Building a 100-year company
As opposed to a 30-year company; as opposed to a 10-year company; as opposed to a 3-year company…
* It’s key to remind ourselves now that longevity isn’t the goal to every company created. While companies such as Stella Artois, which was created in 1366, Twinings in 1706 and Encyclopaedia Britannica in 1768, still exist today; everything a high-tech start-up does is geared towards a higher-valuation exit-strategy. Just different businesses created with different intentions in mind.
Building a 100-year company requires:
1. Time. Creating things that are going to last, that are of value and that are relevant, require time.
2. Relevance. The company must continue to innovate its solutions to the problems it solves to make the market continue to want them. It must be indispensible, and be current to the markets’ needs.
3. Resilience. The past 100 years has seen the world go through two World Wars, one Cold War, countless recessions, the introduction of the television, the refrigerator, the personal computer and the PlayStation2. Creating a company structure that is flexible enough to adapt with the environment is essential to longevity.
4. Respect. For the industry, for its competitors, for its employees and for its customers. The company must remain on the high-ground, avoid shady deals, avoid quick fixes with instant financial gratification in place of long-term strategies, and always act in the best interests of the customers. Playing by the rules lets you sleep at night.
5. Reach out. No company is a temple, which exists alone on an island. Every company requires suppliers, wholesalers, freight and transportation companies and infrastructure maintenance companies in order to exist. Take care of them and take care of your customers’ and employees’ communities. Not only will this increase the profile of your company, but it will make your employees feel like they’re contributing towards a moral, worthy and just cause. People want to work for a company that contributes and makes a positive difference to society.
6. Take care of your employees. The aura of a company is filtered from the top down. If you want your customers to be satisfied, first satisfy your employees.
7. Set big goals constantly. The company needs to have something to work towards. Why do most 2nd-best companies stay in second place? All their goals are to be better than the 1st-place company. It’s always in the back of their mind - what will 1st do? How do I do better? The best company on the other hand, sets its own agenda, its own goals and its own milestones to march to. March to your own metrics and be the best at what you do. Don’t compare yourself to others and be second-best.
8. Be willing to apologise. Quickly. Facebook is a prime example of this. Users didn’t like that all their buying habits were pulled from their accounts and shown to all their friends. It spoiled Christmas surprises and birthday presents. So Facebook apologised and pulled it. Recently, Facebook changed its Terms and Conditions so that it could keep users’ information even if and after their accounts were deleted. Users hated it. Within two days of the notice coming out, it was gone. Because of these, Facebook users know that their voice and opinions have an impact and this reinforces their trust in the company. Facebook currently has 175 million users.
9. Be prepared to stick to you guns. People are scared of change. The status quo works, so why change? Facebook changed their layout a few months ago. Some people liked it; a lot of people didn’t. So the groups came up: “I hate the new Facebook”, and “If 1 million people join this group, the new Facebook will go”. But Facebook stuck by their decision. The new system provided a better interface for presenting all the applications Facebook offered and made the site easier to navigate. A few months later, the new Facebook is still up and the protests have stopped. Mark Zuckerberg knew the new Facebook was for the best, and in time, his customers came to realise that too.
10. Persistence. It’s so easy to give up all the time. Every moment, it’s easier to just throw in the towel and say, “this is too hard, I don’t want to do this anymore” rather than stand your ground and say, “this is hard as hell, but what the heck, I’m here now - I’m going to keep giving it a shot”. That takes guts. Standing in the face of every adversity that comes your way and making your way through it, proud of all your actions, and then, whatever the outcomes, being willing to toil on - that’s what it takes.
Building a 100-year company isn’t easy. Indeed, that’s why there aren’t that many around! But the value that these companies have to the world is incalculatable. Create something of value - aim for the 1-0-0.
March 4th, 2009 at 1:16 PM
This should be a 100 year blog :)
March 4th, 2009 at 1:43 PM
Interesting.
Let’s see this 100 year company of yours be founded then, hmm!
Staying alive in the business world means having to stay on top of everything and everyone that comes at you. Don’t be caught up by the water; grab your surfing board and surf atop of the tsunami.
March 5th, 2009 at 9:31 PM
Would love to team up with people who understand it.
Great post Marita !
March 7th, 2009 at 4:19 AM
Mark - Hahaha, I will try my best to live another 100 years; otherwise, I shall conjure extra services that contribute to the reader and hence create extra divisions of this blog. I could then cause a team to create this blog with me, and delegate different tasks to each member, before removing myself from the picture and moving on, offering my contributions and guidance during my life/association with the blog to ensure the vision and objectives of this blog are fulfilled.
Hok - Bring it! That tsuami sounds like fun!! :P
Kevin - Thanks for commenting Kevin. Team is so important in business, especially people who share the same values, objectives and vision. :)
Marita