Simple tools for leadership teams building a business on purpose.

Oct 4 / Jim Haviland
Every company already has an operating system. For most growing companies it's accidental, and the results show it. The FirstOS Blog helps leaders of owner-led companies replace the accidental version with an intentional one, one tool at a time. Each post takes a single tool or idea, such as SWOT, pricing, cash flow, key numbers or annual planning, and explains it in plain language: what it is, how teams usually get it wrong, and how to put it to work with your own team this week. Posts follow your company through the Stages of Growth, so you can find what fits where you are now. Written by Jim Haviland, business coach and founder of Impact Architects, with free worksheets and courses at 1stos.com.
Every business owner eventually hits a ceiling of complexity. The sheer grit and intuition that gets a company to its first million in revenue usually fractures on the way to ten million. Implementing a Business Operating System (BOS) or strategic framework—such as EOS, Scaling Up, or the Value Builder System—is the mechanism that shifts your role from Chief Problem Solver to Chief Executive. It is the transition from owning a demanding, stressful job to owning a highly valuable, transferable asset.

Diagnose before your Prescribe

FirstOS uses a consistent model for diagnosis, Considering the stage of growth and maturity of the model and leadership, amongst other factors, to predict which tool and process will have the most impact. All the tools support each other. As our logo suggests, the tools and principles that have helped the few  entrepreneurial leaders achieve real, durable success overlap and interconnect.  You don't have time to implement all of them. Our processes supports you making the level of commitment you can.
Everything in FirstOS is well researched and attributed.  We will work very hard to give you sufficient background information to feel confident that what you are learning and applying to your business has been well-vetted and proven to work for a wide range of businesses and teams.  We will also arm you with the insights you need to know when it's not working for you and then give you other options. 
Even the way course are laid out are based on pedagogical and andragogical science.  We want to make it as easy as possible for you to build a great business.
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