Building Unicorns & World Series Championships
I spent 15 years in Major League Baseball evaluating talent, negotiating contracts, and building teams on & off the field; all toward one goal: winning the World Series. When I pivoted away from sports, I entered the dynamic and frenzied world of startups, joining an early-stage company that two years later earned a $1B valuation and officially became a Unicorn. Both environments were fast, furious, competitive, and fun. Here are some of the parallels of, and lessons learned from those two experiences:
1. It starts with people
In both ecosystems, success hinges on identifying exceptional talent. In baseball, scouts scour the globe for the next big prospect, while startup founders seek individuals with the right mix of skill, grit, and vision to help them turn their idea into a profitable business. If you don’t find the right talent, and enough of it, you’re just not going to be good enough.
You can’t build a successful roster if its comprised entirely of high-strikeout power hitters, pitch to contact soft-tossers, or all-glove-no-hit infielders. Similarly, to build something sustainable in business you need a diverse mix of skill set, personality, and background. Having the best accounting department in the league isn’t going to do much for you if you can’t land clients
2. Chemistry & Culture
In the MLB postseason, the “best” team doesn’t always win the World Series, but the best teams generally make the playoffs. 162 games is too grueling and too significant of a sample size to allow for flukes. Many times, the last team standing is often the one that has the right combination of health, chemistry, & momentum at the end of the year to go along with talent. You can’t survive on those three traits alone (see #1), but they can make the difference between merely making the playoffs and wearing a ring.
Likewise, there are plenty of startups that have uber-talented teams. Subject-matter experts, technology wizards, & finance savants. But if they act as a collection of talented individuals rather than as a unified team, the business will never reach its ceiling. The right culture can make overcoming early stumbles easier. It can promote a checking of individual egos for the collective good. Talent wins, but culture transforms.
3. Strategic Partnerships
You can’t do it alone. Partnerships can be internal or external, but you need to have your tribe. In prehistoric times, people lived and hunted together because it increased their likelihood of survival. They were stronger together than separate.
In lean, early-stage companies, you don’t have the resources to fix everything internally with full-time staff. You need to outsource so you can focus on your key strategic goals. But pick the wrong accounting, legal, or payroll partner? You might never get off the ground.
In baseball, a GM needs a team of partners. There are hundreds of people in a baseball operations department. If the player development department doesn’t embrace their job—to maximize the talent of the players in the system—and instead looks to blame the scouting department for not finding enough high caliber players…that ship isn’t going to stay afloat.
4. Use the Force (Data)
Data is a powerful tool. It’s critical to sound decision-making, scaling a business, and optimizing your capital—be it the human or financial variety. But it's important to remember that it is just that: a tool. This doesn’t minimize the importance of data or analytics; it just puts it into proper perspective. The hammer and saw can’t build a house by themselves. They need to be used by the hands of a skilled craftsman. Similarly, the carpenter can try building a house with nothing but his bare hands and raw materials, but I wouldn’t advise it. The real power of the tool and the craftsman is unlocked by the symbiotic relationship between the two. Data, if it isn’t actionable, is useless. And like a handgun, it can be downright dangerous if it’s in hands that don’t know what to do with it. Use the Force wisely, Obi-Wan.
5. Adapt or Die
Today’s workforce, be it professional athletes or executive MBA’s, is drastically different than it was 20 years ago. You can lament about “kids these days” and that “they don’t build ‘em like they used to”, OR you can meet them where they are. No, they don’t share the same experiences, background, or maybe even values as you. They’re from a different time. We’re all shaped by the time & environment in which we are raised. That doesn’t mean the “good ol’ days” were actually better. It just means they were different. Today’s generation, like every one before it, has its own unique strengths & weaknesses. Choose to lean into their strengths; and make sure they know it. It’s the only way to get the most out of them, and ultimately get the best out of your team.
Same goes for data & technology (see #4). You can try to do things the way you’ve been doing them for decades, but eventually you’re going to get beat, likely by someone doing it more efficiently.
6. Luck
Anyone who’s been able to hang a banner in a stadium or launch a successful IPO knows that fortune shined upon them along the way. There are a million things that can get in the way of best laid plans, and it’s often how we respond to that adversity that dictates success or failure. But to minimize the impact of Lady Luck is foolish. So, when you get a lucky break, embrace it! We all know the other side of the coin will show up eventually, so ride the good waves while there here. Sometimes they can be enough to put you over the top.