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Global Advisors’ Thoughts: How Daniel Rowland is relevant to your business success

Global Advisors’ Thoughts: How Daniel Rowland is relevant to your business success

Recently Global Advisors hosted multi-stage ultra-marathon runner Daniel Rowland as he gave a talk about his training and racing approach. The talk happened prior to Daniel racing in the Kalahari Augrabies Extreme Marathon 2013 – a 250km multi-stage race that takes place over 7 days through the extreme heat and difficult terrain of the Kalahari Desert. Competitors carry their own food, bedding, etc – water and sleeping tents are provided.

Daniel Rowland winning the Kalahari Augrabies Extreme Marathon 2013 (picture HermienWebb Photography, Facebook)

Daniel Rowland winning the Kalahari Augrabies Extreme Marathon 2013 (picture Hermien Webb Photography, Facebook)

Daniel won in a course record time. Earlier this year Daniel won the Atacama Crossing – another 250km multi-stage self-supported desert race across the Atacama Desert (the driest place on earth) and part of the prestigious Four Desert Series. The Four Desert Series attracts some of the finest Ultra-Marathon athletes in the world who compete only for the prestige – there is no prize money. These two races are Daniel’s first two multi-stage races in his first year as a professional runner.

Daniel Rowalnd leads the Atacama Crossing 2013 field en-route to victory (Picture Shaun Boyte in Trail Magazine Issue 7 - dwrowland.com)

Daniel Rowland leads the Atacama Crossing 2013 field en-route to victory (Picture Shaun Boyte in Trail Magazine Issue 7 – dwrowland.com)

There is no doubt that Daniel is a talented sportsman – he represented Zimbabwe as a triathlete and trained as a potential Olympian. But there are many talented athletes that fail to achieve sporting success. What makes Daniel as successful as he is?

Daniel abandoned his Olympic ambitions to study a Business Science degree at UCT. He was selected as a McKinsey intern. Following this he went on to work for Anglo American in South Africa, Alaska and Chile. Two-and-a-half years ago, Daniel entered his first ultra-marathon beyond 50km – the 100 mile Sustina race through the depths of the Alaskan winter, battling snow and night. Daniel finished fourth. Following Daniel’s blog (www.dwrowland.com) as an interested spectator and recreational runner with no real ambitions of running an ultra myself, I was struck by the regimen that Daniel adopts to life in general and running in particular. Even in his early ultra exploits, Daniel exemplified a simple approach that underlies most key management theory – Plan, Do, Review (PDR).

Plan appropriately for the execution against the goals that you aim to achieve, Do what you planned to and Review your execution against the plan.

This is not a once-off process – it can be repeated many times within a broader cycle and even within execution itself. Organisations might set five year strategies and budgets and then repeat the cycle on a yearly, quarterly or even short interval basis (for example, agreeing and reviewing plans at the beginning and end of shifts – a process typically referred to as short-interval controls). A rugby team might agree a game plan and evaluate its success during stoppages and breaks.

The PDR cycle is followed either consciously or subconsciously by outstanding performers in every field from arts to sport to business. It is a discipline. And like all disciplines it takes practice and fine-tuning to meet the needs of individuals and companies.

Daniel exemplifies the approach. He chooses a goal that is aligned to his interests and who he inherently is. He chooses a race goal and works backwards to fit in all the aspects of training, testing and recovery. He prepares a tailored program with his coach based on his knowledge, Daniel’s input and past performance. Daniel describes execution as doing what he knows he needs to do to achieve his goals.

Daniel is fastidious about all these aspects. He trains in blocks that ramp up to race distances and conditions. He tests all aspects of race conditions, including the diet he will live on in the desert, with the exact pack and equipment he will run with and in conditions on the race course or as close to these as he can find. His approach to optimizing his back pack illustrates this.

Daniel’s Augrabies pack weighed 6kgs and included 3,6kgs of food. Most of his competitors’ packs were 10kg or more. To accomplish the optimum pack weight required much more than selecting equipment against a recipe. He chose a pack that was lightweight and that he found comfortable. He trimmed excess strap lengths. He took the required equipment list (things like eating and cooking utensils, emergency equipment, etc) in their most minimally adequate form. He created a race diet that had the highest calorie to weight ratio possible. And he trained with the pack and on the diet, gradually tuning his choices and becoming utterly familiar with the diet and running with the pack for the periods and conditions matching those of the race. He blogs about all of his choices and tracks progress with data from his heart rate monitor supplemented with his logs of how he felt and his thoughts on what worked and what could be improved.

Every two weeks, Daniel runs a test on the same 12km route, in the same heart rate zone with the same pack weight and as-close-to-optimal body weight. He tracks his time on the test for improvement over the 30 week program leading up to a race.

While Daniel is clinical about the technical aspects of a race, he recognizes the critical importance of emotions – confidence and enjoyment are key to his success. He underpins what he does with a healthy and sustainable lifestyle. This includes enough sleep and recovery time and the community he surrounds himself with. Besides the general community of friends, Daniel’s core team is made up of people he trusts and who create confidence for him because they are present and contributing with a collective goal in mind. This team is comprised of his partner, coach and sponsor – a small and completely trusted core team.

It is an impressive routine and discipline for someone who not long ago, started out training in the very early hours of the morning prior to a demanding corporate job. All the discipline would mean little without stressing himself to the optimum level, and showing incredible willpower and drive. Daniel has willpower and drive in bucket-loads. What stood out to me is that while a level of willpower and drive is a product of who we are, Daniel manages this aspect carefully too. He takes care to push himself enough to develop greater levels of performance while managing the risk of illness and injury – an optimal stress level. Technical training, emotion and health all contribute to setting this optimum. Daniel recognises willpower is a limited resource and ensures he makes focused use of his reserves through routines and removing obstacles. He creates drive through seeing the excellence in others, momentary inspiration, his enduring motivation and the performance of competitors.

Daniel with some of the Global Advisors team after his presentation

Daniel with some of the Global Advisors team after his presentation

When Daniel left Global Advisors after his presentation, we were in little doubt that Daniel had done everything he could to prepare for the Augrabies race. We were confident he stood every chance of winning the race. But more importantly, so did Daniel – in his quiet, unassuming way.

Pick up most management books or business textbooks and you will find the PDR elements described above. We see them in place in the best businesses and clients. They are expressed in tools such as well articulated strategies, balanced scorecards, project management approaches, management and financial reporting. What is far more difficult than the adoption of a set of tools is the institution of the accompanying processes and culture. Discipline is hard enough for an athlete – successfully inculcating the PDR disciplines in a corporate setting requires strong leadership with a soft touch. It relies as much on the belief and cooperation of the team as a well-thought out approach. Just as hard as it must be for Daniel to ensure he preserves the space around him for a community that reinforces his process, beliefs and spirit, it is unbelievably hard to do the same in a business setting. My personal experience is that successful leadership requires walking a fine line between creating and implementing an optimal PDR approach / culture and creating some space to allow those who fit within that culture to find a place within it. That won’t always work out. You will lose some good people along the way as well as those who don’t belong. It is critical to ensure your team sees the benefits of your chosen PDR approach to ease their journey. It takes time – years – for the PDR approach and culture to develop a rhythm, The role of a core supportive team at a management level or on a project is critical to reinforce the PDR disciplines and build confidence. Daniel believes in “controlling the controllables” – the role of his core team illustrates this.

Daniel Rowland meeting Bruce Fordyce after his Kalahari Augrabies Extreme Marathon win (picture from @brucefordycerun on Twitter)

Daniel Rowland meeting Bruce Fordyce after his Kalahari Augrabies Extreme Marathon win (picture from @brucefordycerun on Twitter)

Daniel’s approach is not unique in its elements. Bruce Fordyce famously kept detailed notebooks of his training and races and was meticulous en-route to nine Comrades victories, the London to Brighton Marathon three years in a row and the 50 mile and 100km world records. He too focused on a holistic approach and kept mood records along with the details of his technical performance.

What I have become convinced about is that just as a management / PDR approach is required to prepare and practice for execution, so the approach must be applied and finely tuned over time. As I watched another amazing Kenyan marathon performance, I tweeted how ridiculously easy the lead runners ran at below 3 minutes to the km. Elana Meyer responded, “Practice makes excellence in action look easy.”

Daniel Rowland, Bruce Fordyce and Elana Meyer are inspirational examples of the power of a well-executed PDR process in sport. The same process exists in a well-executed dance routine, well-written academic career and of course in winning businesses.

What is your approach to running your business? How does it incorporate Planning, Doing and Reviewing? Would your approach support the creation and maintenance of a world-class athlete? Is your PDR approach communicated and understood? Is your culture supportive of the approach? Are you practicing the approach and adapting it for your company? What is the PDR mood?

Daniel is racing the Sahara Race (part of the Four Deserts series) in February 2014. You can follow his progress on the Four Deserts website or on Daniel’s blog.

This photo essay of the Atacama Crossing 2013 by Richard Bray will give you some idea of the challenge posed by multi-stage desert running and Daniel’s accomplishments.

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Strategy Tools

Strategy Tools: Repeatable Business Models in Times of Uncertainty

Strategy Tools: Repeatable Business Models in Times of Uncertainty

By Innocent Dutiro

Innocent is an associate partner at Global Advisors and based in Johannesburg, South Africa

Research (Allen and Zook) tells us that sustained profitable growth and the methods for capturing it are much less about the choice of hot market than about the how and why of strategy and the business model translating it into action. The ongoing Coronavirus crisis is likely to put these beliefs to severe test. It is likely that the survivors and winners that emerge on the other side of the crisis will be businesses that have pursued repeatable business models.

These businesses’ approach to strategy focus less on a rigid plan to pursue growth markets and more on developing a general direction built around deep and uniquely strong capabilities that constantly learn, continuously improve, test, and adjust in manageable increments to the changing market. Repeatable business models enable organizations to distinguish between transient crises and game-changing developments while enabling them to take action that ensures their sustained prosperity. All without compromising on the beliefs that underpin the culture of the organization.

This might sound counterintuitive; how does a repeatable business model help you deal with a “black swan” event such as the COVID-19 pandemic? To answer this question, it is important to understand the three principles that underpin repeatability.

Principle 1: A strong, well-differentiated core

Differentiation drives competitive advantage and relative profitability among businesses. The basis for differentiation must deliver enhanced profitability by either delivering superior service to your core customers or offering cost economics that help you to out-invest your competitors. The unique assets, deep competencies and capabilities that make this differentiation possible and that are translated into behaviours and product features, define the “core of the core” of the business.

Principle 2: Clear non-negotiables

Non-negotiables are the company’s core values and key criteria used to make trade-offs in decision making. These improve the focus and simplicity of strategy by translating it into practical behavioural rules and prohibitions. This reduces the distance from management to the frontline (and back). Employee loyalty and commitment is driven primarily by a strong belief in the values of the management team and the organisation’s strategy. A clearly understood strategy is evidenced through:

  • Widespread understanding of the strategy at all levels within the organization.
  • Seeing the world the same way throughout the organization.
  • A shared vocabulary and priorities.

Principle 3: Systems for closed-loop learning

Self-conscious methods to perceive and adapt to change alongside well-developed systems to learn and drive continuous improvement are hallmarks of successful repeatable business models.

A second form of closed-loop learning is more relevant to a crisis such as the coronavirus as it relates to those less frequent situations when fundamental change in the marketplace (like technology, competition, customer need and behaviour) threatens a key element of the repeatable business model itself. A company’s ability to adapt or have a sufficient sense of urgency in response to a potentially mortal threat is key to survival and continued prosperity.

The various steps that governments are taking to contain and eradicate the virus have the potential of building habits that consumers might choose to adopt on a more permanent basis even after the pandemic. These include working from home, remote meetings, reduced commuting, greater use of online services and more cashless transactions. Businesses thus need to be prepared to adjust and adapt their strategies and business models to meet the demand created by the new behaviours. Firms with a clearly defined set of non-negotiables will find it easier to mobilize their employees towards the necessary change.

While business is currently focused on taking measures to safeguard their staff, serve their customers and preserve cash to ensure liquidity during the period of low demand and/or production, attention should also be turning to steps necessary to adapt strategies to enable competitiveness in the new normal after the pandemic.

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Fast Facts

Selected News

Quote: Mark Cuban, American businessman

Quote: Mark Cuban, American businessman

“Treat your customers like they own you. Because they do” – Mark Cuban, American businessman

Mark Cuban (born 1958) is an American businessman, investor, and philanthropist. He is best known for being the owner of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks and the co-owner of 2929 Entertainment. Cuban has also been a prominent figure in the tech industry, founding or investing in several successful companies, including Broadcast.com, which he sold to Yahoo! for $5.7 billion.

Early Life and Career

Cuban was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and grew up in a working-class family. He dropped out of college at age 19 and moved to Texas, where he began his business career. Cuban’s entrepreneurial spirit led him to found several successful companies, including MicroSolutions, which he sold for $60 million.

Philosophy on Leadership

Cuban is known for his forward-thinking approach to leadership and business. He believes that leaders should focus on the future and creating positive change rather than dwelling on past mistakes or failures. His quote emphasizes the importance of innovation, adaptability, and a growth mindset in achieving success.

Key Teachings

  • Innovation and Risk-Taking: Cuban often advocates for taking calculated risks and embracing failure as a learning opportunity. He believes that innovation is essential for business success and personal growth.
  • Transparency and Honesty: He values transparency and honesty in both business and personal relationships, promoting the idea that open communication builds trust and fosters collaboration.
  • Continuous Learning: Cuban emphasizes the importance of lifelong learning and self-improvement, believing that personal development is a continuous process.

Impact and Legacy

Cuban’s entrepreneurial success and outspoken nature have made him a well-known figure in business circles. He has been featured in numerous books and documentaries, sharing his insights on leadership, investing, and entrepreneurship. His quote about leaders looking forward to create a better future reflects his belief in the power of innovation and positive change.

Motivational Style

Cuban’s style is characterized by his emphasis on transparency, honesty, and continuous learning. He often uses personal anecdotes and practical examples to illustrate his points, making complex ideas accessible and engaging. His ability to connect with audiences on a personal level has made him an influential figure in the world of business and entrepreneurship.

Influence on Modern Thought

Cuban’s teachings have influenced many modern thinkers and entrepreneurs

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