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Built to Sell

John Warrillow

177 Pages
2012

Built to Sell

Creating a Business That Can Thrive Without You

Penguin

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Built to Sell - Summary

"Built to Sell" by John Warrillow is a must-read for any entrepreneur looking to create a business that can thrive independently. The book provides a step-by-step guide on how to structure your company so that it can run without your constant involvement. Warrillow uses a fictional narrative to illustrate his points, making the concepts easy to understand and apply. The book emphasizes the importance of creating a scalable business model, developing a strong management team, and focusing on processes that can be replicated. It's a practical and insightful read that offers valuable advice for building a business that can be sold or sustained long-term.

Key Ideas

1

Scalability

One of the central ideas in "Built to Sell" is the importance of creating a scalable business model. Warrillow explains that a business should be able to grow without being overly dependent on the owner's personal involvement. This means developing systems and processes that can be easily replicated and managed by others, allowing the business to expand and thrive independently.

2

Management Team

Another key idea is the necessity of building a strong management team. Warrillow stresses that having competent and reliable managers is crucial for the sustainability of the business. A capable team can handle day-to-day operations, make important decisions, and drive the company forward, ensuring that the business does not collapse if the owner steps away.

3

Process Focus

The book also highlights the significance of focusing on processes. Warrillow advises entrepreneurs to document and refine their business processes to ensure consistency and efficiency. By having well-defined processes, the business can maintain high standards of quality and service, making it more attractive to potential buyers and more resilient in the face of challenges.

FAQ's

The main objective of "Built to Sell" is to guide entrepreneurs on how to create a business that can operate independently of the owner's constant involvement, making it more scalable and attractive to potential buyers.

"Built to Sell" suggests improving business scalability by developing systems and processes that can be easily replicated and managed by others, allowing the business to grow without being overly dependent on the owner's personal involvement.

According to "Built to Sell," a strong management team is important because it ensures the sustainability of the business. Competent and reliable managers can handle day-to-day operations, make important decisions, and drive the company forward, ensuring that the business does not collapse if the owner steps away.

๐Ÿ’ก Full 15min Summary

The paradox of entrepreneurship lies in building a business that can flourish without its founder.
0:00 / 1:11

The journey of entrepreneurship is often filled with paradoxes, one of which is the challenge of building a company that can thrive without its founder. This is the central theme that is explored through the story of Alex Stapleton, an advertising agency owner. Alex's experiences, though fictional, mirror the real-life struggles of many business owners. In the United States alone, there are approximately twenty-three million businesses, but only a few hundred thousand are sold each year. This means that for every business owner who creates a company that someone will buy, there are about a hundred that do not sell. The story provides a framework and action plan to ensure that business owners are among the desired 1 percent who successfully sell their businesses. The experiences and lessons shared in the story are drawn from the author's fifteen years of covering the small business market. The author's first exposure to the life of a business owner was as a recent college graduate attending an awards show celebrating successful entrepreneurs. Inspired by their stories, the author decided to create a business that would help others achieve similar success.

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