Business Stripped Bare – Richard Branson

How did Virgin Mobile become the fastest business in United States history to reach a $1 billion turnover? (Yes, Faster even than Microsoft or Google)

How did a man who set out to sell records in the 70’s become one of the world’s most influential social entrepreneurs with friends to count on such as Nelson Mandela, Bill Clinton and the Dalai Lama to name just a few?  Business Stripped Bare provides the answers.

Before you even make it to the opening credits you get a flavour of what being a truly global entrepreneur looks like. On the inside cover in rough handwriting (presumably Branson’s) are notes detailing some of the things he managed to achieve last year: Ordered 6 new 747 400’s; Opened a game reserve in Africa; Bought 5 miles of Majorcan coastline for new hotel; Secured site for largest cinema in the world in Tokyo;Opened first megastore in Beirut; Richard Branson is without question a truly global entrepreneur.

Business Stripped Bare is broken down into the fundemental ingredients that Richard Branson sees as critical to all businesses: People, the Brand, Delivery, Innovation, Leadership and Social Responsibility. On one level, Branson’s wisdom is relatively straightforward and unoriginal. However, it is because that wisdom comes from one so successful that the lessons are so powerful and drive so deep.

Richard Branson refers to ‘setting his people free’. Engendering an entrepreneurial atmosphere through the whole organization. He tells us that fighting the outside world is easy, trying to make peace among one’s own staff, hell.

When discussing brands, Business Stripped Bare describes how Virgin manages its brand across 300 separate businesses and how it is the only company to have created from scratch eight $1 billion dollar turnover companies in eight different sectors. Truly astonishing.

And of course the key to protecting the brand is Delivery. Delivery is about communication and attention to detail, plain and simple. With a bit of luck thrown in.

When reading Richard Branson’s thoughts on Innovation, we are left gasping. A company that started out simply selling vinyl records, Virgin is now at the heart of the major global issues of our day. Space travel for consumers. Increasing the lot of Africas poor. Global warming. Stem cell technology. Renewable fuels. In fact, social responsibility in all its guises.

Business Stripped Bare tells us that innovation is the key driver of any business. For small companies, the distinction between innovation and day to day delivery is barely noticeable. It’s all just business, creative, flexible and responsive. However, as businesses grow, complexity tends to gum up the works and it is the achievement of innovation in a fast growing empire that is particularly captivating.

The book at this point was in danger of becoming a 320 page pat on the back for Virgin but then Branson admirably changes tack and dedicates a whole section to Virgin’s mistakes and setbacks. So we gain some insight into where Virgin Cola ran out of fizz and why their Northern Rock bid in 2008 literally hit the rocks.

Business Stripped Bare wraps up by talking about social responsibility. Richard Branson suggests that all businesses would do well to put this high on the agenda. In fact, as your business grows it will have no option as large businesses without a social conscience will not survive.

We are left wondering how one man grasps the essence of so many complex and disparate businesses. I believe it boils down to Richard Branson’s ability to see complicated issues in a very simple light and because he truly wants to make the world a better place.

As Richard Branson spends an increasing amount of his time considering his legacy the question is this: will Virgin be able to maintain the philanthropic edge and customer service passion so admirably driven by him for many years, or will it take on a harder edge and perhaps, over time, lose the very essence of what made Virgin great in the first place?  We will have to wait and see.

So who should read Business Stripped Bare? Well there’s pretty much something in it for anyone with an interest in business. If you’re thinking of starting your own business the building blocks are laid out for you by someone who really knows. Perhaps you just feel like immersing yourself in a good news story. If that’s the case then you’re in for a treat. Perhaps, like me, you’ve been intrigued for some time about the Virgin story and wanted to learn a little more.

But in my view Business Stripped Bare is talking most directly to entrepreneurs and those currently running businesses of any scale.

Business Stripped Bare is an opportunity to take stock, to calibrate performance against one of the very best and to readdress business values in order to move forward stronger and with a renewed focus.

I hope you find time to read this book to learn more about Richard Branson and Virgin.  It will be time well spent.

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