Size matters – Or Does it?

Size Matters I tell you!

It’s the age old question – Does size matter?  Well my guess is that just like almost any of the key questions in life… it depends. 

Let’s look at some business examples and you can decide:

Size and economic development

When it comes to economic development, it appears that size does matter in the minds of economic developers.  Most economic development agencies  spend the bulk of their time and energy in the recruitment of BIG companies.  It looks really good when you go to justify your existence to the  legislature and you can show that you brought in 1,000 jobs to your state by recruiting someone like Google to your town.  They might just approve your budget for next year.   Yet comparatively little attention is given to saving or helping to start up one small business.  It’s funny really – since as a group, small businesses – in every state –  are the single largest employer group.  Even bigger than the Feds or the state itself.  Take a look at the composition charts at YourEconomy.org to see what I mean.

Size and Innovation

How about Innovation?  So often we hear that the greatest innovations come from small companies since the big ones are too mired down in red tape and inertia to create the new and novel.  Maybe not.  This is the list of  the top companies by patent awards.  Click on the links for each of the companies listed below to browse their innovations.  IBM, Samsung, Canon, Microsoft, Intel , Matsushita, Toshiba ,Fujitsu, Hewlett-Packard, Hitachi, Micron, Seiko Epson, General Electric, Fujifilm, Infineon Technologies, LG, Texas Instruments, Honda (Source:  IP.com)

But patents are only one measure of innovation and perhaps one that is understated.  There are many inventions that never make it through the patent process. It is just too time consuming and expensive for many small companies, not to mention that actually enforcing a patent claim can cost thousands if not millions of dollars.  As one small business person told me last week: “Big Company X is violating our patent.  We called to inform them of it and requested further discussion as to either stopping or paying us a royalty – there response was – Sue me.  We could never afford to do that and they knew it.” 

Innovations are inventions that actually make a difference in the marketplace. Again, size has it’s advantages since bringing a product to market takes LOTS of capital (money) to cast a wide net.  Yes there are firms that started small and then grew rapidly through innovation and acceptance.  But they are the ones that beat odds that would put a Las Vegas casino consistently in the money. 

How about innovation compared to country size?  Big countries with lots of universities and leading economies have the advantage.  Right?  Maybe, Maybe not.  If we measure innovation by the number of patents per capita, there are some very interesting results,  just take a look. Some of the smallest countries and with equally small economies, top the list.  The economic big guns, the Japan, the UK,  United States, Canada, China, rank as #19, #38, #40, #41, and #60 respectively. 

So when it comes to innovation, BIG has the advantage of resources but perhaps small has the advantage of greater personal motivation and reward for the innovator.

Size and Business Agility

Here small has the advantage according to most business books.  Small companies are nimble, and can adjust their plans much more quickly than their behemoth brethren.  So on the surface it’s advantage to the Smalls.  Yet, we often forget that it takes more than cutting through bureaucracy to create agility – it takes the resources to bank roll changes in direction.  Here the advantage is almost always to the bigger firms whose access to capital on a short term basis provides many more avenues to resources.  The smaller company may be able to make a decision faster – but the bigger one can get it funded and in action faster.  So in this case – again, it depends.  

So with all that said – Does size matter – it almost always depends.  But one way or another each type of organization has its advantages and disadvantages.  So perhaps the answer comes down to what Mark Twain once said about what really matters.

“It’s not the size of the dog in the fight, it’s the size of the fight in the dog.”

Thanks for stopping by. Stay tuned…

Joan Koerber-Walker

Have you ever failed?

Source - MS Clip Art - Fotolia

  It was bound to happen.  If you stand up in front of people enough times talking about topics like innovation, leadership, and success, sooner or later someone in the audience is going to drop the   F-Word. 

NO! Not that one!  The other four letter F-Word.  “FAIL”

Interestingly I had been speaking professionally for almost 10 years before I got the question.  A young woman in the audience raised her hand, and called out her question…

“It’s great to hear stories about how to succeed…but have you ever FAILED?”

And the answer was a resounding – Oh, Yeah!

 

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0JrsV_O9jc]

But the real questions are:  How can we learn from this?  How do we fix it? Where do we go from here? And occasionally – Is it time to call it and move on?  

Unless you perpetually play it safe, you will eventually come to that day in a job, a project, or other personal or professional  relationship where the F-word comes into play.  I remember an occasion when I was in the running for a job that I really wanted.   When I found out that I did not get it, I asked the interviewer, someone I knew pretty well, if I could get some feed back and pointers on what I could have done better in the interview.  His reply was a real eye opener:

“You did not do anything wrong.  You just lacked some key experience.”

I was puzzled.  I had studied that job description. My background and experience met every single point of the position criteria.   When I asked what I was missing – his answer floored me. 

“In the interview, we asked you to tell us about a situation where you failed.  You could not think of one and to my knowledge you never really have had to deal with a significant failure.  That’s a skill you have yet to develop.”

He was right, I hadn’t.  At the age of 28, I had lived a charmed life, personally and professionally, and had not been a position where I was responsible for managing through a true failure. Sure there were times when things did not work out as planned and I had to adjust or be flexible – but that F-Word was not in my vocabulary.   It was not until later, when I had higher levels of responsibility and was more involved in managing risk that I got that experience.  Every leader does.  It comes with the territory.  You and your team don’t succeed EVERY time.  Occasionally you fail.  And a key responsibility for any leader is to know how to ask the questions, define the strategy, and execute on the plan that takes the team over or around the hurdle created by a “failure”.

To this day, my resume still does not have bullet points under my qualifications that lists out my ‘failures’ significant or otherwise. But at this point in my life – I certainly know how to answer the question when it is raised.

Thanks for stopping by.  Stay tuned…

Joan Koerber-Walker

 

Success Takes A Team

The older I get the more I recognize that success takes a team. Over the last few weeks I have seen how teamwork and leadership go hand in hand in multiple ways.

As a hockey mom, I have seen my share of team work, solid passes, and game winning goals.  I’ve also seen teams falter when one superstar tries to do it all alone.  The reality is, that in the end, strong TEAMS win.

The 2008 Phoenix Polar Bears - USA Hockey Junior A Bronze Medialists

“The only way we win is as a team.” ~  Harry Mahood, Coach of the Phoenix Polar Bears – the only Junior team in USA Hockey history to play in the National Championship Tournament NINE years straight. (Quite a feat for an Ice Hockey team from the desert!)

In May, CorePurpose published a great new book by Amilya Antonetti titled The Recipe: A fable for leaders and teams.  It is not our usual type of book or even our normal market – but the message was so important and timely in the current economic environment that I made the decision as publisher to give it a try – and I called my team together for help.  Everyone pitched in to bring the book to market faster than any other title we had ever published.  Graphics designers, editors, printers, our marketing team, our distributor (BookMasters), and our author worked around the clock to put together a little book with a BIG message.  And the end result was something we could all be very proud of.  Over 100 friends came out as we honored three great leaders: Monica Crowley (Journalism), Ken Colburn (Entrepreneurship), Lynn Tilton (Business) at a private media event sponsored by Innovators Warehouse, Shwaag,  and Barrington Printing. When we officially launched the following day at the Barnes and Noble at Lincoln Triangle in the heart of Manhattan, it was to a full house and we sold out every copy they had on hand!  (It did not hurt that we had an awesome team of leaders on our panel; at Barnes and Noble including Kevin Daum, Gloria Feldt, and Mike Micholwicz!)

Wonderful friends from across the country pitched in and continue to help  spread the word.  Kevin Daum, author of the hot new book ROAR made introductions to reviewers and friends in Manhattan, Kathy Partak flew out from California to help coordinate the media and save my sanity by coordinating a million details,  Kevin Desoto began leading our social  media strategy and even made the trek from Warwick, RI  to NYC to cover the launch events live.  (To see how teamwork can lead to freedom – watch Kevin’s Video about Lisa Ling and Euna Lee on his website – Amazing!) Reprinted from The Recipe: A fable for leaders and teams, used with permission

Would you rather have a team of champions OR a championship team? ~Amilya Antonetti

The great thing about teamwork is that it is an ongoing process.  Another team that pitched in to help were our friends Eric Keosky-Smith and Michael Edwards founders of Shwaag.   To help bring attention to the NYC launch, they gave away an iPad with The Recipe on it in May and they are doing it again this week as we launch the West Coast media tour.  (To get your chance to get “shwaag’d” go to www.Shwaag.com and use invite code AMA2525.)

I wanted to give back and I asked 24 of my good friends to help me. ~ John Assaraf

Amilya’s friend John Assaraf one of the featured experts in the  blockbuster movie and book The Secret and the New York Times best selling author of  The Answer and Having It All was one of our first reviewers for The Recipe.  (A quote from his review is on the book’s cover.) John’s newest project is taking team work to a whole new level.  Together with 23 of his personal friends, he put together as free teleseminar series where each expert will share their secrets of success – twice a week for 12 weeks –  beginning June 15th. John named the program Success Manifestors since that is what each of these experts have demonstrated and will share.   It’s just one more example of what happens when you ask champions to come together as a team.  Everyone wins! (To take advantage of this opportunity, you need to register. For more information, click here.)

Like I shared in the beginning – success takes a team.

The great thing is… teammates are all around you.  You just need to ask for help occasionally, look for strong players, and as my kids will tell you – pass the puck!

Thanks for stopping by.  Stay tuned…

Joan Koerber-Walker

Business and the Butterfly

monarch-butterfly-on-flowers What’s the deal with a video about butterflies on a business blog?  Simply said, the butterfly is is thing of beauty and so are the right people in a great business.  It emerges from its cocoon, moves from place to place, does it’s duty, and fosters growth in the most inspiring of ways.  The same can be said when you have the right people in the right roles.

At least that’s what came to mind this morning as I watched this video from National Geographic about the simple butterfly.

We all need more butterflies in our businesses and in our lives.  Think of it like this:

The Butterfly is a creature that is committed to change.

Few creatures provide a better analogy for change than the butterfly as they move from stage to stage.  (You can see a great time lapse series here)   People also go through many stages.  It takes time for them to develop from an early stage to into voraciously absorbing the resources and knowledge around them.  Then its time to rest, use what they have consumed, and then emerge into something – or someone – pretty special.  It is that point that they spread their wings and fly. 

The  Butterfly moves from place to place enabling growth.

As a well developed butterfly spreads its wings, it moves from flower to flower, taking precious pollen with it.  This brings new growth, fresh blooms, and new colors to the world.  As a well developed person spreads their wings, they bring new businesses, new leadership, new opportunities, and new innovations. 

Butterflies like bees have a job to do. But Butterflies don’t sting.

Now you might say that we do not need the butterfly since we have the bee.  It too moves from flower to flower spreading growth.  The BIG difference is that butterflies never sting!  On the people side, I bet you’ve met both butterflies and bees.  The butterfly gets the job done with elegance and finesse.  The bee is awfully busy in getting the job done, but don’t cross it or it just might make you sorry.  That’s why we tend to squash bees and treasure butterflies.

Butterflies are a wonder to watch

A fully developed butterfly is a wonder to watch.  We can learn so much from them.  Butterflies, like people, must stretch their wings and explore new boundaries.  NASA even took butterflies with them into space in 2009.  The same is true of human butterflies.  If you give them time to develop, the resources they need to grow, and let them spread their wings, they will help your business garden grow and it’s a joy to watch them do it.

Thanks for stopping by.  Stay Tuned…

Joan Koerber-Walker

Don’t let great opportunities pass you by

Gear-Up-for-Opportunity-lgAs business owners, we are always on the look out for opportunities.  But, too often, great opportunities pass us by because we are not ready for them.  Capturing a great opportunity and making the most of it takes a combination of three things – Awareness – Access – and Ability.  Like cogs in a machine, each plays a critical role in driving action forward.  Otherwise, as you are standing still, opportunities may pass you by.

AWARENESS

There is a reason AWARENESS forms the biggest cog in the opportunity process.  The world is  full of opportunities, but knowing which is the right one for you and your business requires a continual scanning of the marketplace.  Some opportunities are great for someone, but not necessarily great for you. Others may be hidden and require a bit of polishing  up before they are ready to be considered. But if you are not continually searching, scanning your markets, and aware of the changing trends, you have not got a chance.  Before you know it the opportunity has passed and you only see it when someone else takes advantage of it.

ACCESSS

As you become aware of new or current opportunities, the gear turns and triggers a need for ACCESS.  To capture the opportunity’s potential, the teeth bite in turning the next gear.  In the case of opportunity access, think of the teeth as the six key assets you will need to take advantage of the opportunity. In most cases these are:

  1. The right talent to make things happen
  2. The right resources to build up from
  3. The right market to serve
  4. The right partners to deliver through
  5. The right processes to keep things rolling
  6. The right funding and business partners to grease the wheels

Each of these assets are critical. If one is missing the wheels stop turning and the opportunity engine skips and stutters.

ABILITY

The final gear is that of your ABILITY to execute.  I spend a lot of my day speaking with business owners and other leaders.  Most, when faced with a challenge, can lay out their goals, their mission and their plans.  But when the gears jam up it is almost always due to a lack of execution.  One missed step or flaw can make the difference between success in making the most of an opportunity or the failure to do so.  When one missing critical process brings things to a grinding halt and the opportunity engine seizes up we tend to want to force it.  Yet as leaders, our job is not to take a crow bar to the the gears (that almost always makes matters worse) but to make adjustments or shift alignment so that things start running smoothly again.  For it is only when we are moving forward that we can keep abreast of our opportunities and capture them.

So don’t let your great opportunity pass you by.  Focus on the three A’s – Awareness, Access, and Ability.  When you do, you just might find that opportunity will not pass you by…instead it will come knocking at your door.

Thanks for stopping by.  Stay tuned…

Joan Koerber-Walker

Got a Problem? Get Creative!

As entrepreneurs, business owners, employees, or just as people, we all face challenges.  And often those challenges involve the BIG M – money.  When it comes to growth, you need resources.  Money for marketing, for inventories, for systems, and oh yeah, groceries.Continue reading

Growing a business is serious stuff…Right?

An article at Mashable.com got me thinking this morning.   Growing a business is serious stuff.  But occasionally a little humor, a novelty, or even a contest or prize can help you business gain the attention of your target market and grow that much faster.

After all it’s about getting your customers and your potential customers talking about you and eventually actually buying from you. 

Whether your business is B2B (business to business) or B2C (business to consumer) a dash of creativity and a bit of buzz can help move you up the growth curve.

A great way to see a selection of creative marketing ideas is to spend a little time on YouTube … so that’s just what I did.  And here is what I found…

“If you want to market something – create a social object.”

 

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XQAjSAMqAs&hl=en_US&fs=1&]

(You can find more from InfernoPR  at their YouTube Channel._

What is a social object?  Well let’s look…

Stan Schroder of Mashable included a great one from Twitter’s early days featuring Biz Stone.

 

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGnMThF_2Lo&hl=en_US&fs=1&]

 

A favorite of my friend Lon Safko, of The Social Media Bible fame.  The Will it Blend series has attracted millions to their site and sent LOTS of blenders out to customers.

 

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yx4QgK_xEfE&hl=en_US&fs=1&]

 

And as a Mom, my personal favorite, Evian’s Roller Babies.

 

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQcVllWpwGs&hl=en_US&fs=1&]

 

Not everyone hits with millions of views on YouTube – but that’s OK.

There are lots of other ways to draw attention to your product by capturing the customers imagination and attention.  Here are some more…

  • Todd Davis of LifeLock is so confident of his company’s service that he posts his Social Security number all over the place – he said it on Oprah, put it on billboards, and pasted it on the back of a bus and drove around the U.S.
  • Shwaag founders Eric Keosky-Smith and Michael Edwards are building a business around Giving Away really cool stuff.  Audiences love it and so do the companies whose products they promote.

So maybe it’s time to try something new…

You never know where it might take you…or your business.

Thanks for stopping by.  Stay Tuned…

Joan Koerber-Walker