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THE BIG RUT

WHAT IS THE BIG RUT?

  • The Big Rut is the sixth stage in every organization’s development, after Early Struggle, Fun, Whitewater, Predictable Success and Treadmill.
  • An organization falls into The Big Rut when it ceases to see the customer (or the people it is serving, if a NFP) as its main reason for being.
  • Most organizations in The Big Rut view their own existence as their primary reason for being—in other words, they become self-perpetuating institutions.
  • Organizations in The Big Rut are almost exclusively peopled with bureaucrats and administrators. Visionaries and hands-on “operators” leave in frustration.
  • The difference between being in Treadmill and being in The Big Rut is that in Treadmill there is frustration with the organization’s loss of creativity and vision. In The Big Rut creativity and vision are actively discouraged.
  • When an organization falls into The Big Rut, it loses the ability to self-diagnose its con- dition. Only a massive external intervention can keep the organization from the final stage—Death Rattle.
  • Organizations in The Big Rut are often cash-rich and/or have a monopolistic hold on their market, so their inexorable decline can often take a very long time.
  • Working for an organization in The Big Rut is rewarding only for bureaucratically-minded individuals. Results-focussed individuals tend not to stay around.

DANGER ZONE!

The Big Rut is unique in that is an 'invisible' danger zone in the growth Lifecycle. From the outside, everything appears ok - great even. An organization in The Big Rut can be very large, very well resourced and outwardly successful, while in fact on an irreversible decline in to irrelevancy and the final stage - Death Rattle.

"Escaping from The Big Rut is such a rare occurrence as to be statistically negligible."
- Les McKeown, Founder and CEO, Predictable Success

CLICK HERE TO DISCOVER HOW TO AVOID THE BIG RUT


"If anything ever happens around here, we’re ready for it."
- Anonymous

The 3 Key Challenges in The Big Rut

LOSS OF URGENCY

Organizations in The Big Rut demonstrate an impregnable resistance to change. Most organizations that make it in to The Big Rut have become so large, asset-rich and institutionalized on the way there, that they can resist any so-called 'change agent' that comes their way.


Find out why

MAINTENANCE OF THE STATUS QUO

There is a massive commitment to preserving the status quo when in The Big Rut. Compensation and benefits are zealously guarded, and adherence to 'how we do things around here' is the central cultural imperative. There only way to change this is to decapitate the organization.


Find out how

LACK OF VISION

Organizations on the path to The Big Rut lose their Visionary leadership along the way - usually in the preceding stage (Treadmill). However, merely drafting in another Visionary leader from the outside won't fix the problem as they will ultimately be 'rejected by the system'.



Find out how and why 

Build The Team You Need to Get Out of The Big Rut

A key element - in our view, the key element of achieving successful growth is in building the right team. Here at Predictable Success we've uncovered the precise combination of 4 specific leadership styles needed to move through each one of the 7 growth stages in the growth Lifecycle. Getting out of The Big Rut isn't easy - in fact, it almost impossible. If you are to stand a chance of achieving it, here's the team you will need:

Visionary

You will need to find a Visionary - someone who thinks at the 30,000' level, sets the overall strategy and direction, and who is prepared to take on on a substantial challenge.


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The Operator

Operator

Visionaries become easily frustrated with detail and the 'nitty-gritty' of execution, so they will need multiple Operators - ruthless finishers who get things done.


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The Processor

PROCESSOR

Processors install and maintain systems, policies and procedures and will already be over-represented in any organization that is in The Big Rut


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The Synergist

SYNERGIST

Synergists help avoid internal conflict, but if you want to get your organization out of The Big Rut, you will actually need a lot of internal conflict to achieve that.

Learn more

ARE YOU TRULY SERIOUS ABOUT GETTING OUT OF The Big Rut?

Because of the immense resistance to change it engenders, getting out of The Big Rut is close to impossible, and can only be achieved with momentous effort.

By far the most successful way to increase your chances of getting out of The Big Rut is to enroll in The Predictable Success Acceleration Program - a proven, time-test, highly cost-effective Program that will not only accelerate your move out of The Big Rut, it will be your constant guide an companion as you return all the way back to Predictable Success:

CLICK HERE GO TO THE PREDICTABLE SUCCESS GROWTH ACCELERATION PROGRAM
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