The desire for growth is built into our DNA. Today, growth is not just expected but demanded from every company. Somewhere along the way, the definition of business growth skewed and became synonymous with an increase in size, number, value or strength. We have seen too many examples of bad growth driven by short-term focus on the wrong measures of performance. Classic examples are the dot-com bubble burst, Enron, implications of population growth on our natural resources, and even the growing pains felt by firms, including Google.

I found Robert M. Tomasko’s definition of growth refreshing: moving beyond your self-imposed boundaries and constraints to achieve your full potential and deliver unique value (Bigger Isn’t Always Better: The New Mindset for Real Business Growth). As he outlines, the growth process, as with purposeful change management, involves:

1. putting aside old ways of perceiving the situation;
2. leading change, first within yourself and then within the organization, towards this new perspective;
3. building capabilities to support this new perspective;
4. reorienting and readjusting your value delivery chain and ecosystem to align with this new perspective;

I previously wrote about creativity, invention and knowledge and how they are the foundation for innovation. Here, innovation, implementation of a new idea for the purpose of creating value, is the fuel for growth. And, innovation management is your control system. Combined, they will help achieve sustainable growth for your firm. So, here are the necessary conditions for sustainable growth.

• Offer clear value and benefit to the company, customers, suppliers, industry and the market through this change or new perspective. It is ultimately about people: it is a change of behavior, processes, how people work and produce work. If there is no clear and compelling benefit, it won’t stick. So build close linkages with your workforce, lead users, customers and suppliers. Strive to go beyond relationship building to achieve an emotional connection with them. As Guy Kawasaki stated, make evangelists, not sales (Rules For Revolutionaries: The Capitalist Manifesto for Creating and Marketing New Products and Services).
• Recognize that growth is not a destination, but a path and on-going process. It requires developing the needed capabilities and competencies in awareness, adaptability, and building a learning organization. It requires much mindfulness, being aware of the present moment to exploit opportunities so as to keep the bigger picture and vision in mind. At the same time, it requires effective risk management: understanding/recognizing possible uncertainties and unexpectedness’, adjusting and adapting as needed. It is about impermanence, understanding that everything changes and is in flux, and learning to let go and adapt.
• Be resilient. You’ll have plenty of failures, nay-sayers and set backs. So, build your capacity for change and dealing with change, even under negative and unexpected circumstances. I once heard that forgiveness is hoping for a better past. So, don’t dwell in your past failures. Failure is inevitable and it is part of your learning process. The key to success is to fail early, learn from it and move on with greater understanding. Just remember Guy’s coin phrase: churn, baby churn.
• Utilize both sides of your brain: don’t just be creative but also be analytical to successfully exploit the opportunity. Think out of the box, look for connections even seemingly unrelated, be open to and seek new experiences and ideas, be observative and keenly inquisitive. Know that the future is unwritten and full of opportunities. Be positive, hopeful and optimistic, regardless of the current situation. But, while dreaming big, start small, simple and with focus. Iteratively build on your previous successes, and create your future one step at a time.
• Build a culture of trust, commitment, accountability and focus on results. Commitment is key, and it should not be confused with consensus, as it is about having the courage and wisdom to move forward even when not everyone agrees. Accountability is about the personal ownership for delivering the agreed upon performance to the company and to the team. Focus on results is recognizing what really matters and what ultimately delivers value.
• Achieve the right balance between:
  • long-term and short-term;
  • leading and managing;
  • idea-generating and doing;
  • being supportive and driving the needed change, however uncomfortable;
  • providing resources/funding and placing constraints, even if they are artificial;

So, instead of pursuing the popular definition of growth, contemplate your unique value and how to further it. Whether it maybe building the next great product/service, or how you go about developing and delivering it. Whatever it is, keep the focus on achieving sustainable growth.

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