Finishing the race strong

Like in a bicycle race, teamwork can go a long way in achieving success.

Successful business managers understand that business is an endurance sport, not a sprint. The recently completed Tour de France provides a good example of how teamwork and competitive cooperation can benefit your company and its supply chain.

The race was both physically and mentally demanding. It included 3,351 km of riding, mountain climbs, sprints, and time trials. Business managers can learn some important tactics from inside the peloton.

If you have ever watched a bicycle race, you may have noticed that there is much more teamwork involved than you would normally expect. Teams compete against each other. Riders compete with their own teammates for leadership positions. Beyond the competition, though, riders know that their success depends on the willingness and ability of teammates and competitors to support them.

By working together, riders can conserve 20 to 30 percent of their energy by drafting the leader. Leaders rotate in and out of the lead position to avoid tiring. The lead rider is said to be “pulling,” because he is riding with total wind resistance, while those following benefit from his efforts.

Within a team, the leader is the rider with the greatest chance of winning the race. Teammates out of the lead are called domestiques, because their job is to support their leader by helping him conserve his energy for when he really needs it during a sprint or mountain climb.

In many situations, business relations also can benefit from using teamwork to support competitiveness. Each leader has his or her unique set of strengths and weaknesses. Their companies also excel in some activities, are average in others, and weak in some. Business growth often requires adopting new materials and technologies, which necessitates pushing the comfort envelope and confronting weaknesses.

Some are equipped to lead because of their experience with materials, processes, or technology. These leaders can raise the competence of an industry by supporting those with less experience. Does this sacrifice competitive advantage? Done without proper planning, it can. You need a strategy that supports others while protecting your secrets and maintaining your competitiveness. You have to do your homework. You must understand your own competitive advantages, while also understanding the capabilities and strengths of your competitors. Given this understanding, you can confidently partner and coach without sacrificing your position in the market.

Also, this competitive intelligence provides insight into your company’s market strengths and opens opportunities to partner on particularly complex projects.

Within an industry primarily served by smaller suppliers, teamwork can go a long way toward supporting individual success and better supply chain results. While companies understand they are competing with each other, they also must understand that they can achieve greater success by recognizing and supporting leaders and sharing leadership knowledge.