Grow to Greatness: Smart Growth for Entrepreneurial Businesses

I don't write very many reviews but based upon the quality of this book, I felt compelled to.Grow to Greatness is written in the manner of an interactive workshop. In fact, I frequently paused while reading to work through the worksheets the author provided. This resulted in a number of "ah ha" moments that have radically reshaped my business' strategic plan for the upcoming year.Like many companies, we conduct an annual planning process where each executive creates a strategy for his team. This year was no different than the rest in that this resulted in a hodge podge of poorly defined goals with no internal consistency and few success measures. Even worse, some of these proposed plans would be expensive and would place pressures on other areas of the business.I took these plans and used them for the raw material of this virtual workshop. The author walks the reader through many different concepts which I have not seen elsewhere. He insists that the reader address the "risks of growth", identify "preconditions to growth", and create a portfolio of S-curves to avoid placing all of one's eggs in a single basket.This process was invaluable because it enabled me to make go/no-go decisions on many of the initiatives proposed by my managers. Should we have an office in London? Probably not due to the legal and financial expense, tax reporting complexities, and the distraction it would introduce to our domestic business. Should we pursue those lucrative but infrequent consulting contracts? Again, probably not because to do so would distract our sales team from lower-price but steadier product business. And so on.By following this process, I was able to hone down our strategy to three simple initiatives with a high probability of success, a minimum of risk and which place a minimum amount of disruption on the business. Instead of killing myself (and my employees) with a massive number of initiatives, next year will be all about getting them to focus on the right things (and just one of them for each department).Hands down, this is probably the single best book in my library on how to grow a business organically.

On the first page of this terrific book, the author writes: "Hi. I am Ed Hess." And he goes on to briefly describe his relevant background in an informative and friendly-but-no-nonsense way. After reading Grow to Greatness, I'd like to introduce the author is a slightly different way: "He is Ed Hess. He knows a 'boatload' about how to grow entrepreneurial businesses because he's run them, studied them (formally and informally...statistically and humanistically...Jim Collins has got nothing on him...), consulted to them, and written about them for a looooooong time. You're going to get it all in this book..."So this is what you get in this book--the fruits of a comprehensive study of 54 high growth private companies along with a raft of ideas, inspiration, frameworks, tools, reminders, and real-life business stories and people--all delivered in a straight-forward, friendly-but-no-nonsense, "Hess-ian" (I've read his other books and know well the man himself) way; all intensely relevant and massively informative to the challenges of growing a business (Ed just packs it in here...so much good stuff and such a variety of the kinds of stuff...hence, a "Bible"); and all well-organized with a single, simple purpose: to help real people who want to grow real businesses do it in a smart, sustainable, and society-serving way.Ed Hess is the best friend an entrepreneur could have; and you really do get Ed and his wisdom, both scholarly and practical, in his latest book.

This book does a great job in filling an important gap in entrepreneurship literature - how to grow a business. The author clearly has both an academic and practical background. He uses both in presenting the material, so that this is very practical, street level information with lots of examples or case studies. There really are not enough good, comprehensive resources about how to grow a small, entrepreneurial business, and this fits the need. Most are oriented toward one aspect (i.e. marketing), or too focused on one industry or type of business. This book focuses more on the organizational development side of growth, and does so with reference to both 'high growth' companies and main street businesses.There are a few key content pieces that make the book stand out. It acknowledges the need for the entrepreneur to grow as the business grows. This is consistent with my research, and is an important facet that is often overlooked in entrepreneurial business growth literature. Hess also provides some very practical details, such as quotes that encasulate persectives or ideas, and do-it-yourself steps to help business and entrepreneur growth. All in all worth your money.

Hess has an amazing ability to cut to the chase and provide specific questions an owner and each person on his/her team must consider, or they will be putting the business at risk. His experience with early stage companies shows thru clearly. To simply grow (for a while) is one thing, but to really succeed in creating a viable business is another, and that is what this book is all about. I think this will become a must-read for young companies, and a re-read each year as they grow.

I really loved the book, because each time I read it their is a new understanding of what one can do in business to elevate there business and make it grow and or improve quality. The book offers so much when you read it and open your mind to the possibility in your own business venture.

If you're looking for a step by step on growth this is not the book for you. Much more anecdotal than anything else. Pulled 1 or 2 suggest from it but that's about it. Wish I hadn't paid $15. I bought the book because the author was so entertaining on video. Didn't carry through in book.

I think this is an interesting way of presenting a process for a life management process. The advice and steps discussed apply to just more than starting a business.

Prof Hess is an expert and it shows in his writing. Frankly as a guide this cannot be beaten. It gives brilliant case studies and is something that all business people can benefit from, it really is that good.

Fala das coisas básicas que todo empreendedor deveria fazer, mas na maioria dos casos esquece. Ainda traz cases reais pra cada conceito apresentado