Book Review: Dark Horse How Challenger Companies Rise to Prominence

Dark Horse How Challenger Companies Rise to Prominence

This is another excellent book I read recently about entrepreneurship and how companies known as “Dark Horses” outshine in the current competitive market with their product or ideas.

The book has many case studies about great companies today which you may have heard of such as Whole Foods, Ricola and Dentek etc.

In this book, the author Dan Mack wrote about the main three drivers that govern the cultures of top emerging companies.

The three drivers are:

#1 Their corporate identify is fixed, and their business is an expression of their identity.

#2 Their business is very personal, purposeful, and it runs deep.

#3 They have created clarity of vision, and everyone chooses to operate with shared values and deals.

I picked up a few important concepts in this book and will like to share them here.

Consumers

For example, if we want to create a start up or invent something, here are some things to learn about consumers.

  1. Consumers are looking for new technologies to enable their lives.
  2. Consumers want products that simplify their lives.
  3. Most consumers don’t know what’s next or what they want.

Leadership

The last chapter is about leadership. “Grace” is the keyword used.

  1. Special leaders unite people.
  2. Great leaders are not afraid of vulnerability.
  3. The role of a leader is not to know it all.
  4. Leadership is very different than management.
  5. Leadership is about serving others.

An excellent read, I give it an above average rating of 4 stars out of 5.

Rating_AboveAverage

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