Masterclass: How David Beats Goliath in Business
Wednesday 11 June 2025
Startup Stage
Startup
Founders
What differentiates the companies that drive in their own lane and overtake others, no matter the difference in size or market share? We will share our take on this question by sharing a lesson we learned from our experience of founding Outfit7, a bootstrapped multimedia corporation which accelerated from zero to a $1bn exit in only 7 years.
The key insight is that the efficiency of teamwork can be likened to vector algebra. This allows us to visualize and manage the advantages and challenges of collaboration in a competitive environment. In this analogy, each team member is represented as a vector contributing to the team's movement toward its goal. Misalignment causes teams to drift from the original plan, much like vectors pointing in different directions, leading to business outcomes that differ from projections.
When teams end up in a different place than planned, the question becomes how much it will cost to realign and reach the set goals. With larger teams and more senior members, the risk of vector misalignment increases. Every team, regardless of location or industry, experiences this phenomenon.
The key insight is that the efficiency of teamwork can be likened to vector algebra. This allows us to visualize and manage the advantages and challenges of collaboration in a competitive environment. In this analogy, each team member is represented as a vector contributing to the team's movement toward its goal. Misalignment causes teams to drift from the original plan, much like vectors pointing in different directions, leading to business outcomes that differ from projections.
When teams end up in a different place than planned, the question becomes how much it will cost to realign and reach the set goals. With larger teams and more senior members, the risk of vector misalignment increases. Every team, regardless of location or industry, experiences this phenomenon.
