March, 2012: The Spark of Celestial Fire

As food industry firms restart their growth engines and continue to emerge from the recession, they are resolved and naturally conditioned to apply focus and resources on their core business. This is where profit and cash flow reside, so who should dare take an eye off the Now and focus ahead on the Later and Much Later? 

The CEO.

"The manager has his eye on the bottom line; the leader on the horizon." - Warren G. Bennis

McKinsey's The Alchemy of Growth describes three strategic horizons that must be managed simultaneously for exceptional long-term performance and sustainable growth. Horizon One, defending and growing core business, is characterized by the following common organizational activities:

- Competitive positioning
- Marketing
- Product extensions
- Productivity enhancements
- Cost control

The immediacy, attitudes and annual budgeting processes keep many firms stuck in Horizon One, but it is imperative that the CEO take measureable steps that balance attention and investments in Horizons Two and Three to speed growth and deliver extraordinary results and innovation while simultaneously managing the differences between all of them. 

Horizon Two is fast-moving and entrepreneurial, requiring an investment in time, money and resources to focus on emerging opportunities that build new sources of revenue and capabilities. This is where substantial profits will come in the future. They include new customers, innovative new product lines and/or new operational and/or service capabilities.

Horizon Three is blue-sky and captivating by its very nature. It shows the seeds of future growth through smaller test-ventures such as taking minority stake in a new business. Many Horizon Three initiatives will gail given their exploratory nature but that exploration is necessary in order to decide what to foster down the road.

A well-managed growth strategy requires all three horizons are in play at once, with management residing primarily in One, and C-leaders extending their focus towards Horizons Two and Three.

Only then can organizations reach for the stars, staying aglow with celestial fire by growing innovative business in all its heavenly forms, Now, Later and Much Later.