The Curve Ahead

Book excerpt: Why do most growth companies stop growing? These fast-growing businesses are the engines of economic growth and wealth creation, but most fall behind the curve before reaching their potential. Executives are surprised when their business models mature sooner than expected, victims of the familiar S-Curve. Tragically, once-promising companies are often sold by investors too ready to throw in the towel. So what can leaders do to keep moving forward? To sustain growth, companies need to discover their next S-Curve. But few have a repeatable process for uncovering new opportunities before their core business stalls. The Curve Ahead offers a practical approach to sustaining long-term growth. It describes how growth companies can build innovation into the rhythm of their business operations and culture using design thinking, prototyping, business model design and other Innovation Power Tools. The Curve Ahead utilizes the power of storytelling to illustrate its messages. Power describes how LoJack and Groupon fell behind the curve, while Amazon, Jawbone, Darn Tough Socks and many others have fueled growth with a series of new S-Curves. This book will help thousands of mid-sized companies stay ahead of the curve and discover the path to unlimited revenue growth.