1. An Introduction to the 7 Stages of Enterprise Growth
Put Your Title Here
Alignment. Engagement. Implementation.
An Introduction to the 7 Stages of Enterprise Growth

2. The Goal: Help you find the code!

3. Plenty of Experts ……
Mastering the Rockefeller Habits
The Breakthrough Company
One barrier to growth is the need for the executive team to effectively delegate and predict.
Vern Harnish, author of Mastering the Rockefeller Habits
Long-term growth will only happen if the company learns how to operate differently as it grows larger.
Keith McFarland, author of The Breakthrough Company

4. Would You Like a Crystal Ball?
How prepared are you to predict how growth will impact your company?
What if you could identify growth issues before they set in?

5. What Needs to Be Done, When?
Can’t do it all
Who knows best
Can look like a game of chance
Easy to react to who’s buttons are being pushed

6. The 7 Stages of Entrepreneurial Growth

7. Stage 1 – Start Up 1 – 10 employees CEO-centric
Still trying to figure it out
It’s chaotic
Hire for fit not skill

8. Stage 2 – Ramp Up 11 – 19 employees CEO-centric
Focus is on growth, not survival
Moving beyond owner’s span of control
Starting to delineate responsibilities

9. Stage 3 – Delegate 20 - 34 employees Enterprise-centric
CEO must start releasing control
Staff revolution
Staff will leave if not given roles and responsibilities

10. Stage 4 – Professional 35 – 57 employees
Hire professional managers who have been there done that
Build confidence in divisions
Too big to rely on faulty systems

11. Stage 5 – Integration 58 - 95 employees Focus back on company
Getting managers to ‘play well together’
Training is critical for all employees

12. Stage 6 – Strategic 96 - 160 employees
Perspective needs to shift as you are now on radar of other competitors
Emotionally aware leaders do well
Culture and core values are key

13. Stage 7 – Visionary 161 - 500 employees Cruise liner not a speed boat
Lose sight of target and competitors will eat you for lunch
CEO must ignite fires of inspiration to avoid complacency

14. The 7 Stages of Entrepreneurial Growth

15. Flood Zone

16. Wind Tunnel

17. Outcomes from Understanding Your Company’s Stage of Growth
Help gain clarity of where a company is today and why the company may be experiencing specific growth issues
Alignment of management team which allows issues to be identified and addressed sooner
Look behind, examine today and look ahead to see what’s creating obstacles to growth
Help create a language of growth that will resonate with every single person in the company

18. The Rules That Govern the 7 Stages of Growth
The movement from one stage of growth to another begins as soon as you land in any stage of growth
What you don’t get done in a specific stage of growth does not go away
Time will make a difference
If you aren’t growing, you are dying

19. Three Gates of Focus Profit/Revenue Gate People Gate Process Gate
Predicting growth by maximizing and anticipating profit and revenue, protection and capacity issues
People Gate
Building competency and innovation through the conscious development of people
Process Gate
Transforming complexity into clarity through systems

20. Three Gates of Focus Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4 Stage 5 Stage 6
Profit
People
Process

21. What Are the Three Faces – What Face Are You Wearing Today?
Visionary: Can take the most insignificant situation and turn it into an opportunity.
Manager: Creates order and focuses on the pragmatic systems and procedures that make the company run well.
Specialist: Is action oriented and detail focused, driven to complete tasks and centers on results, not ideas.

22. Three Faces of A Leader Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4 Stage 5
Visionary
40%
Manager
10%
Specialist
50%
20%
60%
30%
70%
45% 5%
75%

23. Builders and Protectors: Which One Are You Today?
Builders: A Builder mindset creates new ideas, takes on new initiatives, finds ways to expand the revenue and profitability of the enterprise. They are risk tolerant and highly supportive of growth.
Protectors: A Protector mindset is cautious and prefers to slow things down. They are risk averse and highly suspicious of growth.

24. Builder/Protector Ratios
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
Stage 5
Stage 6
Stage 7
B/P
4:1
3:1
1:1
3:2
2:1

25. 27 Challenges Exercise
What is the Value?

26. 27 Challenges – Alignment. Engagement. Implementation.
Forces a company to put words to their critical top 5 issues
Provides an opportunity to see how the leadership team defines the company’s top challenges
Forces a discussion that moves the company toward alignment of goals and objectives
Allows the leadership team to build confidence as they proactively tackle critical issues
Forces a deeper discussion about how to address each of the top 5 challenges
Helps the leadership team to address more strategic issues once everyone agrees to problems

27. Project Management & Resource Coordination Challenges
Are processes captured, written down and reviewed regularly
Are these processes being followed
If processes are in place, are they working
Has the company identified key success indicators and are they being tracked and measured
Is there a project management template

28. Leadership/Staff Communication Gap
Is there a written vision and mission statement
Are there well defined core values
Is there a communication plan
Are people held accountable for performance measurements
Do managers conduct one-on-ones with direct reports weekly

29. Need for a Flexible Planning Model
Does the company understand how they plan to grow
Do they have a 6 month short term plan especially if they are in crisis mode
Does the company evaluate its strategic planning concepts regularly and make adjustments
Is there a feedback loop to identify improvements in processes

30. Need to Have Better Staff Buy-In
Is there a strong vision, mission that is written down
Have core values been identified
Does the leadership of the company walk the talk
Are managers conducting regular one-on-ones with their direct reports
Do employees have a say in how problems get solved

31. Discussion What specific issues surround this challenge?
What are 3 – 4 ideas that will help you create an action plan to address this challenge?
As a leader, how can you engage your team to help create solutions for this challenge?
What are the key indicators you can put in place to ensure you are tracking results?

32. Plenty of Experts ……
Mastering the Rockefeller Habits
The Breakthrough Company
One barrier to growth is the need for the executive team to effectively delegate and predict.
Vern Harnish, author of Mastering the Rockefeller Habits
You need to know WHEN and HOW … The 7 Stages of Growth can provide those answers ……
Long-term growth will only happen if the company learns how to operate differently as it grows larger.
Keith McFarland, author of The Breakthrough Company
You have to know what Operating Differently looks like ….. The 7 Stages of Growth tells you what to do, when ……

33. Solutions to Your Growth Challenges
Stages of Growth XRay: Alignment. Engagement. Implementation. Focusing on the right things at the right time. A Strategic Planning Program for a CEO and his/her management team to stay ahead of their growth curve.
Zeroing in on Your Company’s Profit Zone: Identifying the 9 activities of a company’s profit zone. Creating a proactive plan to help each person see how their job impacts the bottom line.

34. Solutions to Your Growth Challenges
Destination, Greatness: Your Financial Success System. An online program that teaches business fundamentals that lay the groundwork for success.
Monthly Growth Calibration Program:
One-on-One monthly sessions designed to address current issues, provide accountability, and improve confidence and decision making.

35. You can reach Laurie at 520-906-1119 or laurie@igniteyourbiz
You can reach Laurie at or And I invite you to visit: