Fiery Growth

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June 26 2025

Counter-intuitive but powerful truth: In business, smaller target markets create bigger opportunities.

Here’s the physics of niche market dominance:

When you try to be everything to everyone, you become nothing to no one. But when you focus on a specific, underserved market segment, something magical happens.

Let me share why niche market monopolies are the hidden gems of business value:

1. Financial Leverage

Because few brands specialize this narrowly, you’ll face fewer direct rivals and can establish stronger mind-share faster. But it’s critical to evaluate audience size, consumer demand, and potential profitability before diving in.

2. Operational Excellence

When you are a specialist, you know how to do things better and more effectively. You can relate to your customer’s pain point better than anyone else, improving your sales cycle and delivery times.

3. Market Leadership

Companies that develop strong digital capabilities and specialized market focus earn 2-6x higher shareholder returns than those falling behind – across every sector studied *. You just don’t become indispensable to your customers but you also attract investors and acquirers.

4. Strategic Positioning

Your unique selling proposition becomes your superpower – the specific way you solve a problem that nobody else can. The key is digging deep into your customers’ real challenges. And you can keep yourself ahead of any future competition – your secret sauce is your approach not the deliverable.

Let’s look at the example of this approach by Veeam.

Veeam carved out its initial dominance by focusing on a highly technical and specific niche: data backup and recovery for VMware virtualized environments. At a time when traditional backup solutions were failing to meet the demands of virtualization, Veeam offered a purpose-built, superior solution. This specialization made them the undisputed leader in their field, giving them significant pricing power. Customers were willing to pay a premium for a product that expertly solved a critical business problem, a luxury unavailable to generalist competitors. The company was recently acquired for $5 Billion.

I’ve spent 15+ years helping SMEs and tech companies find their perfect market position. Here’s what I’ve learned: The goal isn’t finding a niche that’s big enough. It’s finding one that’s focused enough to dominate.

Want to understand where your business ranks on the Monopoly (Niche Market) factor? Take our complimentary 15-minute Business Value Assessment questionnaire: https://fierygrowth.com/vbs

It’s time to stop swimming in red oceans. Let’s find your blue ocean together.

#BusinessStrategy #GrowthStrategy #MarketDomination #BusinessValue #NicheMarkets

June 24 2025

The Long Shadow of Policy: Why Inflexible Strategies Stifle Business Value

Most policy changes in business, like in governments, don’t fail immediately. They unravel slowly, creating ripple effects that surface years or even decades later.

Looking at how policies shape long-term outcomes, the India-China population approach offers a fascinating parallel for business leaders.

China’s one-child policy exemplified rigid, top-down control. India, despite initial attempts at strict population measures, had to adapt to democratic pressures. Today, these decisions echo through their economies in profound ways.

But this isn’t just about national policies. I see similar patterns play out in the SME sector, particularly in tech companies. A common thread in many struggling businesses, especially those that started with a strong founder vision, is an over-reliance on a few key management personnel for decisions. When policies are dictated from the top, without sufficient input or adaptability, the business effectively becomes a hostage to the limitations of those few individuals.

An example from my own experience:

A tech firm required all go-to-market teams to follow identical scripts and processes across different markets. This policy, designed for control and perceived efficiency by a small leadership team, bypassed the diverse local expertise of their regional managers. Within 18 months, they’d lost ground in key regions where local relationship-building approaches were crucial. This rigid approach, driven by a centralized decision-making structure, directly impacted their growth potential and, ultimately, their financial performance. The teams on the ground, who understood the nuances of customer needs and market dynamics, were disempowered.

The lesson? Inflexible policies, often a symptom of excessive dependency on a few decision-makers, optimize for short-term control at the cost of long-term adaptability and distributed intelligence. This creates a bottleneck, hindering innovation and responsiveness.

This brings me to a crucial point about strategy: The best policies aren’t just decisions – they’re learning systems that evolve with your business reality. They empower, rather than constrain, your entire team.

The way to use it in your business? What I call the “democratic strategy approach”:

Test policies on a small scale first: Don’t roll out company-wide mandates without a pilot.
Gather genuine feedback (not just nodding heads): Create channels for honest, unfiltered input from all levels.
Be ready to pivot quickly if things aren’t working: Embrace agility and discard what fails.
Focus on outcomes, not control: Empower your teams to achieve objectives in ways that make sense for their context.

The companies that master this balance between direction and adaptation don’t just survive – they build resilience for the long game. They move away from being dependent on a few, and instead leverage the collective intelligence of their entire organization.

Call to Action:

Consider your own organization: Does your strategic decision-making resemble a “hub and spoke” model, where policies primarily emanate from one or a few central figures? While appearing efficient, this “Dependency on one or few management personnel for decisions” can inadvertently stifle adaptability and long-term growth, as explored in this article.

To gain deeper insight into how your company stacks up across this and other crucial business value factors, we invite you to complete our complimentary 15-minute Business Value Assessment questionnaire. Visit https://fierygrowth.com/vbs to receive a personalized report detailing your strengths and areas for improvement.

#BusinessStrategy #Leadership #StrategicGrowth #BusinessValue

June 24 2025

Is Your ‘Hub & Spoke’ Mindset Sabotaging Your Team’s Potential?

The biggest myth about workplace productivity isn’t about WHERE people work — it’s about how we THINK about work itself.

After two decades of scaling tech companies and advising SMEs, I’ve observed a fundamental physics principle at play: Energy flows where resistance is lowest. The same applies to human potential and productivity.

You own your business and have the highest risk if it fails. That tends to make business owners get involved in every minutia of the business – creating what I refer to here as the Hub and Spoke way of working.

Consider this paradox:

• While executives debate office attendance, research tells a different story. A groundbreaking Stanford study shows hybrid work has zero negative impact on productivity or career advancement *.

• Despite this evidence, companies keep investing in the wrong solutions. Nearly half of businesses have increased employee monitoring software — measuring presence instead of outcomes.

Here’s what actually drives performance (and what physics taught me about human potential):

1. Focus on psychological safety, not physical presence

When I scaled my SaaS startup, I learned that innovation happens when people feel safe to think differently and make decisions independently. Today’s data confirms this: Companies with high-trust cultures report 42% higher productivity compared to typical workplaces **.

This directly counters a model where decisions and ideas are solely funneled through a few key individuals. A culture of psychological safety empowers more employees to contribute ideas and make decisions, thereby reducing an organization’s reliance on a limited number of managers for all critical choices.

2. Build thinking environments, not just workspaces

Just as energy seeks the path of least resistance, human creativity flows best with minimal friction. And there is no greater friction that waiting for the boss to ok every decision. The data shows 84% of employees report better productivity outside traditional office settings — because they can actually think ***.

When employees are empowered to think and work effectively outside traditional monitoring, it naturally reduces the need for constant oversight and decision-making from a centralized few.

3. Measure outcomes, not activity

In both physics and business, what you measure determines what you see. While 90% of hybrid workers maintain or exceed productivity targets, too many leaders still count hours instead of impact.

The fundamental challenge isn’t about monitoring productivity — it’s about creating environments where deep work and critical thinking can thrive.

This cultivates a workforce that is less dependent on management for micro-decisions and more capable of self-direction.

Remember: Just as you can’t improve product-market fit with better marketing, you can’t enhance team performance by monitoring mouse clicks.

What’s one way you’re measuring what truly matters in your organization?

Call to Action:

To assess your organization’s true resilience and productivity, ask yourself:

“How much does our company’s success truly depend on the constant presence and singular decision-making of a few key individuals, versus a broadly empowered and psychologically safe workforce capable of independent thinking and outcome-driven work?”

Take a moment to evaluate: Did you know that the dependency on a business owners is one of the eight factors that have an impact on the value of your business? To see how your business scores on this and all the other factors, take this 15 minute questionnaire and get a complete report.

* https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2024/06/hybrid-work-is-a-win-win-win-for-companies-workers

** https://www.greatplacetowork.com/resources/blog/remote-work-productivity-study-finds-surprising-reality-2-year-study

*** https://archieapp.co/blog/hybrid-workplace-stats/

March 29 2023

Volume or Value – what’s your growth strategy?

In the world of business, there are two main ways to grow: value and volume. Value growth is achieved by increasing the price of your products or services, while volume growth is achieved by increasing the number of customers you serve.

Which approach is right for your small business? It depends on a number of factors, including your industry, your target market, and your resources.

If you’re in a high-margin industry, such as luxury goods or software, value growth may be the better option. This is because you can charge higher prices without losing many customers. In fact, some customers may be willing to pay a premium for your products or services because they perceive them as being of higher quality or more exclusive.

However, if you’re in a low-margin industry, such as retail or manufacturing, volume growth may be the better option. This is because you need to sell more products or services in order to make a profit. In some cases, you may even need to lower your prices in order to attract more customers.

Your target market also plays a role in determining which approach to take. If you’re targeting high-net-worth individuals, value growth may be the better option. This is because these individuals are more likely to be willing to pay a premium for your products or services. However, if you’re targeting mass-market consumers, volume growth may be the better option. This is because these consumers are more likely to be looking for the best deal.

Finally, your resources also come into play. If you have a limited budget, volume growth may be the better option. This is because it’s often less expensive to attract new customers than it is to increase prices. However, if you have a more flexible budget, value growth may be the better option. This is because you can invest in marketing and advertising to create a premium brand image.

Ultimately, the best approach for your small business is the one that will help you achieve your goals. If you’re not sure which approach is right for you, it’s worth consulting with a business advisor or accountant.

Here are some tips for growing your small business through value growth:

Invest in marketing and advertising. One of the best ways to increase the value of your products or services is to create a strong brand image. This can be done through marketing and advertising campaigns that position your brand as premium or exclusive.
Offer unique products or services. If you want to charge premium prices, you need to offer products or services that are unique or superior to those of your competitors. This could involve developing new technologies, offering innovative features, or providing superior customer service.
Build strong relationships with your customers. When customers feel valued and appreciated, they are more likely to continue doing business with you and to recommend your products or services to others. This can be done by providing excellent customer service, offering loyalty programs, or simply by being responsive to customer needs.

Here are some tips for growing your small business through volume growth:

Offer competitive prices. One of the best ways to attract new customers is to offer competitive prices. This could involve lowering your prices, offering discounts, or bundling your products or services.
Make it easy for customers to do business with you. Customers are more likely to do business with you if they find it easy to do so. This could involve making your website user-friendly, offering multiple payment options, or providing free shipping.
Build a strong online presence. In today’s digital age, it’s important for small businesses to have a strong online presence. This includes having a well-designed website, being active on social media, and using online advertising to reach new customers.

By following these tips, you can grow your small business through value or volume growth. The approach that is right for you will depend on your specific circumstances, but either approach can be successful if you execute it effectively.

DA1280 x 720 pixel image of business owners solving a problem, digital art

March 15 2023

Diagnosing or communicating – which is more important?

As a business owner, both diagnosing problems and effective communication are essential for success. And the two are connected in more ways than is obvious at a single glance.

Diagnosing problems in business can be particularly difficult because the underlying causes can be complex and multifaceted. For example, if your business is experiencing a decline in sales, there could be many different factors at play. It could be due to a change in consumer behaviour, increased competition, or even internal problems within your organization. To diagnose the problem accurately, you need to consider all of these factors and use data analysis and critical thinking skills to determine the root cause.

Effective communication is also important in this process, particularly when it comes to building relationships with customers, employees, and other stakeholders. Clear and concise communication can help you build trust, manage expectations, and avoid misunderstandings.

In most cases, effective communication can help you diagnose problems in your business. By listening to feedback from customers and employees, you can identify areas where your business needs improvement. For example, if employees are unhappy with their work environment, it could be due to a variety of factors, including poor management, a toxic culture, or inadequate compensation. To diagnose the problem accurately, you need to look at all of these factors and use data analysis and critical thinking skills to determine the root cause.

Furthermore, accurately diagnosing problems in your business can be emotionally challenging for business owners. When your business is struggling, it can be difficult to remain objective and focus on finding solutions. It can also be difficult to accept that your business may be facing serious challenges that require significant changes. This can take a toll on your mental and emotional health and make it harder to make the tough decisions necessary to turn things around.

Effective communication is often a key component of successful problem-solving in business. By communicating effectively with your team and other stakeholders, you can build buy-in for proposed solutions, inspire trust, and ensure that everyone is working towards the same goals. Clear communication can also help you manage expectations and avoid misunderstandings that could hinder progress.

In conclusion, while both diagnosing problems and effective communication are important for business owners, they are also complementary to each other. Accurately diagnosing problems in your business requires critical thinking skills, data analysis, and a willingness to accept tough truths about your organization. Effective communication often helps to achieve than accurate diagnosis. However, both of these skills are essential for success in business, and business owners should strive to improve in both areas. By focusing on accurate diagnosis and effective communication, business owners can build a strong foundation for success and ensure that their organizations are well-positioned to overcome challenges and thrive in the long term.

March 9 2023

Have you found your place to stand?

Archimedes said – “give me a place to stand and I’ll lift the world”.

In business, by finding your place to stand and by building your vision, you can lift your business to new heights.

For an entrepreneur, a clear personal vision is the foundation on which you build your business. To achieve your goals, you must have a strong sense of purpose and direction. Just like Archimedes needed a place to stand, an entrepreneur must also have a solid footing in their personal vision to lift their business to great heights.

The first step in building a successful business is having a clear and concise vision. It is the guiding light that directs every decision and action an entrepreneur takes. Without a clear vision, an entrepreneur can easily lose their way and fall short of their goals. This is why it is important to take the time to craft a personal vision that aligns with your values, passions, and goals. Your personal vision would be the driving force behind your growth mindset, pushing you to seek out new opportunities and take risks.

Your personal vision should be a reflection of your unique strengths and experiences. It should be something that inspires you to action and motivates you to overcome any obstacles that may arise. It is the foundation upon which you build your business, and without it, you risk being pulled in different directions or losing focus.

Once you have a clear vision, it is important to create a plan of action. This plan should outline the steps you need to take to achieve your vision. It should be flexible enough to allow for changes and adjustments along the way, but also structured enough to keep you on track.

One of the most significant challenges facing entrepreneurs is the fear of failure. It is easy to become discouraged when things do not go as planned, but it is essential to remember that failure is part of the journey. Instead of giving up, use failure as a learning opportunity. Re-evaluate your plan, adjust your course, and move forward with renewed determination.

Another key factor in achieving your personal vision is perseverance. Success does not happen overnight, and it takes hard work, dedication, and persistence to achieve your goals. There will be times when you feel like giving up, but it is important to keep pushing forward. Remember that every setback is an opportunity to learn and grow stronger.

As you work towards your personal vision, it is important to surround yourself with people who share your values and support your goals. Building a network of like-minded individuals can provide you with the support and resources you need to succeed. Whether it is through mentorship, having a coach, collaboration, or simply sharing ideas, having a strong support system can make all the difference.

Ultimately, achieving your personal vision as an entrepreneur is about taking action. It is not enough to have a clear vision and a plan of action; you must also take consistent and deliberate steps towards your goals. Whether it is networking, marketing, product development, or any other aspect of your business, it is important to take action every day towards achieving your personal vision.

In conclusion, the quote by Archimedes, “give me a place to stand and I’ll lift the world,” speaks to the power of having a clear and concise personal vision as an entrepreneur. Without a solid foundation to stand on, it is easy to become lost or lose focus on the path towards success. By crafting a personal vision that aligns with your values, passions, and goals, creating a plan of action, maintaining a growth mindset, persevering through challenges, and building a support network, you can achieve great things and lift your business to new heights.

September 1 2021

Is your Business an “Afghanistan”?

Major events invoke a lot of debate. Everyone has their own opinion and critiques, but I prefer to think about what you can learn from it to apply to business. And the Afghan “debacle” is no different.

So how you can compare the Afghanistan debacle to your own business? Let’s start with looking at why the US and its allies go into Afghanistan to start with. The objectives were very clear, very concise – they wanted to get Bin Laden and Al-Queda as the person(s) responsible for an attack on their own country. They made an offer to the Taliban to hand them over. That didn’t work and they invaded. So the purpose was very clear. Defeating Taliban or improving the Afghans way of life were not the goal. Defeating Taliban was just a means to the end.

But then why did they stay on? Osama bin Laden was killed almost 10 years back. Within a year or so into into the invasion of Afghanistan, it was clear Bid Laden wasn’t there. So what then went on was really mission creep. Once the Taliban were defeated and they had a new government in place, the justification turned to ensuring that Afghanistan should not become a place for Bin Laden and the likes again. And so it went on for 20 years until finally Biden (and Trump before that) took a decision to end the war, basically to cut all losses. The decision was a no-brainer but the only reason why presidents before Biden did not do that was precisely what we have seen in the past few days – the cost of shutting down a lossmaking operation it’s not pretty. Biden could have reversed Trump’s decision and he possibly would have been able to continue for this full term and even a second term with troops in Afghanistan. It took a lot of courage to make that decision and stick to it in spite of all the potential blowbacks.

So what does this all mean to your own business? How do most businesses start? When I work with business owners, it is quite clear that they have an idea, an ambition to make a difference. It is more often than not well defined, just as the objective of getting Bin Laden was.

But it takes time to achieve the goal. And that’s when things start creeping – there is this nice little opportunity that would just make us some money or here’s something we can also do along with our main objective. These are some of the justifications I hear when I ask my clients and prospects about how their business got to where it is. And before you know it, “20 years” have gone by. By then there are commitments to customers, suppliers and employees. There are no easy solutions – stopping something would invariably mean disappointing someone – themselves, their loved ones, their investors, etc. It is so much harder to stop things than it is to start them. And that is the second part of the lesson here – know when to cut your losses and be brave enough to do that – be a Biden.

In conclusion,

Write down your initial goal. Carve it, if you need to, but have it where you can always be reminded of it.
Have measures (KPIs) on the way to your goal. Review them regularly and be willing to adapt. Be prepared to abandon, if necessary.
Know when to cut your losses, and don’t be afraid to do so.
None of this is easy for those of us running our own business. So, have a sounding partner – someone to keep you honest.

February 19 2020

5 Rs to Success with Company Culture

Today I’d just like to talk to you a little bit about company culture and how culture can add value to your business.

What is company culture?

A Company Culture is the company’s shared vision and values. For small business, especially owner operated businesses, the company’s culture pretty much reflects the owner’s own vision and values.

Why is company culture important?

Having a defined company culture is important to the company’s success because it provides a consistent way of working and a way of satisfying customers right across the company.

How can leaders shape company culture?

Maintaining the company culture as it grows, is not just about defining the vision and values, it’s also about communicating them to your staff and living the company culture itself.

So how can you use culture to the advantage of your business?

If you’re a business leader looking for a solution of how to use company culture as an advantage to your business, here are five steps or the ‘five R’s’ on how to do this.

REPRESENT

First, make sure you have a good representation of your culture.

Think about your best employees. What are their best traits? How have they behaved?

What is common between those groups of employees?

As you go through it, you’ll possibly start coming up with words and phrases that will make up your company ‘values’. Review them to see if they truly represent the culture that you envision.

REVEAL

Next, it’s about Revealing this culture.. Then, to your customers, your suppliers, and very importantly to your own staff.

Use stories about why each of those culture statements came about, and examples of how you or some of the staff have lived the culture leading to great results.

REINFORCE

The next R stands for Reinforce

That’s about making sure that you make sure the culture is being integrated throughout the business. Lead by example, but also make sure that the culture is visible. At meetings, pick up an example of how the culture is actually implemented.

RECRUIT

Next R is for Recruit.

Recruiting the right people, for the type of person they are. Ensure that you are effectively hiring and that in the recruitment process the culture, the vision, the values, are out front.

Ask for examples as to what those would mean to the candidate and how they would look to implement them. You want to build a culture for recruitment.

Remember it is so much easier to find the right person for the culture and add functional knowledge to them, than the other way round.

RE-EVALUATE

And lastly, Reevaluate.

Getting advantage from a company culture is not a one-time effort, it’s not about just defining and communicating, but it’s also about making sure that you check its implementation time and time again.

When I work with small businesses as a Business Coach, I often do an exercise where I get the business owner to define what the culture is, and the employees to do that separately. And believe me, they don’t match most of the time.

So, it’s important to make those checks on regular intervals, and take corrective actions when needed.

To summarise, in order to ensure that culture can be used as a tool for success, be sure to use the 5 R’s:

Representation – make sure that the culture statements that you use represent the best of your people.

Reveal – take care about how you communicate the culture to your stakeholders, the staff, the suppliers, the customers and so on.

Reinforce. Walk the talk. Practice what you preach.

Recruit – make sure that you hire for the culture, not try to build the culture afterwards.

Reevaluate – Finally, continuously Reevaluate your company culture and consistently assess if it is being used effectively for your business growth and success.

February 18 2020

Features Vs Benefits

Today’s subject is yet another one that’s been inspired by a conversation I had with a business owner recently.

As we went through the challenges that he was facing, it was clear the major challenge was something that is far more common than you might think. The challenge of generating new leads.

I asked him what would make his customers come to him?

He recited a number of things, including;

His personal touch
His attention to detail
His adherence to making sure that his solution works in all different environments.

All great things I was sure that give him a very satisfied customer, and possibly return business. However it doesn’t necessarily address his current challenge. The one of new lead generation.

Why is that?

Because these are features of what the service is delivering, about what he does and how he does it. They make rational sense, but they don’t initiate action. This is because the brain does not react to those triggers.

If you want to know more about why I recommend doing things differently, then go and listen to the TED talk by Simon Sinek on ‘Start With Why’

Back to the subject…

If features will not generate new leads, what would?

You need to be talking about the benefits that you deliver and how each of those features that you have would make a difference in the customer’s life.

In other words you’re telling them why they should buy from you.

Changing your communication from talking about features to talking about benefits has a number of advantages;

It puts you in the customer’s shoes.
It makes you understand what the impact is that you have on the customer.
It helps you always convey something positive.
A feature can be interpreted as good or bad depending upon the circumstances.
A benefit on the other hand leaves very little room for misinterpretation.
Benefits are emotional.
Emotions trigger action, so they are much more likely to reach out and contact you.

In the earlier example, I changed the question slightly from;

Why would your customer come to you?

To; What would your customer benefit from you?

That totally changed the discussion.

How do you go about moving your communication from features to benefits?

You do that by showing that you C.A R E

CHALLENGE

First determine the Challenge that you’re solving for the customer.

ADVANTAGES

Then look at the Advantages you offer to the customer for solving that challenge. In effect, what the value you’re delivering is.

RESULTS

Go on to list the Result that the customer would get by deploying your offering.

ELIMINATE

And finally Eliminate jargon, use the language of the customer to communicate the challenge, the advantage and the result.

Take some time now, look at how you’re communicating your offering and convert your features into benefits with care; Challenge, Advantage, Result and Elimination of jargon.

November 20 2019

Be Approximately Right

Today I’d just like to talk to you a little bit about decision making. All of us make decisions all the time, and major decisions quite often and we depend upon data in order to make those decisions.

But here’s something that I’ve learned over time, it is much better to be approximately right rather than accurately wrong.

Yes I know it’s an oxymoron or actually a couple of oxymorons.

How?

Well let me explain what I mean.

When I was working at Nokia we used to use extensive Excel models to model our customers requirements. And it was a reality that quite often, once the customers implemented a solution, we’d find that it’s pretty accurate with where the models were.

But then there were quite a few occasions, given the number of parameters that went into the model, that we would make a wrong assumption. And when we do that, what a good data model means, actually, is it could be way off from what we intended.

This led me to the conclusion that is so much better to be approximately right rather than accurately wrong.

While data is important to making our decisions, it’s even more important to understand what the impact of those data points is on the decision that we would make. So rather than go for an extensive 100-person conclusion based on data, you should be looking at maybe something like 20% input of the data and 80% based on your experience, on your gut, on what you understand the rest of the parameters to be. That’s what makes a good decision from a bad decision.

You want to know what the impact of data would be rather than whether the data itself is accurate, especially when you’re dealing with predictions, because data is never accurate.

So here’s again how to look at data when you’re making decisions;

Yes I agree data is important, you need to collect as much information and data points as you can.
Look at what the variation of any of those data points would do to the overall results of outcome of the decision.
Use your gut to balance the data with your own experience and with experience from other people.

So at the end of the day, be approximately right, know you are in the ballpark before you make the decision, rather than try to be accurate to an extent where you could get to be accurately wrong.