Plan to Breakthrough

In looking at the evolution of the most successful global companies and brands, they are predominately companies that have revolutionised their industries and worked outside environmental boundaries and known competitive conditions. They have introduced game-changing technologies, ideas and ways of working that have infiltrated every aspect of our lives. It’s the classic guys and girls in the garage modus operandi. Small businesses that have played like big businesses have ultimately become big businesses.

The tools and processes for determining corporate strategy in the 80s and 90s, which were championed by management gurus like Drucker and Porter, are still useful for gaining perspective and understanding the world in which we compete. However, as stand-alone strategic tools, they are found wanting in a modern competitive business environment.

Modern strategic thinking, as highlighted by the most successful brands in the world, should, in theory, play into the hands of agile, highly responsive and creative entrepreneurs.

The cruel paradox is that the traits that help our wonderful entrepreneurs achieve lift-off and growth will often contribute to their downfall as demand outstrips supply and companies find themselves at capacity. Unless you can move past the porpoising rung of the entrepreneurial ladder, you may find yourself stuck in a time warp where chaos and overwhelm abound.

It can be difficult to translate the strategic lessons, theories, initiatives and concepts applicable to an S&P 500 company to the less well-resourced entrepreneurial business striving towards a scalable business model. Having said that, I would argue that effective and practical strategic planning is even more critical in your business, given that your business has limited economies of scale compared with industry behemoths and limited access to scarce resources. It is critical that you have access to practical, action-based strategic planning tools that set future direction and guide decision-making.

It is through deliberately deciding to do things differently in an SME environment of limited resources that you will be able to achieve a breakthrough.

How are you planning to breakthrough and build your business by design?