Take your business from
Good to Great
Ever wondered why some companies
make the leap and others don’t? Well Jim Collins, author of Good
to Great answers that question in his 2001 published
novel, which describes why certain companies make the transition from
being average to great. This greatness, according to Collins, is defined
according to the company’s financial performance over a sustained
period of time. The better it fares than other companies determines
where on the scale between average to great it ranks.
By analysing companies that managed
to become great, Collins determined seven characteristics that could
help you change your company into the next Abbott Laboratories and Circuit
City. The first of the seven is humility. While humble is often interpreted
to be pacifist, such leaders can be driven – and again, humility is
encouraged.
Knowing where you want your company
to go is important, but not as much as knowing who to go there with.
Choose the right people before you being the journey and make sure these
people are in the right positions.
No book of success would be legitimate
without the addressing the expectation of failure. After interviewing
Vice Admiral James Stockdale of the US Navy, Collins came up with his
Stockdale Paradox. The admiral noted that “you must never confuse
the faith that you’ll will in the end…. with the discipline to confront
the most brutal facts of your current reality.” The paradox is the
approach you must take – to have faith that you’ll be successful
while admitting the current problems.
Make sure your interests to make
money, skills and passions overlap. The hedgehog concept is key to driving
your business forward. Which emphasises the next point, namely to create
a culture of discipline.
Use technology to accelerate your
growth. This will give impetus to your overlapping circles, while your
company compounds smaller initiatives that act on each other and grow.
