Growing startups must follow these steps to succeed

Washington D.C. [USA], Feb. 8 (ANI): Launching a startup is only the first step, but making it a successful company is a hard nut to crack, as its founders need to overcome the transition between making a mark in the market and attaining a scalable business. The study details the challenges faced by founders and the essential actions required for success. Dr. Joseph Picken of the Naveen Jindal School of Management in the US lays out a road map for the founding entrepreneur who seeks to retain the CEO position as a company gains market traction and begins a period of rapid growth. The study appeared in journal of Business Horizons. The startup phase is extensively covered in the literature, Picken said. While a startup requires structure, process and discipline. Picken wanted to focus his research on the gap between startup and scaling -- a period of transition. "Research has identified the most common reasons for failure or CEO replacement, but nobody has told the entrepreneur what to do to succeed," he said. Picken stated "the eight hurdles of transition" -- essential steps in the evolution from a nascent startup to an organisation capable of sustained and profitable growth: 1. Setting a direction and maintaining focus 2. Positioning products/services in an expanded market 3. Maintaining customer/market responsiveness 4. Building an organisation and management team 5. Developing effective processes and infrastructures 6. Building financial capability 7. Developing an appropriate culture 8. Managing risks and vulnerabilities "At some point, the startup has to grow up and the entrepreneur has to grow up in parallel and learn all the skills to be a CEO," Picken explained. As startups enter this transition period, founders must evaluate the business's needs, assess their personal capabilities and limitations, expand their skill set and adopt the management practices and leadership behaviours essential to retaining the top job. "It's not a recipe that you can follow, but you've got to grow in all these areas simultaneously and it's hard," Picken stated. You have to recognise you don't know it all and get a lot of help from mentors and advisors. To retaining the CEO position, they identified five shifts in perspective and behaviours that are essential- Shifting attention and focus -- adopting a broader external perspective Extending the time horizon -- anticipating rather than reacting Broadening functional skills and expertise Being flexible, open to new ideas, and leveraging the experience of others Broadening personal skill sets and adopting new leadership styles. (ANI)