Idea in Brief
The Dilemma
Entrepreneurs need a good story to rally stakeholders behind their ventures. But at some point many founders realize that they need to pivot and alter their strategy and business model. How can they avoid losing support?
The Message
Early on, effective entrepreneurs act like politicians. They craft broad narratives—umbrella ambitions rather than narrow solutions—that leave them room to maneuver. When they change course, they can signal that their new model still honors their original ambition.
The Aftermath
Pivoting entrepreneurs should explain shifts with humility—and express empathy about the inconvenience they will cause existing customers, employees, and partners.
In 1908 Roald Amundsen of Norway planned an expedition to the North Pole. He got scientists to share their time and equipment, won a grant from the Norwegian Parliament, and persuaded other backers to pour huge amounts of money into the project. He borrowed a 400-ton three-masted schooner called Fram and recruited men willing to risk their lives on a journey through the icy Bering Strait. Ordinary Norwegians cheered Amundsen on, imagining he would plant their flag in a land where no one had ever been. But just before setting sail, Amundsen got word that the Americans Robert Peary and Frederick Cook had beaten him to the North Pole. Now what?
