Introducing "Turn Around the Undistinguished Enterprise"
What do Jack Welch (GE), Howard Schultz (Starbucks) and Ray Kroc (McDonalds) have in common that made their firms grow beyond excellence? Their vision, their leadership styles, their people management skills or their industry insight? Perhaps one factor that leads them all is their talent for executing successful turnarounds. Almost all of us have come across turnaround agents and growth catalysts, who have helped entrepreneurs and small businesses grow. And entrepreneurs form a vital component of the world and the US economy. Supporting the importance of entrepreneurs, Vinod Khosla (the founding CEO of Sun Microsystems) points out that entrepreneurs drive technology and are responsible for approximately 40 percent of America’s GDP growth. Hence, it has become imperative for entrepreneurship to thrive. As this book goes to press, a small business bill, extending billions of new credit and tax breaks to entrepreneurs and small businesses, awaits getting signed into law. This book will serve such entrepreneurs in re-assessing their options and planning their effectual moves.
With the changing economy and a subsequent reduction in headcounts in larger and mid-size firms, the workforce also has to shift to smaller businesses and entrepreneurs. According to a survey conducted by Michigan State University's Collegiate Employment Research Institute, hiring of graduates would spike 15 percent at smaller companies. Due to this increasing trend to seek employment with an entrepreneur, a huge emphasis needs to be put on managing entrepreneurs and their organizations, particularly when these undistinguished (or average) entrepreneurs have their own rules. Rules that are not documented — and certainly not taught anywhere. This book will be a great exercise in learning to work with such entrepreneurs to sustain and grow their businesses successfully.
Issues at these entrepreneurial firms come in different shapes and sizes. Designed as a boot-camp-style workbook, this book will assist you in issue-handling, examining the root causes, and infusing new energy into the undistinguished entrepreneur’s firm, either directly or through turnaround specialists and venture capitalists.
To help engender growth at such undistinguished enterprises, I have divided the book into three broad categories (using my Procedure-Behavior-Strategy Framework) to help you:
· follow the existing norms and introduce better standards and more effective procedures within the firm (Procedural),
· attend to the human side of the enterprise and the entrepreneur (Behavioral), and finally
· develop long term plans for the entrepreneur and the enterprise (Strategic).
With the changing economy and a subsequent reduction in headcounts in larger and mid-size firms, the workforce also has to shift to smaller businesses and entrepreneurs. According to a survey conducted by Michigan State University's Collegiate Employment Research Institute, hiring of graduates would spike 15 percent at smaller companies. Due to this increasing trend to seek employment with an entrepreneur, a huge emphasis needs to be put on managing entrepreneurs and their organizations, particularly when these undistinguished (or average) entrepreneurs have their own rules. Rules that are not documented — and certainly not taught anywhere. This book will be a great exercise in learning to work with such entrepreneurs to sustain and grow their businesses successfully.
Issues at these entrepreneurial firms come in different shapes and sizes. Designed as a boot-camp-style workbook, this book will assist you in issue-handling, examining the root causes, and infusing new energy into the undistinguished entrepreneur’s firm, either directly or through turnaround specialists and venture capitalists.
To help engender growth at such undistinguished enterprises, I have divided the book into three broad categories (using my Procedure-Behavior-Strategy Framework) to help you:
· follow the existing norms and introduce better standards and more effective procedures within the firm (Procedural),
· attend to the human side of the enterprise and the entrepreneur (Behavioral), and finally
· develop long term plans for the entrepreneur and the enterprise (Strategic).
