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The received wisdom is to try harder, to be more innovative, to take more risk - and almost every company tries. There are only a tiny percentage of management teams who settle for sticking to their core businesses and declining gracefully as the business matures. But the received wisdom is wrong. At least 90% of attempts fail. Even companies that succeed often do so at the expense of long term shareholder value. This book gives managers an alternative. Instead of investing heavily in searching for and experimenting with new growth areas, in developing an innovative culture or in building processes for nurturing new ventures, Campbell advises managers how to be far more selective and to invest in a new business only when the opportunity has a high enough probability of success. A nuts-and-bolts antidote to the received wisdom of "innovation" and a decade of wasted acquisitions and "corporate venturing." The Growth Gamble explains why most companies strategies for innovation and growth failed despite the fact that their core business had good prospects.

From the Inside Flap

Many companies have a growth gap. Their existing businesses are not growing fast enough to meet their ambition. The solution is to add new legs to their portfolio of businesses. Yet as many as 99% of companies fail when they try to create new growth platforms. The Growth Gamble is management's guide to this tough challenge and helps managers find, get into and grow new businesses. Based on extensive research, the book contradicts the received wisdom and concludes that: - Corporate Venturing units do not generate new growth - Most companies have few new opportunities that warrant investment -Most companies spend too much on new businesses, not too little Too many companies kiss a lot of frogs in search of a prince. The Growth Gamble shows you how to spot princes at a distance. Most important, this book arms managers with practical tools, including the New Business Traffic Lights Toolkit - a powerful screening and strategic thinking technique that helps managers identify the best opportunities. The Growth Gamble also contains The Confidence Check for assessing projects as they advance. Packed with advice on how to search for opportunities, what organization changes are needed to increase the success rate, on what to avoid - from the Icarus pitfall to the Helen of Troy trap - and on when not to invest, the book contains six rules for growing successfully into new businesses: - Continue to invest in the Core - Don't be seduced by sexy markets, but recognize rare games - Look for advantage, don't play the numbers game - Be humble about your skills - Search for people as much as potential - Be realistic about your ambitions Managers who follow these rules are realists. They recognize the odds. They avoid foolish gambles. They are playing to win.