The jump from player-coach to force multiplier is the one most CEOs I work with stall on and the reason is almost always the same: they haven't built the communications architecture to operate at that range. A force multiplier CEO has to be legible to people they've never met. That requires a voice stack, not just a style. The ones who make the transition fastest are the ones who treat their communication like infrastructure.
Do you think some businesses cannot scale? Not necessarily in bad way, but in the sense that they are so niche that scaling would dilute the integral structure of the brand? I’d love to hear your thoughts.
One particular company comes to mind-Five Guys. Five Guys started in my hometown of Arlington, Virginia. I went to their very first location next to Brenner’s Bakery on Columbia Pike. The burgers were so good that you could smell them before you even got inside. There was nowhere to sit, just a tiny, grab and go place. You placed your order and then shelled and ate peanuts (in true Virginia style) while you waited for your order. They’d call your number and you’d grab your order and go.
Now I won’t even touch Five Guys because the quality has gone down tremendously from that hole in the wall. Sometimes growth can stay small and still be extremely profitable and maintain the quality. Perfect example are a lot of small businesses in NYC; they’re still small but grossing massive profits.
I know this is a different take but I’d love your perspective on that.
There are definitely businesses that aren't built to scale. The question is whether the way they finance the business ends up being a forcing function for them to scale. Or whether they're aspirations to create a global brand drive them to scale. And many other reasons why they may want or need to scale. But it is hard to scale and maintain quality, many brands have done it but it's not easy.
Thank you for your succinct reply and you hit it on the nail-it’s not easy to scale and maintain quality.
Just on a humanistic level, we all have different standards, right? And business doesn’t run without humans. So that’s a determining factor right there. The founder’s level of quality and standards aren’t going to be the same as the DOO’s level and quality.
And trying to scale characteristics is like scooping water out of the ocean with a teaspoon and expecting to make decent headway-it’s impossible.
But of course, there are guidelines that can be set in place to at least have a regulatory framework.
So that’s a whole topic within itself-I could go down this rabbit hole for years and just reach the tip of the iceberg.
Then going into the finance aspect, that depends on the structure, right? Because if they’ve taken on VCs or investors who expect to have a profitable return, that is usually indicative of a business structure expected to scale and scale beyond the integral quality (usually). Even if bootstrapped and self-funded, you will want to make a return on your own investment, but depending on the set expectations, you could scale at a much smaller rate and keep your consistency.
Back to Five Guys, I feel they could’ve been the second option. They were never not busy, even in their tiny shop. If they had taken over, let’s say Brenner’s Bakery-a much larger space, then they could’ve scaled with quality. Open a second location at right down Columbia Pike, they would’ve made millions (probably already did from their first spot), and a second larger location could’ve easily put them at 8 figures without tampering with their existing quality.
That’s just my perspective; then again, I’ve been in business since I was 5 with my family ventures. I’ve seen every bit of failures, had plenty plenty plenty of my own 🤣🤣, and witnessed successes too.
The jump from player-coach to force multiplier is the one most CEOs I work with stall on and the reason is almost always the same: they haven't built the communications architecture to operate at that range. A force multiplier CEO has to be legible to people they've never met. That requires a voice stack, not just a style. The ones who make the transition fastest are the ones who treat their communication like infrastructure.
Do you think some businesses cannot scale? Not necessarily in bad way, but in the sense that they are so niche that scaling would dilute the integral structure of the brand? I’d love to hear your thoughts.
One particular company comes to mind-Five Guys. Five Guys started in my hometown of Arlington, Virginia. I went to their very first location next to Brenner’s Bakery on Columbia Pike. The burgers were so good that you could smell them before you even got inside. There was nowhere to sit, just a tiny, grab and go place. You placed your order and then shelled and ate peanuts (in true Virginia style) while you waited for your order. They’d call your number and you’d grab your order and go.
Now I won’t even touch Five Guys because the quality has gone down tremendously from that hole in the wall. Sometimes growth can stay small and still be extremely profitable and maintain the quality. Perfect example are a lot of small businesses in NYC; they’re still small but grossing massive profits.
I know this is a different take but I’d love your perspective on that.
There are definitely businesses that aren't built to scale. The question is whether the way they finance the business ends up being a forcing function for them to scale. Or whether they're aspirations to create a global brand drive them to scale. And many other reasons why they may want or need to scale. But it is hard to scale and maintain quality, many brands have done it but it's not easy.
Thank you for your succinct reply and you hit it on the nail-it’s not easy to scale and maintain quality.
Just on a humanistic level, we all have different standards, right? And business doesn’t run without humans. So that’s a determining factor right there. The founder’s level of quality and standards aren’t going to be the same as the DOO’s level and quality.
And trying to scale characteristics is like scooping water out of the ocean with a teaspoon and expecting to make decent headway-it’s impossible.
But of course, there are guidelines that can be set in place to at least have a regulatory framework.
So that’s a whole topic within itself-I could go down this rabbit hole for years and just reach the tip of the iceberg.
Then going into the finance aspect, that depends on the structure, right? Because if they’ve taken on VCs or investors who expect to have a profitable return, that is usually indicative of a business structure expected to scale and scale beyond the integral quality (usually). Even if bootstrapped and self-funded, you will want to make a return on your own investment, but depending on the set expectations, you could scale at a much smaller rate and keep your consistency.
Back to Five Guys, I feel they could’ve been the second option. They were never not busy, even in their tiny shop. If they had taken over, let’s say Brenner’s Bakery-a much larger space, then they could’ve scaled with quality. Open a second location at right down Columbia Pike, they would’ve made millions (probably already did from their first spot), and a second larger location could’ve easily put them at 8 figures without tampering with their existing quality.
That’s just my perspective; then again, I’ve been in business since I was 5 with my family ventures. I’ve seen every bit of failures, had plenty plenty plenty of my own 🤣🤣, and witnessed successes too.