Successfully Managing the Hidden Danger of Rapid Growth: Theoretical Framework, Measurement Tools, and Practical Applications

Eric Flamholtz; Yvonne Randle; Simon Kuang Yaojun; Tony Wong Xiaohong; Ivy Sun Qian

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13

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Successfully Managing the Hidden Danger of Rapid Growth: Theoretical Framework, Measurement Tools, and Practical Applications

Eric Flamholtz, Yvonne Randle, Simon Kuang Yaojun, Tony Wong Xiaohong, Ivy Sun Qian

Published in American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Business (Volume 4, Issue 2)

Received: 23 April 2018 Accepted: 31 May 2018 Published: 14 June 2018

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Abstract

All business organizations seek growth. Very rapid growth is celebrated as an indication of organizational success. But while growth in general, is good, too much growth too rapidly can be a very serious problem for organizations if they do not manage it appropriately. This problem is termed the “hidden dangers” of very rapid growth. Based upon decades of experience and research, this article examines how a company can identify and assess the severity of the dangers of too rapid growth. Accordingly, the article identifies the ten most common organizational growing pains; presents a method for measuring their severity and interpreting the degree of risk posed by of various “levels” (numerical scores) of growing pains; examines a case example of a company dealing with growing pains; and proposes some practical actions steps to reduce growing pains and their related risks (danger). The article proposes that the optimal strategy for a firm that anticipates rapid growth is to build an infrastructure sufficient for the size of the organization it anticipates becoming prior to actually reaching that size.

Published in	American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Business (Volume 4, Issue 2)
DOI	10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13
Page(s)	48-56
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2018. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Rapid Growth Growing Pains, Hidden Dangers, Infrastructure

References

[1]	Mitchell, R. “Tesla’s Troubles,” Los Angeles Times. Business, pp. 1 and 7, February 18, 2018.
[2]	M Mitchell, R. “Tesla’s Troubles,” Los Angeles Times. Business, pp. 1 and 7, February 18, 2018itchell, R. “Tesla’s Troubles,” Los Angeles Times. Business, pp. 1 and 7, February 18, 2018.
[3]	Flamholtz, E. and Y. Randle, Growing Pains: Building Sustainably Successful Organizations, Wiley 2016.
[4]	Source: Management Systems growing pains data base, unpublished. 1980 to present.
[5]	Flamholtz, E. G. (2002-03) “Towards an Integrative Theory of Organizational Success and Failure: Previous Research and Future issues,” International Journal of Entrepreneurship Education, Vol. 1, Issue 3, pp. 297-319.
[6]	Flamholtz, Eric G. and Z. Aksehirli, (2000) Organizational Success and Failure, an Empirical Test of a Holistic Model, European Management Journal, 18, (5) 488-498.
[7]	Flamholtz, E. and Hua, Wei, (2002). Strategic Organizational Development and the Bottom Line: Further Empirical Evidence, European Management Journal, 20 (1), 72-81.
[8]	Flamholtz, E. (2001). “Corporate Culture and the Bottom Line,” European Management Journal, 19 (3), 268-275.
[9]	Flamholtz, E and Kurland, S. Strategic organizational Development, infrastructure and Financial Performance: An Empirical Test, International Journal of Entrepreneurial Education, Vol 3, Issue 2 (2005), pp. 117-142.
[10]	Flamholtz E and Y. Randle (1987) The Inner Game of Management, AMACOM.
[11]	McGee, M. and E. Flamholtz (2005), The Transformation from Entrepreneurship to professional Management at Pardee Homes, International Journal of Entrepreneurial Education, Vol 3, Issue 2 pp. 185-204
[12]	Nayar, M. and Flamholtz, E.(2005) The Transformation from Entrepreneurship to professional Management at Unitech Systems, International Journal of Entrepreneurial Education, Vol 3, Issue 2 pp. 169-184.

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APA Style

Eric Flamholtz, Yvonne Randle, Simon Kuang Yaojun, Tony Wong Xiaohong, Ivy Sun Qian. (2018). Successfully Managing the Hidden Danger of Rapid Growth: Theoretical Framework, Measurement Tools, and Practical Applications. American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Business, 4(2), 48-56. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13

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ACS Style

Eric Flamholtz; Yvonne Randle; Simon Kuang Yaojun; Tony Wong Xiaohong; Ivy Sun Qian. Successfully Managing the Hidden Danger of Rapid Growth: Theoretical Framework, Measurement Tools, and Practical Applications. Am. J. Theor. Appl. Bus. 2018, 4(2), 48-56. doi: 10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13

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AMA Style

Eric Flamholtz, Yvonne Randle, Simon Kuang Yaojun, Tony Wong Xiaohong, Ivy Sun Qian. Successfully Managing the Hidden Danger of Rapid Growth: Theoretical Framework, Measurement Tools, and Practical Applications. Am J Theor Appl Bus. 2018;4(2):48-56. doi: 10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13

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@article{10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13,
  author = {Eric Flamholtz and Yvonne Randle and Simon Kuang Yaojun and Tony Wong Xiaohong and Ivy Sun Qian},
  title = {Successfully Managing the Hidden Danger of Rapid Growth: Theoretical Framework, Measurement Tools, and Practical Applications},
  journal = {American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Business},
  volume = {4},
  number = {2},
  pages = {48-56},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajtab.20180402.13},
  abstract = {All business organizations seek growth. Very rapid growth is celebrated as an indication of organizational success. But while growth in general, is good, too much growth too rapidly can be a very serious problem for organizations if they do not manage it appropriately. This problem is termed the “hidden dangers” of very rapid growth. Based upon decades of experience and research, this article examines how a company can identify and assess the severity of the dangers of too rapid growth. Accordingly, the article identifies the ten most common organizational growing pains; presents a method for measuring their severity and interpreting the degree of risk posed by of various “levels” (numerical scores) of growing pains; examines a case example of a company dealing with growing pains; and proposes some practical actions steps to reduce growing pains and their related risks (danger). The article proposes that the optimal strategy for a firm that anticipates rapid growth is to build an infrastructure sufficient for the size of the organization it anticipates becoming prior to actually reaching that size.},
 year = {2018}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Successfully Managing the Hidden Danger of Rapid Growth: Theoretical Framework, Measurement Tools, and Practical Applications
AU  - Eric Flamholtz
AU  - Yvonne Randle
AU  - Simon Kuang Yaojun
AU  - Tony Wong Xiaohong
AU  - Ivy Sun Qian
Y1  - 2018/06/14
PY  - 2018
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13
DO  - 10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13
T2  - American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Business
JF  - American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Business
JO  - American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Business
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AB  - All business organizations seek growth. Very rapid growth is celebrated as an indication of organizational success. But while growth in general, is good, too much growth too rapidly can be a very serious problem for organizations if they do not manage it appropriately. This problem is termed the “hidden dangers” of very rapid growth. Based upon decades of experience and research, this article examines how a company can identify and assess the severity of the dangers of too rapid growth. Accordingly, the article identifies the ten most common organizational growing pains; presents a method for measuring their severity and interpreting the degree of risk posed by of various “levels” (numerical scores) of growing pains; examines a case example of a company dealing with growing pains; and proposes some practical actions steps to reduce growing pains and their related risks (danger). The article proposes that the optimal strategy for a firm that anticipates rapid growth is to build an infrastructure sufficient for the size of the organization it anticipates becoming prior to actually reaching that size.
VL  - 4
IS  - 2
ER  -

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Author Information

Eric Flamholtz

Anderson School of Management, UCLA, Los Angeles, USA
Yvonne Randle

Management Systems Consulting Corporation, Los Angeles, USA
Simon Kuang Yaojun

KS Consulting, Shenzhen, China
Tony Wong Xiaohong

KS Consulting, Shenzhen, China
Ivy Sun Qian

KS Consulting, Shenzhen, China

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Plain Text BibTeX RIS

APA Style

Eric Flamholtz, Yvonne Randle, Simon Kuang Yaojun, Tony Wong Xiaohong, Ivy Sun Qian. (2018). Successfully Managing the Hidden Danger of Rapid Growth: Theoretical Framework, Measurement Tools, and Practical Applications. American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Business, 4(2), 48-56. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13

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ACS Style

Eric Flamholtz; Yvonne Randle; Simon Kuang Yaojun; Tony Wong Xiaohong; Ivy Sun Qian. Successfully Managing the Hidden Danger of Rapid Growth: Theoretical Framework, Measurement Tools, and Practical Applications. Am. J. Theor. Appl. Bus. 2018, 4(2), 48-56. doi: 10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13

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AMA Style

Eric Flamholtz, Yvonne Randle, Simon Kuang Yaojun, Tony Wong Xiaohong, Ivy Sun Qian. Successfully Managing the Hidden Danger of Rapid Growth: Theoretical Framework, Measurement Tools, and Practical Applications. Am J Theor Appl Bus. 2018;4(2):48-56. doi: 10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13,
  author = {Eric Flamholtz and Yvonne Randle and Simon Kuang Yaojun and Tony Wong Xiaohong and Ivy Sun Qian},
  title = {Successfully Managing the Hidden Danger of Rapid Growth: Theoretical Framework, Measurement Tools, and Practical Applications},
  journal = {American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Business},
  volume = {4},
  number = {2},
  pages = {48-56},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajtab.20180402.13},
  abstract = {All business organizations seek growth. Very rapid growth is celebrated as an indication of organizational success. But while growth in general, is good, too much growth too rapidly can be a very serious problem for organizations if they do not manage it appropriately. This problem is termed the “hidden dangers” of very rapid growth. Based upon decades of experience and research, this article examines how a company can identify and assess the severity of the dangers of too rapid growth. Accordingly, the article identifies the ten most common organizational growing pains; presents a method for measuring their severity and interpreting the degree of risk posed by of various “levels” (numerical scores) of growing pains; examines a case example of a company dealing with growing pains; and proposes some practical actions steps to reduce growing pains and their related risks (danger). The article proposes that the optimal strategy for a firm that anticipates rapid growth is to build an infrastructure sufficient for the size of the organization it anticipates becoming prior to actually reaching that size.},
 year = {2018}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Successfully Managing the Hidden Danger of Rapid Growth: Theoretical Framework, Measurement Tools, and Practical Applications
AU  - Eric Flamholtz
AU  - Yvonne Randle
AU  - Simon Kuang Yaojun
AU  - Tony Wong Xiaohong
AU  - Ivy Sun Qian
Y1  - 2018/06/14
PY  - 2018
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13
DO  - 10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13
T2  - American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Business
JF  - American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Business
JO  - American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Business
SP  - 48
EP  - 56
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2469-7842
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajtab.20180402.13
AB  - All business organizations seek growth. Very rapid growth is celebrated as an indication of organizational success. But while growth in general, is good, too much growth too rapidly can be a very serious problem for organizations if they do not manage it appropriately. This problem is termed the “hidden dangers” of very rapid growth. Based upon decades of experience and research, this article examines how a company can identify and assess the severity of the dangers of too rapid growth. Accordingly, the article identifies the ten most common organizational growing pains; presents a method for measuring their severity and interpreting the degree of risk posed by of various “levels” (numerical scores) of growing pains; examines a case example of a company dealing with growing pains; and proposes some practical actions steps to reduce growing pains and their related risks (danger). The article proposes that the optimal strategy for a firm that anticipates rapid growth is to build an infrastructure sufficient for the size of the organization it anticipates becoming prior to actually reaching that size.
VL  - 4
IS  - 2
ER  -

Copy | Download