1.
Some Impressionistic takes from the book of
Mr. Ichak Kalderon Adizes
“The Pursuit of Prime“
by Ramki – ramaddster@gmail.com

2.
About the Author
 Dr. Adizes is the Founder and CEO of the Adizes Institute, an
international consultancy.
 In 2011, the Adizes Institute was ranked as one of the top ten
consulting organizations in the United States by Leadership
Excellence Journal.
 Dr. Adizes has worked with a wide variety of companies
ranging from the Global 100 to middle market companies and
startups. He has also consulted to Presidents, Prime
Ministers and Cabinet-Level Officers in several countries
. In addition to his work transforming organizations, Dr. Adizes is a highly sought after speaker
who consistently receives high acclaim from CEOs, Presidents, and Board Members
worldwide for the relevance and value of his compelling talks.
 is theories and methods are documented in 15 books that have been translated into 24
languages.
 His book, Corporate Lifecycles: How Organizations Grow and Die and What to Do About
It was named one of the Ten Best Business Books by Library Journal.
 The Leadership Excellence Journal named Dr. Adizes one of the Top 30 Thought Leaders in
the United States. In recognition of his contributions to management theory and practice.
 Dr. Adizes has been awarded 15 honorary doctorates from institutions in 10 countries and two
honorary citizenships. He is a Fellow of the International Academy of Management and has
been made an honorary citizen of two Eastern European countries. He also received the
2010 Ellis Island Medal of Honor, which is awarded by the National Ethnic Coalition of
Organizations Foundation for contributions to humanity.

3.
Prelude- 1/2
The Pursuit of Prime is a wonderful book and easy to read. It contains valuable
perspectives on how organizations develop.
Adizes' takes a chapter for each of the life cycles and presents the various
challenges faced by leaders at every stage by grouping the issues under six
classic managerial responsibilities:
 Style
 Structure
 Strategy
 Staffing
 Rewards Planning & Goals
Each chapter also contains mini stories - parables with real case notes. He
concludes the chapter with a short checklist that outlines the normal problems
and abnormal problems that can be expected at each of the stages

4.
Prelude -2/2
I found his discussion in the second to last chapter particularly enlightening. Adizes
goes through his eleven steps for an intervention. He identifies them as the Principles
of Organizational Therapy:
1. Conduct an organizational diagnosis
2. Form teams
3. Train integrators
4. Define organization mission
5. Create structure that follows mission
6. Test the new structure; establish and verify accountabilities
7. Enlist organization-wide involvement
8. Set goals and budgets
9. Develop a long-tern strategic plan
10.Infuse every organizational function with the Adizes methodology
11.Design reward systems
The added value in this chapter is analysis of that the pursuit of effectiveness and
efficiency are in fact incompatible. One is always at the expense of the other. Finally,
some readers may find the last chapter which goes through what Adizes believes to
be management myths.

5.
Problems
 Problems always come with Change.
 Change is necessary characteristic of growth.
 No organizations have achieved peak performance-PRIME –
without Transformation.
 The struggle for success – for PRIME is struggle with Challenges.
 Even in PRIME –The stage that intrepid CEOs struggle to reach,
Sustain & Regain- a company has to contend with the challenge of
how to remain there.
 No problem condition in the company means the company has
stopped changing / transformation.
 Means the company has reached the end of LIFE.
 Only dead has no problems.
 Life is change or transformation and no change or transformation is
death.
 Slowing the rate of change means slowing down life- Protracted
suicide.

6.
Problems
 Companies in PRIME should have both flexibility & control in
balance.
 With no control on COSTS, there is no way to keep up with
where or why a company is spending money.
 EGO combined with entrepreneurial zeal, can create a
dizziness that makes people lose of sight of reality.
 Raising costs and no control on costs will lead to CASH
CRISIS.
 To get to PRIME
 Need to pass through the developing years.
 Experience some part of the declining years.
 Prime is not a Destination, it is a CONDITION.
 It is not a dot on a curve but a range of curve.
 To stay within the range , you need to struggle.
 Important to understand Life Cycle of the Organization

7.
Corporate Life Cycle

8.
The Developing Stages
Courtship
 Stage of dreaming & making commitment to a dream.
 Would be founder focuses on ideas & future possibilities, making &
talking about ambitious plans either to change the market or create a
market niche.
 Courtship ends and infancy begins when founder assumes risk.
Infancy
 Attention shifts from ideas & possibilities to RESULTS.
 Sales drive- action oriented & opportunity driven.
 No attention to paperwork, controls, system or processes.
 Working extends 16 hours a day – 6 to 7 days a week.
 Founder makes all decisions –big or small
 Infancy ends and GO-GO starts when company’s cash flow
stabilizes, predictable and positive.

9.
The Developing Stages
GO-GO
 Rapid growth stage- Founder believes they can do no wrong.
 Arrogance leaves their businesses vulnerable to mistakes.
 Everything is seen as an opportunity – can lead to problems.
 People are organize companies around people rather than functions.
 Capable employees can-and-do-wear many hats.
 Founder makes every decision.
 What was normal in infancy is becoming abnormal in Go-GO.
Adolescence
 Company experiences the problems of uncontrolled growth & takes new
form.
 Founder hires a COO but finds its challenging to hand over the reins.
 An attitude of us ( the old timers) Vs. them ( the COO and his supporters)
hampers operations.
 Many internal conflicts little time to stakeholders.
 If sails through successfully and develops controls without losing flexibility it
enters PRIME.

10.
The Developing Stages
PRIME
 With a renewed clarity of vision, companies establish an even balance
between control and flexibility.
 Everything comes together.
 Disciplined yet innovative, companies consistently meet their customers'
needs.
 New businesses sprout up within the organization, and they are
decentralized to provide new life-cycle opportunities.
Stability
 Companies are still strong, but without the eagerness of their earlier
stages.
 They welcome new ideas but with less excitement than they did during
the growing stages.
 The financial people begin to impose controls for short-term results in
ways that curtail long-term innovation.
 The emphasis on marketing and research and development wanes.

11.
The Developing Stages
Aristocracy
 Not making waves becomes a way of life.
 Outward signs of respectability--dress, office decor, and titles--take on
enormous importance.
 Companies acquire businesses rather than incubate start-ups.
 Their culture emphasizes how things are done over what's being done
and why people are doing it.
 Company leaders rely on the past to carry them into the future.
Recrimination
 In this stage of decay, companies conduct witch-hunts to find out who
did wrong rather than try to discover what went wrong and how to fix it.
 Cost reductions take precedence over efforts that could increase
revenues. Backstabbing and corporate infighting rule.
 Executives fight to protect their turf, isolating themselves from their
fellow executives. Petty jealousies reign supreme.

12.
The Developing Stages
Bureaucracy
 If companies do not die in the previous stage--maybe they are
in a regulated environment where the critical factor for success
is not how they satisfy customers but whether they are
politically an asset or a liability--they become bureaucratic.
 Procedure manuals thicken, paperwork abounds, and rules
and policies choke innovation and creativity.
 Even customers--forsaken and forgotten--find they need to
devise elaborate strategies to get anybody's attention.
Death
 This final stage may creep up over several years, or it may
arrive suddenly, with one massive blow.
 Companies crumble when they cannot generate the cash they
need; the outflow finally exhausts any inflow..

13.
What is PRIME ?
 Prime is the optimal position on the
lifecycle, where the organization
finally achieves a balance between
control and flexibility.
 Prime is actually not a single point
on the lifecycle curve.
 Instead, it is best represented by a
segment of the curve that includes
both growing and aging conditions.
 This is because flexibility and self-
control are incompatible and there
is no stable equilibrium.
 Sometimes the Prime organization
is more flexible than controllable,
and sometimes it's not flexible
enough.

14.
Characteristics of the Organization in PRIME-1/3
 The organization is guided by the vision of its reason for being.
 There is a clear purpose and people know what they will do, and
will not do, "they walk their talk“ & “ they talk their walk”
 The company operates in a focused, energized and predictable
manner.
 Stretch goals are set, aligned and consistently achieved.
 There is an enterprise-wide focus on customers and earning their
long-term satisfaction.
 There is a high degree of customer loyalty. At the same time, the
organization knows when and how to say "no" to the market. It is
disciplined enough to protect itself.
 Priorities are clear. The organization knows what to do, and what
not to do. It enjoys a certain composure and peace of mind when
making tough decisions.
 The entrepreneurial spirit is fully institutionalized. Evidence of
organizational fertility abound. This creativity repeatedly produces
controlled, profitable innovation.

15.
Characteristics of the Organization in PRIME-2/3
 Organizational structures work well. Opposing forces are
balanced.
 There is alignment between vision, strategy, structure,
information, resource allocation and rewards.
 A company in Prime is continuously realigning these
subsystems.
 The infrastructure provides reliable support.
 The governance process is institutionalized. People know
and understand where and how decisions are made.
 Decision-making is done is an environment of healthy,
constructive conflict.
 Points of view are considered, but there are no hard feelings
if one's recommendations are not heeded.
 Differences of opinion rarely deteriorate into personality
clashes or turf wars.

16.
Characteristics of the Organization in PRIME-3/3
 Differences of opinion rarely deteriorate into personality
clashes or turf wars.
 There is intra- and inter-organizational integration and
cohesion with clients, suppliers, investors, and the
community.
 This internal cohesion enables the Prime organization to
devote much of its energy externally.
 People enjoy working at the company. Few willingly leave
and there is a backlog of people applying for positions at all
levels.
 They embrace change. Prime companies work hard to adapt
to changes in markets and technology so that they can gain
share from weaker competitors.
 They enjoy consistent, above average growth in both sales
and profits.

17.
PRIME is the optimal Lifecycle stage where an
organization has achieved a balance between Control
& Flexibility, and enjoys both high growth and high
profitability

18.
Challenges in PRIME
 Senior management of companies in Prime engages in a
continuous struggle to maintain the delicate balance between
flexibility and control.
 It takes very little to push a company in either direction. When
administrators gain the upper hand, the company's balance
swings in the direction of excessive control, and the company
sacrifices flexibility.
 When entrepreneurs gain the upper hand, the company grows
more flexible but loses control.
 Prime companies often don't have enough good people to run
all their business units.
 The other key issue they face is complacency. Prime is a
temporary condition, not a permanent destination.
 Once you get there, the principal leadership challenge is to stay
there. " Since everything is fine, why change?" This attitude is
the first step into decline.

19.
Challenges in PRIME
 The greatest problem of Prime is staying in Prime.
 A company cannot simply reach Prime, sit back, and rest.
 Management must proactively work to promote activities that
retard aging and sustain the vitality of Prime.
 Vladimir Horowitz, one of the world's best-known pianists,
once said:
 "If I do not practice a day, I notice the difference in my
playing.
 If I do not practice a week, my wife notices the difference,
and
 if I do not practice a month, the audience notices the
difference.

20.
Normal & Abnormal Challenges in PRIME
 Normal
 Insufficient Leadership/Managerial depth.
 Abnormal problems
 Insufficient decentralization.
 Desire to maintain the status quo.
 Signs of disintegration.
 Signs of decreased entrepreneurial activity.
 Reliance on what has worked in the past.
 Sense of security, no sense of urgency.
 Order for the sake of order.
 Increasing time spent in the office, behind the desk.

21.
Pathologies of PRIME
 Any sign of aging is a pathology in a Prime organization. This
aging will naturally occur unless management actively and
continuously works to keep the organization young.
 There are also no "normal" problems in aging, every problem
is pathologic and if allowed to continue will accelerate the
decline of the organization

22.
Roadmap to Success- 1/2
 The slide into aging is subtle.
 The emergence of an attitude of complacency is the first step
into decline.
 Since the company is doing so well, it is easy to slip into a
mindset to maintain the status quo.
 To remain in Prime, Leadership must be proactively working
to refuel momentum by nurturing a portfolio of Infant, Go-Go
and Adolescent business units ensuring that
entrepreneurship thrives.
 When a Prime organization loses its ability to embrace
change / transformation and nourish new growth,
organizational vitality levels off and aging begins.
 On the lifecycle curve, Prime is not at the top of the curve.

23.
Roadmap to Success-2/2
 This is because the curve depicts the vitality of an organization.
 When a company first starts to age, it is still producing the desired
results as measured by short-term revenues and profitability.
 Aging is having a negative effect on the company, but this effect is
not yet reflected in sales or profitability.
 Therefore, the lifecycle curve is still rising, however the rate of
change is slowing so the rising curve is starting to level off.
 If Prime organizations don't refuel their momentum, if they keep
harvesting their momentum rather than nourishing it, the curve will
reverse direction and the company moves into aging.
 After Prime, movement along the lifecycle is a gradual process of
deterioration.
 Unlike the growing side of the curve, there are no major transitional
events in aging companies.
 The only differences between the lifecycle positions of Stable,
Aristocracy, Early Bureaucracy and Bureaucracy is a question of
the degree to which aging problems pervade the organization.

24.
Simply having vision & values does not make for a Prime Organization
“ Honesty is the best policy, “ Ok.! Now, What is the second- best policy

25.
Principles of Organizational Therapy
 Teamwork mitigates resistance to change.
 Why: The aim is to bring the company to PRIME
 How: The vehicle is participative change.
 What: What you work on depends on your organization’s
stage on the life cycle.
 Team formation- people who together exercise authority, power
and influence on the subject & authority to say “Yes” or “No”.
 Members start collecting the challenges – The potential
improvement points.
 Not to build unrealistic expectations – may lead to sense of
failure.
 Trust in therapist, Trust in themselves , expanding trust to other
members of the team leading to trust in the organization itself.
 Driving force of the process- to increase the organization’s
sense of potency.
 It is not what they do but how they do matters a lot.

26.
The Program- 11 Steps
1. Conduct an Organizational diagnosis
 Problem facing the company & the root cause of the problem.
 Company’s structure & processes.
 Where are we on the Corporate Life cycle and steps to taken to
move to PRIME.
 Desire to make changes & ironclad commitments to achieve those
changes.
2. Form teams
 Cross-functional problems- To Solve form teams so that we can
exploit opportunities.
 Company problems by nature to solve needs interactions.
 Individuals cannot correct it.
 If the problems reviewed they would have been around for a long
time.
 This needs cooperation from various functions/individuals it is a
challenge to get this.
 Leaders need to learn effective teamwork & problem solving skills.
 This phase the learning is –Problem solving, Team building, Style
enrichment & Cognitive Management training.

27.
The Program- 11 Steps
3. Train Integrators
 The first 3 phases makes employees feel that they can take on
challenges – Climbers.
 Goal is to Colace authority, power and influence to enhance
organizational effectiveness.
 In this phase organizational structure is built –staff meetings , Change &
openness.
 The learn to chase challenges and work on root causes.
 Result – either they are eliminated or reduction in the impact.
4. Define your Organization Mission
 Working together environment is created leading to trust & respect in
the first 3 phases.
 This phase brings the employees together to take a collective peek into
the future.
 Collective diversity helps to shape the future.
 The definition of the Mission will include –Markets, Customers to Serve.
 Analysis of Company’s strength & weaknesses in all functions.
 Projection of the future environment and likely impact on the company

28.
The Program- 11 Steps
5. Create Structure that follows Mission
 The teams design organizational structure based on the Mission
 Most complicated phase of the entire program, should defeat Corporate
colonialism or dysfunctional parental control that could destroy nascent
efforts or hamper their ability to grow.
6. Test the new structure & verify accountabilities.
 The teams define & clarity responsibilities /accountabilities among various
functions.
 For implementation it is crucial to associate appropriate levels of authority
with newly defined responsibilities .
 Information system that tracks performance –operational, financials with
clear accountabilities.
 Right information system encourages trust and cooperation.
 Information that fails to pinpoint accountability encourages political
infighting.
7. Enlist Organization-wide involvement
 Honest attempt to integrate the total organization – Extend beyond the
upper echelons and permeate of the company.
 Opening up the chasm between top management & the rest of the
company.

29.
The Program- 11 Steps
8. Set Goals & Budgets
 Set goals /budgets encourages risk-taking, commitment to stretch goals
 This should be based on mutual trust & respect.
 This phase company prepares annual operating plans.
 Setting goals is an art – either individuals or for teams- with the teams the
challenge is aligned and magnified.
 It is like stretching the arm, then the side, then the upper part of your leg,
the calf and finally feet and toes makes us to come near the ceiling.
 Same principle in the organizations- Teams must STRETCH.
9. Develop a long-term strategic plan.
 Company’s need Long Term strategic plan – Market share, New market,
increase in profitability & liquidity.
 The organization’s plan for regaining PRIME will be communal vision with
the full support and commitment of Leaders responsible for results.
10. Infuse every Organizational function with the Adizes Methodology.
 Leaders take over reins- plan for total alignment and integration – vision,
mission , strategy.
 Challenges are handled by various functions seamlessly with team
working.

30.
The Program- 11 Steps
11. Design reward systems
 Employees rewards are tied directly to their performance & their
performance tied directly to Company’s performance.
 Top management devises incentive schemes that reflect how well
teams have achieved their goals and how those goals have
affected company performance.
 Team’s performance should be high and consistent and in complete
alignment with the Vision and Mission.
 Information system to reflect actual vs. budget and continual
improvement by tracking the trends.
 On successful completion of the 11 steps it is time to start all over
again .
 During the process new challenges would have come to surface &
also new opportunities.
 Institutionalization if very important.
 Rejuvenation is important .
 The process is never ending – it is a journey, not a destination

31.
The Incompatibility of Effectiveness & Efficiency
 Organizations ageing is similar to human beings ageing.
 By the time human reaches his or her middle age, he or she
accumulates extra far due to naturally falling rate of metabolism.
 When young the metabolism was higher and when weight is gained he
or she could shed them.
 In the growing stages and coming-of-age stages, companies can
stumble, make mistakes and return to fighting shape with reasonable
ease.
 Younger, more vital organizations are leaner and more flexible.
 The way to become more Effective is to become less efficient.
 Approach to be taken by aging companies.
 For growing companies it is just the reverse.
 To become more effective in the long run, you need become more
efficient- sacrifice short-term effectiveness.
 Efficient systems are ineffective in the long run.
 An aging company , to be efficient , needs to be controlled, and control
reduces flexibility, which is required for long term effectiveness.

32.
Key Takeaways
 A company is in Prime when form and function are in balance.
 The what and the how are in balance.
 Prior to Prime, function is more important than form.
 What we do is more important than how we do it.
 After Prime, how we do it is more important than what we do.
 That is why, after Prime, how you do something and whom you
know is more important than what you do.
 In Prime, the what and how are in balance.
 In Prime, the company is both flexible and in control.
 Prior to Prime, the company is flexible, but not very much in
control of itself.
 After Prime, control is very high, and the company loses
flexibility. In Prime, flexibility and control are together.
 In Prime, the organization has a strategic outlook without
losing attention to detail.

33.
Strategy and Implementation
Company thrives Company survives
Company dies
slowly
Company dies
quickly
Implementation
Strategy
Superior Inferior
Superior
Inferior

34.
(1)
Customer Needs
(3)
Your Competitors
(2)
You
(1) Customer Needs:
Your view of everything the most important
customer segment wants/needs
(2) You
How customers perceive you (to what
extent do you satisfy their needs)
(3) Competitors
How customers perceive the offerings of
your competitors (to what extent do they
satisfy their needs)
[A] = Your points of difference
[B] = Their points of difference
[C] = Points of parity
34
[A] [B]
[C]
3 Circles Strategy Insight

35.
The 3 Agendas of Change
1st
Agenda
The obvious issues that an organization
focuses on:
Sales; Marketing; Accounting; Finance;
Technology; Operations; Customer
Care; Personnel; Talent Management
This is where an organization
builds the departments, functions
and processes it needs to be an
effective and productive
enterprise
Organizational results
are impacted by this
agenda
Pathway to PRIME®
Change Management
System provides the
‘process’ tools to work
on this agenda
2nd
Agenda
The design of the way that people are
brought together with resources to
produce results:
Core strategic elements include:
Mission; Vision; Values; Strategy;
Measurement and Control; Roles &
Responsibilities; Delegation; Rewards
Exploring this area begins with
an organizational diagnosis to
determine the developmental
lifecycle stage of the
organization and the degree of
alignment or misalignment of the
strategic elements identified to
the left
Many problems can be
solved at their root in
this agenda.
Improvements here
impact the
organization by the
square
Pathway to PRIME®
approach to systemic
change provides the
content and process to
work on this agenda
3rd
Agenda
The design of the ‘map’ that an individual
uses to navigate the world, and the ability
to update this map and seek the truth
despite the discomfort this may cause.
This is an indication of an individuals
willingness to learn about his or
herself. And the ability to seek and use
feedback to discover blind spots
Exploring this area begins with
accepting responsibility for all
the problems you face. Progress
is related to your willingness to
let go of old maps or perceptions
about your life, yourself and your
world.
All the stories and
myths of great leaders
occur in this agenda.
They reveal the
tragedy of ego,
arrogance, hubris,
thoughtlessness
carelessness and low
discipline
Improvements here
impact the
organization by the
cube
Resources:
 Center for Creative
Leadership
 The Road Less
Travelled
 The Four
Agreements
 Center for
Mindfulness
 Omega Institute
Three interlinked agendas that interact to suppress or catalyze one another. Some have
more impact than others. Effective change interventions use all three.

36.
 Corporate lifecycles are not perfectly predictable, although
they do have certain characteristics that are shared from
company to company and undergo predictable and
repetitive patterns of behavior as they develop.
 How well management leads a healthy transition from one
stage to the next, has an impact on the success or failure of
the organization.
 Changes in leadership and management are required
because methods that produce success in one stage can
create failure in subsequent stages.
 It is never easy to sustain success, but understanding how
the lifecycle works can help you to watch out for risks and
hazards to your organization as it moves from one stage to
the next.

37.
Mail your comments to ramaddster&gmail.com