You are on page 1of 2

No Time for Chickens

As we meet with more and more of the midmarket companies in America, we


are astounded at how many of them are hiding under their desk riding the
recession out.
The old Story of Chicken Little comes to mind: Chicken Little was in the
woods one day when an acorn fell on her head. It scared her so much that
she trembled all over. She shook so hard, half her feathers fell out.
Chicken Little is a story for teaching courage and it seems that courage is
what the midmarket lacks. This is troubling given that the midmarket is the
backbone of the American economy.
The National Center for the Middle Market at Ohio State Universitys Fischer
College of Business conducts the largest survey of the midmarket. The survey
of nearly 1,500 midmarket C-level executives concludes: the health of the
middle market is vital to overall U.S. prosperity. The center estimates that
the midmarket encompasses 195,000 businesses and contributes 34 percent
of total employment in the US. The study categorized only nine percent of the
midmarket companies as growth champions that exhibited double-digit
revenue growth in 2010 and 2011, and projected the same for the rest of
2012.
According to Doug Farren, Director of the National Center for the Middle
Market, the characteristics that set growth champions apart from slowergrowing companies include: having a sharper focus on customers, investing
in innovation, having a broader geographic vision for their business,
cultivating a strong management culture, and doing a superior job with talent
management. Its not who you are, its what you do that makes you a
growth champion, said Farren.
Investment in innovation was the strongest common theme across growth
champions, he said. They tend to invest 2.5 times more into R&D per sales
dollar than slower-growing companies.
Midmarket company executives that want to ascend the ladder from marginal
growth into growth champions should ask themselves some key questions,
including whether they allocate and protect funding for innovation, and how
they can strengthen innovation and make it repeatable and measurable.
The recession is a time of opportunity for smart companies to out-maneuver
the competitive field and for strong companies to put capital to work. It is the
perfect landscape to enact strategy and make strides in the market.
Here at the Studio we frequently discuss the paralysis that occurs in the face
of change and the desire to take calculated risk but the inability to pull the
trigger: all part of the human condition. Our working theory at the moment is

that growth and innovation isnt possible without growth in the team and in
the individual. To us, growth means expansion of the mind to empower
humankind to walk through and explore the unknown in the fabled door
number two.
The midmarket needs a shot in the arm. Dont be a Chicken Little. Dont be
afraid. No, thats not the sky falling. In fact, it may be opportunity knocking.

You might also like