As a founder of a fast-growing EdTech company, you are constantly thinking about growth. It’s your job to keep the business moving forward, and more than that—to make sure it keeps moving forward as efficiently and effectively as possible. But how do you manage this process? What does it even mean to “manage” growth? And what should you be focusing on right now?
In this article, I’ll share some lessons learned from my own experience managing the growth of an EdTech company called Instructure (formerly Pluralsight) over the past few years. Hopefully they can help you navigate the choppy waters of growing your own business!
Growth is hard.
Growth is a challenge. It can be good, but it can also be bad. You need to manage growth so that you are making the most of the opportunities that come with it and not being overwhelmed by them.
To manage your edtech business’ growth, here are some things to start thinking about:
- How do we scale our customer service?
- How do we ensure that our product development stays ahead of customer needs?
- What type of talent acquisition strategy will work best for us now and in the future?
Some companies thrive on hyper growth, but most do not.
Some companies thrive on hyper growth, but most do not. If you’re not in the right market with the right product at the right time, then don’t let your company get caught up in hyper growth. It will only cause more problems than it solves.
- Don’t worry about competitors: The truth is that there are very few competitors who pose a serious threat to your business (especially if they’re also growing quickly). Focus on what matters most–your customers and getting them what they want.
- Don’t worry about funding: In order for startups to achieve hyper growth, they need lots of funding from investors who believe in their vision for future success; however, this isn’t always possible because many investors are hesitant about providing capital when there aren’t enough customers or revenue coming into their business yet since this would mean taking too much risk before having any real proof points showing whether or not their idea will work before committing millions of dollars towards its development over several years’ time span which could end up being wasted money if things don’t go according as planned during those early stages when everything’s still tentative anyways due largely because no one knows exactly how successful something like this might turn out until after testing out certain assumptions first hand by actually trying them out instead just relying solely off previous experiences which may not necessarily apply equally across situations where conditions differ slightly between situations making each case unique unto itself rather than generalized across all situations equally which would make sense logically speaking but often times doesn’t happen realistically speaking due mainly because humans aren’t perfect creatures capable understanding every situation perfectly every time without fail despite efforts being made towards achieving perfection daily.”
The pace of change can be overwhelming, even for the best-run businesses.
The pace of change can be overwhelming, even for the best-run businesses. This is especially true of edtech companies as they develop new products and services that are often cutting edge in their field. As a founder or executive, it’s important to stay on top of all this change so that you can make smart decisions about how to invest in new opportunities while keeping your existing business running smoothly. Here are some strategies for managing this challenge:
Focus on what matters most, then keep growing and adapting to new opportunities.
When you’re growing your business, it’s easy to get distracted by shiny objects. You might be tempted to take on new projects and initiatives that seem like they’ll add value, but in reality aren’t going to have much of an impact on your bottom line.
Instead of focusing on these things that don’t matter as much, it’s better to focus on what matters most: growing the business in a way that makes sense for both you and your customers.
Develop a systems approach to managing growth.
As you grow, it’s important to develop a systems approach to managing growth. This means defining the problem before starting on a solution and setting goals before you start. It also means not worrying about what other people’s goals are–you need to be ambitious in your own way, but stay realistic about how much time and energy you can devote to fitness over the next three months, six months or longer.
Here are some tangible fitness goals that might help someone get started:
- Lose 10 pounds in 3 months (10 pounds is 2% of total body weight)
- Run 5 miles without stopping within 6 months (5 miles is 1/3rd of one mile per week)
Get all hands involved in helping you succeed.
- Make sure that you have a strong team.
- Define your vision and share it with your team.
- Get all hands involved in helping you succeed.
Keep learning and getting better.
- Learn from your mistakes. If you’ve made a mistake, take time to reflect on what happened and why it happened.
- Learn from other people’s mistakes. There are plenty of people who have done things that we can learn from–if they can do it, then so can we!
- Keep learning about your customers and their needs–and don’t forget to keep learning about new technologies that might be useful for your business or industry. The world is always changing; if you don’t stay up-to-date with the latest trends in technology and business practices (and beyond), then someone else will take advantage of this opportunity instead of yourself!
Also make sure that everyone on your team stays current with their knowledge base by having regular meetings where each person shares what they’ve learned since the last meeting or assignment deadline was due–this helps keep everyone informed while also reinforcing good habits like reading books/blogs/articles regularly outside work hours too đŸ™‚
Managing growth takes a lot of work, but it’s worth it!
Growth is a good thing, but it can be a lot of work. You have to manage the growth of your company in order for it to be sustainable. If you don’t do this, then the company might not last long or may even fail completely.
The best way to manage your edtech business is by using good management skills and having an organized workflow so that everything runs smoothly without any problems arising along the way–and if they do arise, they’re dealt with immediately so they don’t become bigger issues later on down the road (which could mean losing customers).
We hope this overview has helped you understand how to manage growth in your edtech company. It’s a complex process that requires constant attention and investment, but it can be done! We know from experience that managing growth is one of the most challenging parts of running an edtech startup–but also one of the most rewarding. If you’re interested in learning more about managing growth and scaling up your business, check out our guide on how to do so (which includes tips on hiring great people).
