The importance of focus and alignment when scaling a business

The importance of focus and alignment when scaling a business

Last time I counted, I had been part of 21 businesses, either as a founding team member or as an advisor. Some were great successes, most were not. I began reflecting on the reasons for the failures. It is a complex topic, and there is no single reason, but a common trait among most businesses I have seen fail is a lack of focus. Trying to do too much and getting distracted by projects or tasks that will not improve the bottom line, or not significantly.

For example, I joined a business many years ago that had 15 top-level KPIs. They were difficult to understand, the actual impact on the business wasn’t clear, and a large number were more vanity metrics than actual business achievements.

This situation led to a disconnect within the C-level team, with each member pulling in different directions.

The CEO was convinced that he had a very clear vision for the business - and maybe he did - but he was unable to articulate it in a way the team understood. When asked about the business goals, everyone gave a different answer, and their responses were often long and confusing.

The One vs. the Many

It might be tempting to think that, because you have many products targeting many markets, you have a greater chance of success. Or because you do many things, you must be productive. But I don’t believe that’s the case.

I always felt focus was critical, but it was only when working with a great colleague and friend of mine, Nicolas Thevenet, that I truly realised why. 

While discussing the topic with Nicolas, he asked me to consider watering my garden with a hose. I could either open the hose wide and water a wide spread in front of me, but it would only go about a meter deep. Or I could be very targeted and have all the ‘power’ of the water focused very tightly, and I would reach 10x that distance.

That discussion will remain with me forever and has convinced me that focus is key, especially for a small team. Choose a couple of goals very carefully, communicate them clearly, and have everyone in the business working 80%-90% of their time on achieving them. Review them regularly and adapt where needed.

The results that focus brings

Returning to the business mentioned above, we helped them clarify their focus and refine their goals. After 3 months working with us, the CEO accepted the need for change. We helped him and the management team focus on 3 short-term goals only, aligning with the long-term vision but short-term enough to be comprehensible. All goals directly contributed to the bottom line. We aligned every discussion and decision to those 3 goals. The business saw its momentum increase and achieved significant milestones within the following 12 months.

If you want to discuss this in more detail and understand what it means for your business right now, click here to contact us.