Few companies set out to be just another me-too player with another ho-hum business model, following a bland formula that’s hard to distinguish from everyone else’s. But in industry after industry, that’s precisely how most companies end up competing, which is why competition feels so unforgiving.
As you think about the values you stand for as an organization and as a leader, ask these five questions about your company’s strategy.
1. Do you have a distinctive and disruptive sense of purpose that sets you apart from your rivals?
This is what separates the mavericks from their me-too competitors. The founders of DPR Construction were determined, from the moment they started the company, to reckon honestly and openly with the designed-in flaws of their industry and to build an organization that would prosper by fixing those flaws. The founders of Cranium didn’t launch their company because they had one good idea for a single board game. Instead, they had a wide-ranging critique of what was going wrong with family entertainment -- and an unapologetic sense of mission about providing a clear alternative, through board games but also through book publishing, TV shows, and other lines of business that Cranium has begun to enter after its runaway success with games.
Even when their company was a tiny start-up, the Cranium founders believed and acted as if they were playing for high stakes -- not just thinking about games, but rethinking how parents could relate to their kids and how families could relate to one another. “We’ve always acted as if we’re a much bigger company than we really are,” says Grand Poo Bah Richard Trait. “We’re still a fairly young player in our industry, but we conduct ourselves as if we are a global movement. This isn’t a job. It’s the pursuit of a dream, to give everyone a chance to shine. It’s a big, ethereal goal, but we won’t stop until we’re convinced that we’re making progress against that goal.”
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