Harnish harnesses the hunger

Verne Harnish says there is a bit of entrepreneur in everybody. And he should know, having gone from working in his father’s appliance repair business to now travelling the globe in his role as an international company growth guru.

But there are two key attributes that distinguish those who are likely to be successful from those that aren’t, according to Mr Harnish.

“What I’ve seen in educating leaders and companies after all these years is that those who are the hungriest to learn do best,” Mr Harnish told WA Business News.

“They never think they’ve learnt it all. The minute they do…that’s when the market seems to slap them upside the head.”

The author of Mastering the Rockefeller Habits: What you must do to increase the value of your fast-growth firm, says successful business leaders also have a bias for action.

“They learn something, and then they’re on the phone, email, they’ve already sent back a note to say ‘we're going to do this’,” Mr Harnish said.

Speaking to a packed ballroom of some of Western Australia’s top business leaders at the WA Business News Rising Stars seminar last week, Mr Harnish elaborated on his three key steps to mastering growth – priorities, data, and rhythm.

“Set priorities, realise you can’t do everything everyday. Organisations need to be led and guided,” he said.

“Do you have the right data so you can see what’s going on and make the decisions?

“The other key issue is communication. That’s why the meeting rhythm is critical, so that the organisation can stay alive and is not fighting cross purposes.”

The founder of the Young Entrepreneurs Network, MIT Executive Program and Gazelles Inc sees his job as giving business leaders the tools to help them channel what they’re best at – giving them practical advice on how to grow their firm.

Drawing influence from a vast number of business mentors and influential CEOs, including JD Rockefeller and Apple’s Steve Jobs – who he labels “the first real young entrepreneur of our generation” – Mr Harnish explains how, above all else, discipline can help business leaders grow their companies, and weather the downturns.

“Every cycle comes to an end – if people can predict it we’d all be worth more money,” he said. “It’s really easy when things are going well to be undisciplined. When the wave is going, it covers up a whole lot of bad discipline. But when it’s over, the folks who are undisciplined get found out.”

And for those people dreaming of packing in their day jobs to start their own business, Mr Harnish has one piece of advice – go with your passion.

 “What gets you in trouble is people who go into a business because it looks like it could make you a lot of money,” he said. “If you don’t have a passion for it, it will not sustain you through the bad times. And I guarantee, there will be bad times.”