The 7 Growth Killers T
by Tim Kinney, Strategic Growth Planner
his issue introduces a new INCAST series, The 7 Growth Killers. Over the next ten months, I’ll identify
seven of the most common obstacles to profitable growth and bring them to life with relevant case study examples. I will also suggest practical solutions to help overcome them. Why me? For starters and for those
who don’t know me, I am a growth strategy nerd. Over the past 30 years, my entire career has essentially focused on helping companies grow. Over that time, I have helped companies generate hundreds of millions of dollars in new business growth using a number of different strategies. Almost 12 of those years were spent in the investment casting industry either working at a casting company or consulting with casters or the ICI in some capacity. While I am no longer in the casting industry (I’ve gone back to my roots in reinsurance), I have a special place in my heart for this remarkable industry. Over time, I have crafted an approach to strategic growth planning which has been documented in my book as well as my online course (more on that later). I am humbled to attempt to share what I’ve learned with you in upcoming articles.
What are the 7 Growth Killers? To be clear, there are a lot more than seven business growth killers. So, why these seven? These are the killers that have stalked me more often than not over the past 30 years:
1. Management gap 2. Working in, not on, your business 3. Sales and marketing misalignment 4. Decision by tradition 5. Strategic deficiency 6. Tactical deficiency 7. Process deficiency
24 ❘ April 2019 ®
I vow to expose these seven villains and stop them before they kill your business growth. In this INCAST series, we’ll focus on one killer each month and share some case studies as well as potential solutions.
Growth Killer #1: The Management Gap Let’s examine the first growth killer: a gap in your management team. Management gaps come in at least two forms. The first is when you do not have all of the key or senior positions of your management team filled. For instance, imagine how difficult it will be to grow if your vice president of sales leaves the company. Or, suppose your human resources director resigns unexpectedly just at the time you’ve launched your growth strategy. How will you fill the necessary new positions created by your growth? The second management gap is less
obvious because it is often discovered even when you are operating with all of your management positions filled. What you may not see is the mental gap of your top players. To a large extent, growth is a mindset. Companies that achieve profitable growth usually have leaders whose top priority and passion is growth. If your managers don’t share that mindset, it will be challenging for you to get them all on the same page. And that will trickle down to their teams and staff. Or, in some variations, your team has a growth mindset, but they don’t believe in your growth strategy. Sure, they’ll “yes” you to death in strategic planning sessions. But, when it comes time to execute the plan, they don’t actually change their behaviors and implement the necessary steps to grow. Ouch! Here’s an example from a few years ago. I was consulting with a successful
Welcome to Our New INCAST Series: The 7 Growth Killers
Over the past 28 years, Tim Kinney has helped companies generate hundreds of millions in new growth. He is the Vice President of Accident & Health Marketing for Sirius Group, a global reinsurance company. Tim is also a writer, trainer and consultant specializing in strategic growth planning. He is the editor of the blog Growth Monitor Weekly and recently produced an online course, “How To Build Your Growth Strategy.” His book, the Growth Strategist’s Guidebook, is available on
Amazon.com.
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