INSEAD Laurence Capron on Thinking Growth

In Theory of Algorithms - Part 2 - Every Problem Has a Solution - I relate how some people, even organizations, jump to solutions, methods or advice, without having much of a grasp of the problem.  Laurence Capron, with INSEAD, echoes this very point on the issue of corporate leaders vis-a-vis growth imperatives:

Business leaders often jump to their favorite mode of growth, instead of thinking very carefully how they should grow their organization.

It's often difficult for leaders to modify or shift their thinking, because (1) they have their personal biases; (2) some organizational factions are very powerful and have particular vested interests, too; and (3) they get trapped in their established processes and best practices.  Result: They rely on the same mode of growth, regardless of circumstance.

The options for growth are: (a) organic or internal development, (b) merger and acquisition, and (c) alliance and partnerships.  There are pluses and minuses to each, but these are meaningless, I'd say, unless leaders have reviewed their purpose and aims clearly and have taken a serious, honest look at the reality of their circumstances.

Capron rightfully accommodates executive students' interests and needs, for example, in grasping the mechanics of acquisitions.  But she also engenders that crucial reflectiveness among them, that is, to think more openly and carefully about how to make growth actually.