It seems all too easy for business to become fragmented these days. There is so much change. New technologies

• New industries
• New tools
• New emerging markets
• On and on...

 If we cannot maintain our focus, it is easy to get distracted. We can find ourselves pulled in too many directions to maintain excellence in all areas.

If this tendency is true in business, we must recognize that it is also a risk with a BAM project.

Jim Collins and his team wrote a popular business book – Good to Great.,
In addressing the challenge of focus, he encouraged companies to consider a Hedgehog Concept.

Collins defined the “hedgehog concept.”

1.      What you can be the best at—you should:

• Determine what should be attempted by ability, not ego
• Determine what you cannot be best at
• Keep it simple and straightforward
• You may not be doing it now. Your core business may not be the thing you could be the best in the world at

2.      What drives your economic engine—strive to:

• Determine your organization’s single economic denominator
• Understand what the key economic drivers are
• Build your system according to that understanding

3.      What you are deeply passionate about—seek to discover:

• What ignites your passion and the passion of those that work with you
• The passion can be found in the mechanics of the work or can be focused on what the company stands for

Collins compared the discovery/definition of these three arenas to moving out of a fog into a clear understanding. That is pretty huge when it comes to knowing what to focus on.

When you can determine where these three areas overlap, you have an excellent idea of where you should be focusing.

Next time we will look at a variation of Collins’ model that considers the spiritual dimension important for a BAM.

Blessings,

Larry