Secret Sauce of Global Market Leadership (part 2)

Aspire for Global Market Leadership. ?The imperative for tech companies is that you must grow faster than the market or create the market – ‘Grow fast or die slowly’ where the prize is ‘winner takes all’. ?If you are growing slower than the market, then you are losing market share and on the path of zombie companies. ?The playbooks for global growth are precise and proven. Many UK B2B and in some B2C companies ‘spray-paint’ geographic expansion and start fighting growth on too many fronts. Even the USA market is not homogeneous and can vary regionally in markets like healthcare from state to state so it is paramount to win ‘beachhead’ after ‘beachhead’ and develop unassailable momentum winning the most important ‘thought leader’ segments or markets first, then the rest fall like dominoes. ?As we said many times in the US, ‘A’ class strategy with ‘B’ class execution is always inferior to ‘B’ class strategy and ‘A’ class execution. When I returned to UK in 2006, there was a dearth of serial CEOs and Chairpeople, and the investor landscape was weak. Today, this has transformed with hundreds of former successful CEOs and Chairs who are recycling their talent and capital. Most Tier 1 VCs today have deep expertise and networks. Lesson One is develop the growth plan using the playbooks and to build your Board with experience of former CEO ‘street fighters’ who have created market leaders ideally with relevant domain knowledge. Beware as there are many charlatans and city grandees who will only suck oxygen and energy from you. You need Board members who share your ambition of global market leaderships and can help you get there. The UK has a more diverse, deeper, and stronger bench today so you should surround yourself with a small ‘rockstar’ board on the growth Mission with no ego.?Ambition for growth to global is in abundance in the Valley and lacking in the UK.?If you have board members obsessing or asking when the ‘exit’ is, then change the board to bring in the attitude with experience to help you achieve your dreams.?It is subtle but no great companies get ‘sold’ – great companies only ever get ‘bought’ – so put your energy into achieving your bold vision, growth cures most evils, and become the 800lb gorilla globally through a deliberate step by step segment, market, and geographic expansion without fighting multiple battles on multiple fronts simultaneously. Put all the ‘wood behind a few arrows’ to build ‘beachhead’ after ‘beachhead’.?Always think ‘Day One’ growth mindset and surround yourselves with people with a shared vision and ambition who complement your blind-spots. Success rarely happens by accident.