Growing companies must act quickly when an opportunity presents itself. Acting quickly, however, should not put the business at unnecessary risk. Our blogs on “Accelerating Growth and Impact” provide valuable insights for growing mid-sized and smaller companies.
Many people equate accelerating the pace of business to increased risk. However, this is not the case if done properly. In reality, being slow can be riskier than accelerating growth and impact.
A slow-moving business can be at risk in a variety of ways:
A market opportunity exists for a limited time, and you miss that window.
A competitor moves more quickly and entrenches itself in a dominant position.
Your company runs out of money before it reaches consistent profitability.
Investors become disenchanted and lose interest in supporting the Company further.
Leadership energy flags as work becomes a slog.
Critical team members move to companies with a more dynamic environment.
However, there are also risks to accelerating a business too quickly. These risks generally involve moving quicker than your business is set up to handle. Some ways of moving too quickly include:
Making fast decisions with inadequate information.
Pressuring team members to work more quickly without first updating processes and tools, or providing additional training.
Hiring a new employee without properly vetting them and determining their fit with the team.
Investing in a new product line without a clear plan or a pilot project.
Making important decisions without involving key stakeholders or considering dissenting opinions.
Skipping quality control steps because it generally worked out previously.
Accelerate your business in a way that decreases the risks of a slow-moving business, but without spinning out of control. Follow the 5 Keys to Accelerating Growth and Impact:
Create focus to eliminate unnecessary work.
Prepare early for decisions and work that are expected in the near future.
Don’t spend too much time on non-critical activities where 80% is good enough.
Improve continuously, thereby consistently increasing the pace of work.
Delegate wisely inside your organization, and to suppliers and consultants on the outside.
Find out about our workshop on Accelerating Growth and Impact
Contact Zbig Skiba at zskiba@skiba-associates.com