How do the world’s most successful companies remain agile and innovative? How do they consistently launch new products and services that generate raving fans?
According to Behnam Tabrizi, author of Going On Offense, they develop a winning mindset, a dedication to perpetual innovation and relentless experimentation.
For most companies, that’s not business as usual. And it’s probably why they only dream about competing with Amazon or Netflix.
Perpetual innovation demands a cultural shift. And as it happens, transformation is Tabrizi’s primary focus as a teacher, scholar, and consultant.
He wrote Rapid Transformation and The Inside-Out Effect to help companies boost their agility and innovation. But he soon realized there was yet another question that needed to be answered. Namely, how do you remain perpetually innovative?
In Tabrizi’s words, “Going On Offense is the third leg of the stool.” Not only does it show you how to build a culture of innovation, it helps you go on the offense, using innovation as a growth lever.
Going On Offense is a brilliant deconstruction of the mindsets and frameworks used by the world’s most innovative companies to maintain their edge. Tabrizi’s lessons may or may not turn you into the next Amazon, but they will definitely open your mind to the potential hiding in plain sight within your business.
About Behnam Tabrizi
Dr. Behnam Tabrizi is the authority on transformation. He has taught more than 25 years at Stanford University and its executive program. He has won two teaching and prestigious scholarly awards. He’s also authored 10 books on transformation and innovation.
Tabrizi’s research with McKinsey & Co. on 100+ companies around the globe on “Accelerating Transformation” was hailed as “pioneering work” by the New York Times, Chicago Tribune, The Washington Post, and the San Jose Mercury News. He has also been interviewed by BBC and C-SPAN regarding his recent work on transformation.
He has served on the boards of Clever Sense (sold to Google) and Catapult Ventures, and has held positions at the Harvard Business School and the Stanford Graduate School of Business. He is the Chairman of Rapid Transformation, LLC, based in Palo Alto, CA.
About Going On Offense
Reviewers have said they expect Going On Offense to become required reading in both boardrooms and classrooms.
Very likely. But this isn’t your typical textbook. It’s well-researched and well-organized, sure. It’s also thoroughly readable. The lightbulbs that start flickering over your head as you read are going to keep you riveted.
One of the most impressive things about this book is how it condenses and simplifies advanced ideas to be accessible to anyone.
Tabrizi wrote Going On Offense to provide a playbook for perpetual innovation. But playbooks can be difficult for the layperson to understand. Most of us don’t have the foundational knowledge to understand or execute on them.
Tabrizi gets that. So he clearly explains his concepts and terminology before sharing the playbook in the final chapter. He tells stories and provides examples that crystalize his ideas. And that’s what the book is about.
By the time you get to the playbook, you’re already putting things together yourself. You understand it. And you’re confident you can execute on it.
The book is organized by three qualities of an innovative company: generous, ferocious, and courageous. Tabrizi breaks each of them down, shares examples of how they’re displayed in successful organizations, and shows you how you can integrate these same qualities into your business.
My Takeaways
I had breakthrough responses to all three sections of Going On Offense.
The concepts themselves aren’t anything new — we intuitively know we should be generous, ferocious, and courageous in business. My breakthroughs came more from the examples and stories.
I loved learning how uber-successful companies have navigated change and growth. We tend to focus on the shiny success stories of companies like Netflix, Amazon, Apple, Tesla, and Zara. But Tabrizi takes us behind the scenes. He tells us about mistakes and mindsets that threatened them. He also shows us how they overtook their competitors and what they’re doing to maintain their status as leaders in the industry.
Tabrizi puts failure into perspective: “Business is notoriously messy … So fear of failure is usually about fear of humiliation. But the only way to fight an emotion is with another emotion.”
As an entrepreneur, I’m always solving difficult problems. They may be market changes that need to be addressed. Or a new technology that’s disrupting… everything. (AI, anyone?)
Tabrizi reassures you that discomfort and unrest are part of the process. They inspire innovation. They lead us to break the rules and test unusual solutions. They help us do what’s right rather than what’s expected.
“Boldness is less about chasing volume or speed and more about quality.… A temporary pullback will upset some customers, but can be crucial to ensuring that the product quality remains high.”
If you’re an entrepreneur, business owner, or leader within your organization, and if you are responsible for solving big problems, driving growth, or developing new products, Going On Offense is your guide. Read it. Then read it again.
Tabrizi is giving you the keys to accelerated growth and perpetual innovation. The real question is, What will you do with them? I can’t wait to see it.
