some cash….motor speedways were built, and the sport took off.

As time went on, the drivers and their support crews realized their cars were really only required to do two things:

Go fast, and turn left.  

Smart teams began building cars with technology that optimized going fast, and turning left.  Fast forward to my experience at the Brickyard.

The race was fine, but what I REALLY enjoyed was the chance to get “up close and personal” with the cars.  They may have looked like cars, but the were really fast-left machines!  The roof had a severe slope from front left to back right.  The car had a gentle reverse “C” shape to mimic the left turns the car would make.  The driver’s side front tire, when not under power, sat at an awkward angle to the pavement.  The headlights were actually decals.  This was NOT a car you’d see on the street!

Now, imagine that the road turns right, as it does on some of NASCAR’s road courses.  Cars would be crashing into walls at an alarming rate, and though it might be entertaining, it would also be dangerous, inefficient and expensive.  Imagine the engineers went back to the shop and said, “We need a better left-turn car so it doesn’t crash on these right turns!”  Is that really what they need?

No.  They don’t need a better version of their old car, they need a new car!

In business, many of us have perfected the left turn.  We know how to run our businesses in the world of paper, faxes, filing cabinets, and phones, and as long as the road goes left, we’re okay, but then we get a right turn and we end up crashing…a lot.  We have multiple core systems that don’t talk to each other, siloed business processes, and document repositories that store information we need but can never find.  Usually, when we crash, we think perfecting our current method will fix the problem.  But if the problem is external….like changes in technology, business practices, compliance practices or even the culture, then no amount of perfecting our current method will work to solve the problem. We simply need a different car.

At OPIN, it’s our sole purpose to help you navigate through this mess….freeing your staff to be more efficient and effective, enjoying their work and bringing value to your company.  We’re not magic, but with our hard work and determination, and your blessing, we believe we can help you operate on all kinds of tracks, in all types of weather.

Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines!