Company Type 6: Solvers

Abstract

Solvers are those who see business as a way to solve problems of deep personal concern. The two major subtypes differ substantially. Direct solvers view solving problems as the challenge and raison d’être for their businesses. For example, an entrepreneur might start and run a company to find a cure for a disease that has personal meaning to him or her. In contrast, indirect solvers create and run businesses to contribute to solving bigger problems. Businesses might enable indirect solvers to develop technical knowhow, acquire financial strength, and develop large networks of people to eventually solve large problems. Many successful internet startups have evolved to work on riskier and tougher problems that have little relationship with their original core businesses. What differentiates solvers is that they pursue solutions to problems that are personally important. This stands in contrast to athletes, for whom the problems themselves are not critical, just the difficulty in finding solutions to them. Solvers treat profit as a secondary concern at best and tend to be devoted to finding solutions at all costs.