The other day I was talking with a friend who had taken a new job with a small firm. He told me that the owners wanted to grow the company from $ 5 Million to $20 Million by 2020. My first thought as a strategic consultant was how many times have I heard, “ We are going to double/triple in size by “xx” timeframe, and we are going to do it by “X” percent organic growth and “Y” percent acquisition.”
This conversation with my friend got me to thinking about how many leaders get together with their leadership team and come up with a similar aspirational goal without asking and answering the next question in their planning discussion. The next question has to be – Is our organization capable of meeting that aspiration. The most effective way to answer that question is to look at whether the people, processes and procedures are capable of growing that much, that fast.
People
Do we have the right people with the right skills in the right positions to take on that kind of growth? Do we have leaders who can operate as a real team willing to work and sacrifice to achieve the goal? Doubling/tripling or quadrupling in size can’t just be the head of sales responsibility. Teamwork is a choice and a strategic one at that!
How and when do we add to the leadership team? When it comes to discussions and decision-making are we a team that uses advocacy or inquiry. This question is important especially when you decide to grow by acquisition and you bring on new members of the leadership team. Understand your company and team culture and how it will or will not change as you grow in size.
Processes
What is your process for growth? You have to have a disciplined approach for growth and not make an arbitrary leap without direction or a plan. Do you have clear performance markers, such as demanding “x” percent revenue growth or “y” percent profit every year regardless of outside conditions? Do you have self-imposed constraints, so that you will not outgrow your ability to successfully manage your growth in good times? Is the timeframe long enough that you can achieve this level of growth with consistency?
Procedures
How will our procedures or guiding operating principles have to change as we grow? What changes to our methodology or functions would have to change because of our growth plan? Many companies falter because they fail to stick to their principles and methods. They think because they want to grow they have to be flexible with their procedures or guiding operating principles. Companies must evolve their procedures, changing select components while staying true to their practices.
As a leader of the organization, proportion your aspirations to your organization’s capability.
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