1 JULY 2021
BUSINESS CAPABILITY WORKSHOP
Rob Morris, certified ‘Scaling Up’ coach and director of RGM Consulting
There are approximately half a million businesses in New Zealand. Of these, only 2.7 per cent have revenue greater than $5 million, and only 0.2 per cent have greater than $50 million. Therefore, the problem, says Rob Morris, is that we don’t have enough companies scaling up.
Having worked with both large corporates and small to medium-sized businesses, Rob recognises that it can be hard to adapt, solve and navigate the path to scaling up, especially avoiding the “valleys of death”. It can feel like trying to drink from a fire hydrant. However, he advises that the critical decisions to get right can be broken down into four categories:
- People
- Strategy
- Execution
- Cash
These need to be working together cohesively. After all, as Rob pointed out: “Strategy without execution is just wishful thinking.” A quick show of hands demonstrated that attendees were there for reasons across all four categories.
The Scaling Up toolbox follows a logical process, asking straightforward but increasingly challenging questions in each section. These would start broadly with:
If you were starting from scratch and could re-hire every member of your team, would you?
Can everyone in your organisation sum up your business strategy in one or two sentences? Would everyone’s sentences be similar?
Does everyone understand their and the business’ KPIs? Is there a culture of accountability?
Is internal cashflow consistent and sufficient?
Rob also introduced various thought-provoking principles, including “the hedgehog concept”, based on the ancient Greek parable of the fox and the hedgehog, stating that companies often function more successfully when their leaders are hedgehogs.
Thanks to the useful workbooks, participants were able to get stuck in and think about their own businesses. Working collaboratively with Rob and each other, they began to identify potential gaps or areas of overwhelm, core competencies (and potential threats from competitors), and their BHAG™ (big hairy audacious goal) for the next 10+ years.
There was lively discussion at every table, as participants shared ideas and raised common issues. It was clear that everyone appreciated the insights provided by Rob and the opportunity to start considering how to put these into practice.
Click here to see the event’s photos.
