Tips for Gaining a Competitive Business Advantage Using the ExO Model

The ExO model is a purpose-driven business framework that leverages a set of organizational Attributes (and technologies) to help the business grow up to ten times faster than its competitors.

Jeia Black
Jeia Black

Despite the challenges posed by 2020, this year is a good time to work on your business growth strategies. “The pandemic and global pause have time-capsuled us forward by at least a decade, if not two,” mentions Tina Sharkey, a consumer brand builder, during a video interview. “It has created so many new work and life behaviors which are [invites] for disruptive ideas and businesses.” She gives remote learning and “convenience commerce” as good examples of the many opportunities that have been presented.

If you want to grow your business, you’re going to need an advantage — and one can be found in the incorporation of the Exponential Organization (ExO) framework. Today we’ll cover its basics and how you can use it to get ahead of the competition.

What is the ExO model?

The ExO model is a purpose-driven business framework that leverages a set of organizational Attributes (and technologies) to help the business grow up to ten times faster than its competitors. It’s made out of eleven key Attributes: Massive Transformative Purpose (MTP), five Attributes leveraging external abundance (SCALE), and 5 Attributes to manage that abundance (IDEAS):



Your business doesn’t need to implement all of them — just the MTP and at least four of the Attributes.

That said, here are some tips to think about when using the ExO model:

Craft a strong MTP

The MTP is more than your company tagline; it’s your business’ vision. More accurately, it should be what motivates all your decisions. Tesla is a very good example of a company with a strong MTP. Their MTP, “accelerate the transition to sustainable transportation,” ensures that all their resources go into the creation of increasingly eco-friendly products. This vision is even present in the processes they have. Their new “Gigafactory” in Nevada, for instance, is entirely powered by renewable energy.

A strong MTP should always encourage you to think of new ideas that can bring you closer to it. It should also be convincing enough to get your customers, partners, and community to share the same vision.

Ensure every decision aligns with your MTP

Now that you have your MTP, ensure that it’s always at the back of everyone’s mind whenever they make a company decision.

For example, an events planner for TED, whose MTP is “ideas worth spreading,” will always ask themselves “Is this idea worth spreading?” whenever they plan new talks. MTPs also make good goal posts, which members of your management can and should use to lead your team. As one of the in-demand careers in business, business analysts leverage data to create products that meet customer needs. They may look at current strategies and solutions, determining which ones are working or not. An MTP can let them know if their proposed solution meets company goals. If they were working for Google, whose MTP is “organize the world’s information,” a business analyst would do well to suggest new algorithms that will allow the search engine to categorize results better.

Choose the right Attributes to help you achieve your MTP

As mentioned, the ExO model consists of ten tools that can be used to achieve your MTP. You need to choose at least four that will work best for your goals. Remember that the SCALE Attributes allow you to leverage resources outside your organization and the IDEAS Attributes are about managing those said resources, so a balance between the two is important. For example, a real estate company can leverage staff on demand by tapping into talent marketplaces like Kaggle to produce analytics for them. From the IDEAS Attributes, they might have a dashboard like Spotzi to keep track of business operations and make timely decisions.

However, know that every company has unique strengths and opportunities they can use to their advantage, so it’s usually good practice to hire an ExO coach to help you create a dedicated formula that will work best for your needs.

The ExO model gives your business a goal to work towards. Not only will this allow you to direct resources to the right places, but it will also inspire your employees to come up with purpose-driven ideas that can send powerful messages. Overall, this will give your company the competitive edge it needs to stay ahead of the curve.

The article was originally featured on the OpenExO blog on May 7, 2021.

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Jeia Black

Jeia Black writes with the intent of enlightening her readers about matters of the world. She loves interrogating the way things work and discovering the underlying factors that affect them.