22 COVER VERNE HARNISH STORY
SPRING 2018
" Articulating a clear and differentiated strategy , supported by a strong core culture that can deliver on the brand ’ s promises , is the key for any company wanting to scale up ."
STRATEGY
Can you state your firm ’ s strategy simply — and is it driving sustainable growth in revenue and gross margins ?
Pizza delivered , in 30 minutes or less , or it ’ s free . That simply-stated strategy made Tom Monaghan , founder of Domino ’ s Pizza , a billionaire . ( He is now in the process of giving it all away ). A half-century later , Domino ’ s adjusted its strategy to focus more on quality and slowed service slightly – and growth returned , with the stock tripling in price in just 36 months since the change .
Articulating a clear and differentiated strategy , supported by a strong core culture that can deliver on the brand ’ s promises , is the key for any company wanting to scale up .
So how do you know when you have an industry-dominating , competitorcrushing strategy ? Sustainable topline revenue growth and increasing gross margin dollars ( the true topline for many firms ) are the two key financial indicators . Customers beating a path to your door and dragging along everyone they know is another ! If you don ’ t have a killer strategy , your company will face frustration as it executes its strategy the next few years , as the market commoditizes your products and services .
Deep strategy work is time consuming , as the marketplace constantly changes . To paraphrase the great Prussian General Carl von Clausewitz , strategy is only as good as your next encounter with the enemy ( or decision of your competitor ). Therefore , it ’ s critical that the senior leadership team work on it each week , free from day-to-day firefighting . The tools and routines in the Scaling Up system for Execution will set you free to do this .
Top strategists are often compared to grandmaster chess players . However , there is a misconception that these players are thinking more moves ahead of mere masters or novices . They are not . Their advantage is in having 10 times the NEXT moves in their repertoire , depending on the latest gambit of their opponent . Therefore , get help from mentors , advisors and consultants who have developed strategies for hundreds of companies — they ’ ll more “ next moves ” in their bag of tricks .
Tip : In setting strategy , we recommend that you follow the definition from the great business strategist Gary Hamel . You don ’ t have a real strategy if it doesn ’ t pass two tests : First , what you ’ re planning to do really matters enough to customers ; and second , it