Yes, You need a Strategic Advisor,

a guide by your side, scaling-up your strategic IQ 

Working with a Guide by Your Side accelerates success. You’ll achieve your venture’s goals faster and easier than on your own. An expert Strategic Advisor will get results faster than what’s possible by reading a book, enrolling in a course, or searching the internet.

I’ve researched the venture landscape for several decades now. And, I’ve “seen” it all before …

The problem is that you’re in the fog of venturing! There are so many questions with so few clear answers!

You know you need more business acumen. You’ve tried to get this knowledge from sources like the internet. And, there’s plenty of free information there but none of it is organized. That tangled mess of information has to be unraveled. And, wading through all that scrambled information takes a lot of time that you just don’t have. What’s more, that information is so general that, even if you could decode it, it’s not useful at all because it doesn’t relate to your specific venture.

You might have also turned to a mentor–a close friend, teacher, or business associate. A mentor can be supportive. But, it doesn’t take long to realize that a mentor is not really equipped to be a strategic advisor. Mentors lack comprehensive understanding of the venture landscape. They can only tell you about their own experience. So, you cannot rely on them for sound strategic judgment. Mentors offer assistance at their own pleasure and convenience. You are not their primary concern. So, you cannot depend on them to be there when you need them the most.

Many ventures have failed because the entrepreneur was led in the wrong strategic direction by well-meaning but non-expert mentors who lack the requisite knowledge and skills for guiding an entrepreneur through the start-up and scale-up process.

Unquestionably, you need more than just a mentor.

The sure way to start and scale a venture is to get that required knowledge—the business acumen and strategic IQ—from a real strategic advisor.

the questions you should ask when

selecting a strategic advisor

The Jawbone Case study

Gain and Sustain Adaptive Advantage

Allow me to introduce you to a fast-learning venture–Jawbone, a Corporate Events Management Company headquartered in South Africa. Today, Jawbone is known worldwide for its unparalleled staging of Customized promotional exhibits and events.

When I met Sven Reinertsen, Jawbone’s Founder & CEO, he was adrift in the fog of venturing. Listen, Sven has Norwegian roots, and he is a true Viking with plenty of grit. But, the startup landscape is more than complex—it’s complicated!

Sven was searching for a strategic startup specialist who would be the guide by his side–an expert who would cut through the fog of venturing by transforming his business acumen, asking the tough questions, and holding him accountable for superior business results.

While Jawbone had a business model that was producing results, the venture needed a business strategy that would unleash its unicorn and obliterate the competition. So, Sven and I created the winning strategy that generated competitive advantage.

After performing a comprehensive strategic analysis of Jawbone and its competitive marketplace, I explained to Sven that the best business strategy for Jawbone would be innovation/quality—1) innovation because the exhibitions and events market requires novel designs that stand out from the mass of ordinary promotions and 2) quality because Jawbone’s method of creating brand experiences through execution and attention to detail is its soul.

Sven agreed with that strategic assessment. Then, the work of implementing that business strategy began. You see having the right business strategy is essential; but, it’s not sufficient for actually achieving competitive advantage.

The right strategy must be implemented into the fabric of the venture’s organization. With guidance, Sven set in place the necessary structures and systems for supporting the strategy of innovation/quality.

Adapt and Win the Intelligence Advantage

Sven, though, was still rightly concerned that Jawbone might be out-performed by competitors. Even though Jawbone had a competitive strategy as well as the requisite structures and systems, was the venture adaptive?

Adaptation is the elusive characteristic that distinguishes ventures that succeed from those that fail. But, what makes a venture adaptive?
Here’s the answer to that test question: It’s “Organizational Learning!”

That’s right. Organizations learn. In fact, every business is a learning organization. Yet, some businesses are smarter than others. They have the intelligence advantage—the ability to learn more and faster than their competitors.

Sven soon understood, to dominate its market, Jawbone needed this intelligence advantage. For Jawbone to be adaptive, its strategy, structure, and systems needed to be deeply embedded into the organizational culture.

Through lots of guided action and reflection accompanied by coaching and training, Jawbone learned how to learn. Jawbone became more perceptive to market forces and adroit at responding to changes in those forces.

Today, as an adaptive, learning organization with the intelligence advantage, Jawbone  dominates its market. Understanding that the only constant in its industry is change, Jawbone has learned to embrace and navigate change externally and internally.

Jawbone now focuses on its top 15 clients resulting in partnering with global brands such as Exxon Mobil, Nespresso, and Lego. While disrupting the status quo of its industry with a pioneering strategy, Jawbone also implemented change within its internal organizational structures, systems, and culture transforming Jawbone into a learning organization.

Because of these adaptive and transformative changes, Jawbone doubled its turnover and increased profits by 700 %.

Moreover, Sven continues to grow as a strategic leader through advanced coaching that further scales-up Jawbone’s Strategic IQ.

To survive and thrive, to become a unicorn, your venture needs to gain and sustain competitive advantage. To realize a competitive advantage, your venture must be adaptable; it must be able to learn. That makes you the leader of a learning organization. And, that means that you need to scale-up your own Strategic IQ as well as the Strategic IQ of your venture.

What Type of Venture Are You?

In My Professional Judgement…

You’ll master the mindset and skillset necessary

to start and scale your unicorn-bound venture.

You get personalized and unlimited, remote, one-to-one coaching sessions!

Here are the steps:

ONE

We’ll begin your coaching experience by clearly articulating your goals for the venture and formulating a strategic plan.

TWO

At each subsequent coaching session, we’ll focus on the progress you’re making towards accomplishing those goals. You set the agenda for every session. Collaboratively, we’ll work on whatever opportunities or problems that are in front of you. I’ll share my wisdom with you as I guide you through the process of starting and scaling your venture. Most importantly, I’ll remove your blind-spots and fit you with new lenses so you Venture With Vision!

Three

After each Coaching Session, I’ll send an email message to you containing a summary of your next milestone and the actions you need to take along with a link to my calendar for scheduling the next Coaching Session.

FOUR

When you’ve reached that milestone, you’ll schedule your next Coaching Session.

FIVE

And, we’ll keep repeating this process as you scale-up your Strategic IQ as well as the Strategic IQ of your venture!

As the Guide By Your Side, Maranville Enterprises Delivers…

Faster Execution

Start-up and Scale-up Faster by more effectively leading yourself and your venture with an expert Guide by Your Side.

Bigger ROI

Maximize the venture’s valuation with increased ability to think and execute strategically.

Clearer Purpose

Create an exclusive and original Strategic Plan uniquely formulated to give your venture a competitive edge.

Significantly Better and Measurable Results

Get  traction because you’re being held accountable for Accomplishing Your venture’s Milestones and producing results.

Simpler Process

Enjoy the startup experience with Peace of mind knowing that you have an expert Guide by Your Side.