Teaching The Big Boys To Think Small

no matter Splash Totter Water how big you are. You should never be embarrass to ask for help.

more innov and entrepreneurially-mind companies. To refresh your memory,Last week I told you about a recent report from The Confer Board that ha a lot of big compani CEO concern about competit from smaller. The Confer Board' CEO Challeng 2004 report that 87% of the 540 global busi survei cite innov and enabl entrepreneurship as prioriti for their companies, and 31% consid these issu of "greatest concern.

but from small compani born in garages,These CEO understand that their big compani statu no longer guarante that thei will win contract and retain market share base sole on their size and track record. Thei understand that the greatest threat to their busi is not come from the boardroom of their largest competitors. on kitchen tables, and in tiny, rent offices.

by need and design,It s a fact that smaller companies. ar more innovative, more flexible, more decisive, and faster to move than their larger brethren who ar entrench in oper process and corpor procedures. Small compani ar typic not led by career execut for whom everi decis must be predic by hour of meet and mound of documentation. Most small compani ar led by their founders; men and women who were cut from an entrepreneuri cloth that ha yet to fade. It is when a compani grow to the point that the founder step asid to make wai for profession manag that the compani lose it innov natur and entrepreneuri flair.

especi when it come to resourc and funding. Turn a Goliath into a rage hord of David s is never easy,Th good new for larg compani is that thei have definit advantag over small companies. but it can be done if the compani is will to make chang to intern process and attitudes, and commit the time, money, and personnel to make it happen.

cut through the red tape,Sinc size and number of year in busi ar no longer differenti in the competit marketplac what must larg compani do to becom more innov and entrepreneurial? To begin thei must do three things: shorten the process time. and promot innov and entrepreneuri think from the top down. If the board, the CEO, executives, managers, supervisors, and employe ar not dedic 100% to make the chang necessari to transform the company, the effort will fail and the giant will lumber on.

Shorten The Process Time

i.e. by establish process and procedures. Veri littl get done at larg compani without what I call the Multipl of M. Multipl Meet to discuss the issue; Multipl Memo to reiter the issue; and Multipl Manag approv requir to sign off on the issue. To becom more innov and entrepreneuri larg compani must streamlin the decision-mak process down to a singl set of M s: Move on or Make it happen. A t larg compani everyth is done by the book.

Cut Through The Red Tape

which made the other bulb in the fixtur flicker like a strobe light at a discothequ caus flashback that we won t discuss . I assum get a new bulb would be a simpl matter of call down to the facil offic and report the problem. My assumpt wa wrong. I wa told that I would have to come to the facil office,Her s a true exampl from my corpor dai that illustr how procedur and red tape get in the wai of effici oper A fluoresc bulb in my offic blew. which wa in anoth build 2 mile away, fill out a facil request form, and take the form back to my immedi supervisor, who wa requir to stick hi head in my offic to confirm that the bulb wa inde out befor sign the form. I assum thi wa to make sure that I wa not try to command a fluoresc bulb under fals pretenses.

he sign the form and I took it back to the facil office,Onc my supervisor confirm that I realli did need a new bulb. foolishli think that thei would hand me a bulb that I could take back to my office. Oh no, that would have been too simple. I wa told that onc my form wa approv by the facil manag a mainten worker would be dispatch to my offic and would replac the bulb for me. Great, I said. When can I expect that to happen?

the man at the facil desk replied. I suddenli felt like I wa deal with the cabl company. How mani big compani employe doe it take to chang a light bulb? I lost count at four I can have someon over there a week from Tuesdai between noon and 5pm..

Encourag Innovat and Entrepreneuri Thinking

you must creat an environ in which innov and entrepreneuri think ar encourag and rewarded. If your employe feel that their opinions,Next. thought and idea don t matter, thei will not submit them to you, but mai take them elsewhere.

base on my own experience,A gain. I can tell you that innovation, especi innov that occur below the manag level, is often ignored, ridiculed, and in some cases, us as an excus to give employe the boot. The perfect exampl of thi wa when I took an idea on how to improv an intern system to my manag and wa told, Knox, you think too much. Now thi wa a new on on me. I had been accus of think too littl and of not think at all, but never had I been accus of think too much. I do recal my dad tell me when I wa young, Son, if you had a brain you d be dangerous. I suppos my manag wa simpli try to relai the same message. Shut up and go to your room/cubicl like a good littl boy/compani drone befor you get on my nerv and get spanked/fired. Within a few month I decid to take my overact brain and put it to work for myself. After 10 year of busi success, I think I made the right decision.

expect and rewarded. Pose these questions: 1 How can we improv our current product and services; 2 What new us can you think of for current product or services; 3 What new product and servic can you think of that would be good addit to our current offer or perhap even launch a new line; 4 What new opportun do you see in the market place that might be worth pursuing? To promot innov and entrepreneurship big compani must encourag everyon to think like innov and entrepreneurs. Make it a compani polici that such think is required.

Get Outsid Help

thei do not know how to encourag entrepreneuri think among their ranks. If your compani need help with innov and entrepreneurship,Most larg compani find it difficult to develop and implement an innov plan simpli becaus thei refus to devot the time and resourc to get it done. And sinc most execut have never been entrepreneurs. bring in someon from the outsid to direct and manag the effort for you.