What you can learn from the Tour de France
The Tour de France bicycle race is arguably the most grueling of all sporting competitions. Several of the 21 stages that were contested recently over 23 days were 130 miles long, including assaults of the Alps and Pyreness Mountains.
Running a small business is arguably the most grueling of business endeavors and, in many ways, is a lot like competing in the Tour. Here are four examples.
1.Team structure
All Tour participants are part of sponsored teams, each composed of about 25 members with individual roles to play. Some members are supporting non-riders and some are riders who are there primarily to protect and push their leader. But all work together to meet team performance goals, including getting their leader on the podium at the end of the day or the end of the race. Sounds a lot like a small business, doesn't it?
Since any day in a small business can be like a mountain stage on the Tour - peaks and valleys - success requires the ability to motivate your team to work together effectively. And as legendary Tour winner, Lance Armstrong, has demonstrated, sustaining successful teamwork requires you to share the recognition so the team doesn't mind if you're the one on the podium.
2.Communication
Competing in the Tour is like running a marathon while simultaneously playing a chess match, so each team members has to understand his role in the overall strategy.
Even the best business strategy in the world must be communicated to your small business team so each member understands his or her role in the organization's plan to achieve success.
3.Preparation
All you have to do is watch one of the Tour de France cyclists in a mountain stage to see successful preparation. These guys have turned their bodies into human spring steel as they become one with their bikes.
The small business equivalent is to learn as much as you can about operating your business, your industry, the competition and, especially, your customers. And since your team also needs to know these things, prepare them by investing in training and practice.
4.Technology
Tour de France teams certainly leverage technology, including the high-tech bikes, customized chase vehicles, on-course communication tools, etc.
One of the keys to success for small businesses in the 21st century is in leveraging technology. If you want to stand in the winner's circle, you MUST find ways to use technology to make existing systems more efficient, as well as to help you take advantage of new opportunities.
Write this on a rock ... Small businesses can learn a lot from the Tour de France teams.
Jim Blasingame, Creator/Host of The Small Business Advocate Show
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