I executive tips

111111 ■■■1

Ups, Downs On Lifecycle

I

s it hard to raise an
can occur, however.
adolescent or harder
In my first article, July 12,
to take care of an
I shared insights into the key
aging parent? These are
talents that any successful
not family questions, but
executive brings to the table:
rather questions about
the producer, the adminis-
your business and what
trator, the entrepreneur and
stage in the lifecycle the
the integrator. Or we can
business truly is in.
remember PAEI, for short.
Over the next few
What becomes key is what
F. Kevin Browett
months, we will explore the
I would define as, "Should
Colum n i st
many aspects and layers
we manage using a capital P
that define the cycles that
or small p, or what combina-
any and every business goes through.
tion?" It is all about using the right skill
These cycles can range from infancy to set and leadership at the right stage,
adolescent to prime and even such key
for your company or business. It's no
phases as go-go and premature aging.
different from understanding that how
We can diagnose and then treat the
one coaches or teaches a 3-year-old is
cycle just as we as parents sometimes
not the same as for a 4-year-old.
need to recognize the age and the cycle
In future articles, we will define each
of behaviors we all see and experience
of these factors, from infancy to prime.
when helping our children grow and
We'll look at what to look for and how
learn and fall and get up again. The
to better manage and address these as
same holds true in business and the
one works to change and grow with
cycles that come about.
changing economic impacts and corn-
Knowing what and where you are on pany growth — or lack of growth.
the business lifecycle often means life
In each case, we will explore the
or death, growth or failure as we will
stage, then what is normal and what
soon learn.
is abnormal in that phase. We will add
The Adizes writings help us realize
in PAEI and what are the right skills to
that it is not the age of an organiza-
handle each phase — to fix, solve or
tion, but rather the lifecycle phase it is
hopefully grow your business!
in that makes a difference (Corporate
The goal? To better understand and
Lifecycles: Why Organizations Grow
then take the right action at the right
And Die And What To Do About It,
time to address these issues; and, in
Paramus, N.J., Prentice Hall 1989, Dr.
some cases, to realize that one needs a
Ichak Adizes).
change in people or their expertise to
Looking at Enron, which had been
handle a given phase. Or to realize that
around for many years, one would
what we, as business leaders, may need
have diagnosed that it was in the go-go to change or adapt to handle the cur-
phase and had all the bad symptoms of rent phase and help lead the business
go-go. A proper diagnosis would have
through to a new and growing trend.
led to fixing the problems before it was
Otherwise, we could be doomed to
too late.
failure.
Just as a child or youth goes through
what we often will describe as phases,
F Kevin Browett is COO of Jewish
so do companies and their manage-
Renaissance Media, parent company of the
ment teams. The key is that there are
Detroit Jewish News. He is a former vice
normal signs and symptoms of each
president at Troy-based Kmart Corp. and a
cycle; abnormal and destructive factors past small-business founder and officer.

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August 9 • 2007

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