(And no, this is not about reducing costs).
Growth has become the ultimate mantra nowadays.
But in a lof of industries, value creation and real innovations come from the smaller, more agile companies. In FMCG, a lot of, if not most, market segments are very mature, with legacy brands being more and more challenged by distributor & smaller brands.
And still, what do big companies do? They try to grow bigger and bigger.
Isn’t there a disconnect here? Who really thinks that they’re going to become more agile and innovative by becoming just bigger?
BUNSHA: Company division for growth
Bunsha is a book written by a Japanese entrepreneur 45 years ago that is almost impossible to find nowadays. And yet, it is brilliant of vision and modernity.
I was lucky enough to read it 10 years ago, recommended by one of my previous bosses, Altavia group’s founder, when I asked him what inspired his vision for his company and how he approached growth.
Bunsha’s mantra?
“Big things stagnate, small ones grow. »
« So, before any company in my group becomes too big and begins to lose its drive, we divide it. I don’t mean into little subsidiaries or semi-autonomous divisions. I mean we split it into two or more completely independent corporations with a full complement of administrative departments and totally independent functions for each company. »
Yes, this is totally against all mainstream thinking… and very difficult to do for an entrepreneur or company leader, as it is counter-intuitive.
Yet, we all notice that beyond a certain number of employees, any company’s energy becomes more focused towards the inside, managing its own size with all collateral impacts, than towards the outside (clients and market). Employees lose ownership and empowerment and become more focused on following processes & rules than taking initiatives for the greater good.
WHAT IF we thought about growth and management differently?
Not to be naïvely idealistic, but to very pragmatically focus on creating real value for customers, clients and employees.