Exclusive Management Models

When no substantial results are seen, one gets tempted to relinquish the change and the corresponding effort. However, wise are those who keep their efforts on.

Well said, this universe is a school; here one can learn remarkable lessons from everyone and everywhere. Be it creatures, things, or situations– all carry some mystical message useful for our growth , development, and success. In the corporate parlance as well, marvellous management models can be derived from these. Here are three classic management models or concepts, which have been beautifully expressed by Jim Collins in his book 'Good to Great'. Let's derive useful nuggets from them on both professional and personal scales.

THE HEDGEHOG CONCEPT

This concept originates from an ancient Greek poem, written by Archilochus. It draws a comparison between two key characters– a fox and a hedgehog. The fox is a cunning creature.It aims at making a hedgehog its prey and invests hours in plotting an attack.It adopts complex and multiple strategies such as sneaking, racing, pouncing, etc. to trap a hedgehog. The hedgehog, on the contrary, is slow and quiet. Unlike the fox, it remains focused on managing its requirements of food and looking after its house, instead of going in for a bagful of complex strategies.

Now, from these aspects, one perceives the fox to be the definite winner. However, it is the hedgehog, which wins over the fox every time.Reason being, every time when the fox ambushes, the hedgehog simply rolls itself into a ball with spikes all around and the fox fails to grab it. Thus, the poem concludes with the crux that “the fox knows many things, but the hedgehog knows one big thing, i.e. to defend itself!” On this basis, Jim Collins talks about 'the Hedgehog Concept'. He mentions that when an organisation's focus is on one main thing, it is able to perform better and can easily beat its competitors.