Startups are often associated with disruptive technologies, new ideas, and services that are already beyond the scope of many. But poor execution can put an end to the best idea and investor’s money. And probably, you may never know how great the idea was!

Business must grow constantly

The only business condition that can be considered normal is growth. Why? Because only growth is in the interests of all key stakeholders: owners, investors, managers, customers, partners, and employees. Only growth ensures the stability of the company and attracts talented employees to the team. And in this case, we mean not just uncontrolled growth in sales and the organization itself, but namely “harmonious” managed growth. One that will help to achieve the desired scenario of the future, and will not plant a “time bomb” that could one day destroy the organization.

The size and popularity of a company is not a guarantee of its success and stability. What can we say about startups, small and medium-sized businesses, the average life cycle of which is not at all as long as it might seem? And this seems to be much easier for them to adapt to radical changes in the market.

Business must grow rapidly

If a company does not grow and develop rapidly, then it simply will not keep pace with the changes in the market and those who are “ahead of the curve”. If a business does not grow, then most likely it is already dying. It just happens so far unnoticed. Here are examples well known to most.

• Car sharing companies and taxi services such as Uber, or Gett, have shaken the established system of taxi companies and private taxi drivers, redistributing power and cash flows in their favor.
• Google G Suite for email and other cloud applications has changed the way many businesses use office software, email servers, IT infrastructure, and thus the cost structure.
• Shazam and Apple Music made it possible to search, collect and buy music in a way no one had used before.

Any local restaurant or store will inevitably give up most of its customers and income to network projects, where a whole “pipeline of changes” and economies of scale operate, if it does not change, does not develop its range, does not improve sales, does not work on positioning and differentiation. At some point in time, the cost of such changes for one point may become unreasonably high and it will be necessary to decide to close it or scale it to the network.

Remember:

The higher a company has risen, the faster it must change in order to maintain market power and set the rules of the game. But few people attach importance to this. In our practice, many companies, possessing the necessary resources, themselves limit the possibility of growth due to incorrect planning and forecasting, the lack of clear goals, a calculated growth trajectory, and a well-thought-out desired scenario for the future.

Working with startups, companies of various sizes and global corporations shows that the future of a company directly depends on the decisions, actions, or inaction of managers and employees in the present, as well as on the scale and flexibility of their thinking. The main challenge when working to improve the speed and quality of decisions made is the ability to identify the real root problem that needs to be solved.