OPINION
for their businesses to succeed. As the prominent venture capital investor Vinod Khosla famously remarked: “It’s very simple. Nobody will pay you to solve a non‑problem.” Think narrow, not broad: Big companies want to serve big markets and argue that small markets won’t move the needle, but entrepreneurs know that once success is established in a tiny market, they’ve set the foundation that will enable their businesses to grow. Instead of asking permission, beg forgiveness later: Established companies have set processes that typically have an element of approvals and permissions from those higher up in the organisation. For entrepreneurs, asking permission can involve delays, so many simply keep going with their plans if the legal or regulatory landscape is ambiguous, tackling any necessary regulatory issues and begging forgiveness, if necessary, at a later date. Ask for the cash, ride the float: When customers pay in advance, and suppliers are paid afterwards, the spare cash can be used by entrepreneurs to grow their businesses. “Yes, we can!”: Entrepreneurs don’t panic when asked by a prospective customer whether they can do something that’s entirely new and unfamiliar. Instead, they jump in and say “Yes, we can!” before figuring out how. Beg, borrow, but don’t steal: If entrepreneurs need to start something new and are uncertain about
pursue extraordinary new opportunities where mere mortals fear to go. These days, the leaders of most large companies say they want to find or develop people who are “more entrepreneurial”, though most don’t like the risk and uncertainty that comes with that kind of territory. Fortunately, the good news is this: in every big company, there are hidden gems to be found, such as Steve Kessel, whom Bezos pulled out of his VP role running Amazon’s core books and music e-commerce business to take on the overall leadership of the Kindle project. And there are gems who can learn to become entrepreneurial, too, as long as they can welcome, adopt and master new mindsets. Whether you’re already well on the way on your entrepreneurial journey, or soon to embark on a more counter-conventional path, learning, adopting and mastering your very own break-the-rules mindset will give you and your organisation a fighting chance of changing the world.
dogged effort but, in 1997, Nespresso turned the corner and reached break-even, with revenue of SFr 150 million ($161.3 million). By 2020, its revenues hit SFr 3 billion ($3.2 billion), and Nespresso had become the company’s fastest-growing brand. Why did Nestle have to go outside to find Gaillard? Why did Amazon hire Gregg Zehr from Apple to lead the engineering as the former developed the Kindle in 2004? Why did Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos insist the Kindle project be run as an autonomous unit, even though the suppliers of ebooks would be the very same publishers as those already supplying Amazon’s physical distribution business? The answers lie in the fact that doing something different inside a large company is never easy. Companies have long been encouraged to “stick to their knitting”. They target only those markets that are large enough to “move the needle”. They tinker with the product line each time a new brand manager takes over (never mind the customer’s needs): put green speckles in the detergent so it “cleans better”; change the scent so it’s “fresher”; add water so it pours; and so on. Might mindsets hold the key to the kind of genuine innovation – like Nespresso and the Kindle e-reader – that’s so rarely found in big companies today? Six change-the-rules mindsets After more than 20 years of research, I’ve observed how many successful entrepreneurs, whether deep inside a large company like Favre and Gaillard, or in their home garage, exhibit one or more of six ‘counter-conventional, break-the-rules’ mindsets that defy traditional business wisdom. These mindsets are the connection between what entrepreneurs observe and encounter with the actions they take, enabling them to challenge assumptions, mitigate risks and overcome obstacles that stand in the way of potentially changing the world. If you are not sure what they are, then here’s a quick rundown: Problem-first, not product-first, logic: Entrepreneurs understand that they need to solve genuine customer problems
“I’ve observed how many successful entrepreneurs exhibit ‘break-the-rules’ mindsets that defy traditional business wisdom”
the outcome, they’ll follow the route of ‘borrowing’ the resources over investing.
Be more entrepreneurial Most people in big companies aren’t
natural risk-takers. Entrepreneurs don’t like risk, either, as it turns out. They’re more likely to be risk managers and mitigators. It’s these six mindsets that enable many of them to effectively manage and mitigate risk as they
Ambition | FEBRUARY 2023 | 39
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