As a scale-up, stop acting like a family-run business

If you are a successful family-run restaurant that wants to get a Michelin star, you need to step it up. Likewise, if you want to become a successful scaleup, you need to act like one.

Don’t get me wrong, I love cute family-run restaurants. There is something great about the casual vibe, the traditional family recipes and the charming chaos that is usually kept under control by whoever is free that day.

Have you ever seen a Michelin-star restaurant in action with their open kitchen?

Their operation is absolutely flawless.

There is a clear chain of command, transparent accountability, a perfected flow between the stations so that the order-to-table time is as little as possible with mouth-watering dishes coming out on the other time.

Every. Single. Time.

Do you know what is one of the main criterias of awarding a Michelin star? Consistency in-between visits.

That's right, the people who award the star visit the restaurant a couple of times to see how consistent the experience, the food, the vibe, everything.

As for successful scaleups, optimizing your internal operations so that you can provide the best experience for your customers in a repeatable and so scaleable way is a must.

How do you do that?

By setting up your operating model, OKRs (in the context of strategy) and align your organization so that people can execute effectively and consistently.

That said, there is nothing wrong with remaining a family-run business. Just don’t put a Michelin star into your next pitchdeck. :)