Radish Blog

Two More Rockefeller Habits for Passionately Persuing Business Growth

Fast growing companies follow certain principles that the less successful firm do not embrace.  Last article, we covered three habits, and this article covers two more of these success principles for business growth.

Gazelles, or companies that grow more than 20% per year for 3 consecutive years, have overcome the barriers to growth.  Verne Harnish in his book Mastering the Rockefeller Habits shares, “As organizations move up the growth path they go through a predictable series of evolutions and revolutions.  The three barriers that prevent firms from moving along this path include:  lack of leadership, lack of systems and structures, and market dynamics.”  The Rockefeller Habits help firms overcome these barriers.  From my experience as a business coach, I know the habits work. 

Award-winning entrepreneur Henry McGovern, founder of American Restaurants, the largest restaurant chain in all of Europe with revenues over $3 billion, shared at a Fortune Small Business Growth Summit one of their secrets to growth and success, "We believe our motto that ‘Everything is Possible’ and use the Rockefeller Habits" Thus, we are using them in my new company Radish Systems (www.RadishSystems.com) along with the ‘Pursuit of Passionate Purpose’ success model. 

Practical Pointers on Two More Best Habits of Fast Growing Companies:

Last month I shared 3 of the 10 habits; here are two more.

4.  Clear understanding of the firm’s market position drives strategic planning and sales and marketing

  • Brand promise and market (Sandbox) are clearly defined.
  • The organization is aligned around 5 key strategies for growth.

5.  Reporting and analysis of Customer Feedback data is as frequent and accurate as financial data.

  • All employees are involved in collecting customer data.
  • There is a person assigned responsibility for customer feedback.
  • All senior leaders communicate with at least one customer weekly.

Radish Case Study.  In our strategic discussions at Radish Systems (also known as Radish 2.0), we questioned who is our target market and who do we want to play with in our Sandbox.  Our purpose is to help businesses communicate more effectively with smart mobile device users.  Mobile device users are important and are definitely invited into our Sandbox; however our top priority customers (or playmates) are enterprises seeking to improve efficiencies in their contact centers and build loyalty with the stakeholders with whom they communicate.  In addition to working with our Alliance of partners, we use Willie Suttons’s Law, “Go where the money is!”

So what do we promise to deliver to our customers?  What is our brand promise?  A fast-growing firm does not come up with a brand promise lightly, so the ‘radishes’ gave it considerable discernment.  Radish promises:  happy, fast, rewarding experiences.

Radish has annual and quarterly strategic planning meetings where we establish and review our 5 key strategies for growth.  Additionally, we share customer feedback in our daily huddle and weekly meetings.  Because our customers are so important, we just hired the best Director of Customer Care we know. And so the Radish story continues…

What habits are you using to grow your business?

Theresa Szczurek

Theresa Szczurek oversees all business operations. As co-founder, Chief Operating Officer, and Chief Planning Officer of RCS, Szczurek was key in transforming the start-up into a thriving firm that sold for over $40 million.

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