Sponsored tables for 8 are available for the Leadership series
Currently booking tables of 8 for the March 27th Luncheon
Alpha Board is an information site for growing companies
Sponsored tables for 8 are available for the Leadership series
Currently booking tables of 8 for the March 27th Luncheon
So what are Gazelle Tracks™ and what are “Gazelles.” Before we answer that, let’s discuss a few pertinent questions.
Where to we grow from here? Who’s growing who, and how? Who’s touting who, and why? Who will be driving growth over the next two to five years. And more importantly how and while.
We’re looking into the market sectors that provide the greatest growth potential within each of more than a dozen cities. For starters, we’ve profiled, in some level of detail, a couple major metros that we’re intimately familiar. In most cases, there are at least six to eight market sectors that are major growth drivers. In addition, there are cultural, governance, demographic, educational, and locational trends that help determine the rate of growth within a particular city or region. In addition, these issues may also help to shape what industries represent the strongest growth potential.
But now for Gazelles Tracks™. Companies that grow consistently at a rate of 50 percent or greater annually are referred to by some as “cheetahs.” Companies that grow consistently at a rate of 20 percent or better annually are considered to be “gazelles.”
So what makes a gazelle a gazelle? The answers may surprise you. First, since we’re also discussing “Growing up KC” in the Alpha Board discussions, and we’re also at least initially focused on Midwest based companies and markets it’s helpful to know that fast growth, new and high tech, are not always necessarily correlated.
It’s the belief of many that the new companies, the start-ups, high tech companies, and coastal companies are the ones that are driving growth. While there is an element of truth in some of this, the realities of gazelles might surprise you.
First, a typical way to evaluate regions of the country on the occurrence of high growth companies, is based on the “percentage” of companies in the region that are in the category of high growth, or gazelles. Three percent or greater (of all companies falling into the high growth category) is a large, and quite impressive number. Midwest markets are NOT voids for gazelle performance.
According to a major study by the Small Business Administration, Johnson County, Kansas, Jackson County, Missouri and St. Louis County, Missouri all scored well on the measure of the percentage of companies in the region that qualified as gazelles. The reason why is just as interesting.
What are some relevant conclusions of the analysis?
“Lead, follow or get out of the way.” Thomas Paine
While Lee Iacocca and others may claim credit for the quote above, it was first spoken by Thomas Paine, famous revolutionary and author of “Common Sense. “ It’s truer now than ever before.
It’s been fun through my career to witness many great business leaders and leading businesses from a bird’s eye vantage point. I’ve seen a fair level of success with businesses, as well as witnessing a fair level of business failures.
So what is the point? Understanding business from a visceral level is better than anyone’s canned work, studies, or textbooks. Authentic leadership and true innovation should be recognized and celebrated.
Leading businesses and business leaders deserve marketplace attention. That’s why Alpha Board was created. Recognition and visibility is not only good for those companies and leaders, it’s good for business. It’s also good for the organizations that help provide that recognition.
Just because we recognize success though does not mean that we cannot learn from failures. Let’s not forget those who fail while gallantly trying. Failure must be celebrated for a number of reasons. Most notably because it takes a series of failures to achieve success.
The average football play results in less than five yards gained, and at any point in time, the odds are significant that the ball will either not move forward at all or a player will be sacked for lost yardage.
Yet we don’t stop watching football. We don’t abandon our loyalties. We always wish for the players to stand up, dust themselves off, and run another play.
Look at baseball. A .300 batting average is something to be celebrated. A .333 or .350 are worthy of Hall of Fame status. And, without me going back and doing much research on the topic, that means that you can fail 70 percent of the time and still be a hero.
Now, before I go on, let me say I’ve had two personal experiences related to this. First, my experience growing up on a large family farming operation, in dry weather and rocky hills. Second, I worked at 3M, one of the most respected “timeless” innovators in American business. In both cases, there were systems to deal with failure, and an attitude that if you have not failed at some point, you have never done anything.
I did not mean to get too sidetracked on the failure mode, but let’s remember that first, the likely chance of failure is even more reason to celebrate success. Second, great people learn great things from failure, and they ultimately go on to achieve great successes.
So, in the next discussion, we’ll dig deeper into the topics of business leadership and innovation.
Share business’ growth stories with other leaders, and get some Fresh Octane® at:
Danny O’Neill’s Roasterie® Bean Hanger 1204 W. 27th St., KCMO, 64108
Join local area leaders from 8:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m. Dec, 5th (full) , 10th, OR 12th
(Coffee’s on at 8:00 a.m.)
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We look forward to see you at the
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