Bruce Borup: Rejection of Linear Economics

I categorically reject the concept of linear or deterministic economics. I believe it is arrogant to think we can reliably predict the outcome of a multi-variant equation as complex as modern business. How many times have you seen a business try to plan its way through the future without any idea what the future holds in store? It's as if modern business plans were some sort of railroad you could build to ride a guaranteed success train that could only be derailed by unforeseen circumstances and natural disasters.

Business just doesn't work that way. A good friend of mine once said there ought to be a CEO's prayer, "please Lord, just one day without something going wrong!" You live and compete in a fog every day, making decisions with incomplete information and facing unpredictable competitors and global market conditions that change at a moment's notice. Under those conditions, what makes you think you can just pick a direction and achieve what you set out to do? Just how well do you have to execute to make a typewriter survive in today's marketplace?

The way you develop strategy has to change. The way you plan has to change. The way you manage has to change. How you do business is as important as what you do. The speed at which you do business is important. You have to recognize how you interact with your competitive landscape. Your ability to adapt is as important as what you make. Even how you communicate is a strategic advantage.

Your first step in building a strategy in today's business environment is for you, your board, your management team, your employees, your shareholders and all your stakeholders, to admit that you don't know everything and that you only have the tiniest clue of what the future holds in store. As a leader, that is the reality you must define for your enterprise. Everything else is arrogance! Then, and only then, can you begin to build a strategy.

Bruce Borup