Enter the “chief growth officer”: searching for organic growth
Abstract
Purpose
To explore the challenges associated with organic growth, outline three requirements for growing faster than the competition and evaluate the recent trend toward the establishment of a new executive position: “chief growth officer.”
Design/methodology/approach
The article is based on an organic growth study examining the performance of 107 “non‐acquisitive” companies (those with no major acquisitions between 1996 and 2000). It then looked more closely at companies identified as “growth leaders” to isolate the best practices that set them apart from their peers.
Findings
Research into corporate performance over the long term indicates that organic growth is the most important driver of value in the capital markets. Yet sustained organic growth is difficult to achieve. The article identifies common organizational barriers to growth and reveals three best practices of companies that consistently achieve organic growth faster than competitors. These three practices are: a more disciplined approach to growth, better organizational capabilities for driving growth and a more supportive culture. Finally, the article reviews the performance of companies that have appointed chief growth officers as a means to kick‐start growth.
Originality/value
This paper addresses an issue at the top of nearly every corporate agenda – organic growth. It also delivers a key message to companies looking to achieve their growth objectives by creating a new CGO position: strong, value‐enhancing revenue increases require wholesale changes in behaviors, capabilities and culture, not just a new box on the organizational chart.
Keywords
Citation
Meer, D. (2005), "Enter the “chief growth officer”: searching for organic growth", Journal of Business Strategy, Vol. 26 No. 1, pp. 13-17. https://doi.org/10.1108/02756660510575005
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2005, Emerald Group Publishing Limited