Entrepreneurs might try learning from nature
Firms can take away key lessons by studying how organisms adapt to crisis
Where can small businesses turn for strategic help during a global pandemic and an economic crisis?
Wildfires, pine cones and armadillos might hold some answers.
Those suggestions come from an interdisciplinary field of study called biomimicry—the idea that we can learn practical lessons by observing and copying processes and strategies found in nature.
The concept—popularized by author Janine Benyus—is well known as it applies to new products, such as adhesives inspired by the sticky feet of the gecko and underwater cameras suggested by the eyes of mantis shrimp.
But the natural world offers so much more than simply ideas for product design. In our research, we explore how nature can offer insight into topics such as keeping up with quickly changing markets, cooperating with peers and fostering resilience—all of which are relevant to organizations, especially to entrepreneurial organizations.
These lessons may be particularly useful during our current crisis. Many of the roughly eight million species on Earth have weathered times of intense disruption, and the strategies they’ve developed to adapt to harsh conditions—and thrive— have been proven effective over countless years.
Here’s a look at five ways organisms respond to periods of extreme adversity and what insights they hold for small businesses. Strategy 1: Find new opportunities to grow Organisms often respond to upheaval by leveraging opportunities for growth. Take wildfires: As they burn forests to the ground, they can create new habitats like grasslands, where different species flourish. Likewise, when a tornado uproots trees, it allows sunlight to reach the forest floor. Seeds that couldn’t grow before will sprout and thrive in this new habitat.
The business ecosystem is also changing significantly. That means big adjustments for companies, but also opportunities for growth—if companies are willing to move outside their usual niches and think more broadly. In the Great Recession of 2008, restaurants adapted by offering smaller, lower-cost meals, while higherend retailers emphasized discount options. In the current crisis, some restaurants are emphasizing delivery, food manufacturers are focusing on core products that are most in demand, and therapists are offering online sessions.
Alternatively, small businesses might grow by using existing infrastructure in new ways. For example, a growing list of distilleries are producing hand sanitizer instead of spirits to fill drastic consumer needs. Strategy 2: Shut down and strengthen Even when some organisms appear to be devastated by a natural disruption, they have systems in place that let them thrive again. Trees such as the shortleaf pine do not have thick bark that can withstand a wildfire and are commonly burned to the ground. Yet their strong roots below the ground quickly rebuild after the fire has passed.
Similarly, entrepreneurs need to remember that they have a strong root system that they have built over the years, even if they don’t realize it. As individuals, they have knowledge and skills, and their companies have a solid base of trained employees and regular customers.
Businesses with money to spare in this crisis should consider investments to preserve those core strengths as much as possible and make it easier for the company to spring back to life once the crisis has passed.
That might mean investing in employee training to boost morale and efficiency, or doing volunteer work in their communities to build loyalty. Many larger companies make these kinds of efforts to strengthen their roots, such as offering paid sabbaticals for employees to let them recharge, spur creativity and eventually boost productivity.
It is also important for entrepreneurs to keep their roots in mind if they’re forced to close permanently. They aren’t going to forget what they know because their business closed— they may even end up wiser and more prepared to launch another company. And they won’t lose valuable contacts with skilled workers and the public. There are countless examples of entrepreneurs trying again after launching failed companies, including after economic collapses like the dot-com bubble. Strategy 3: Take advantage of predators For some organisms, catastrophe is an opportunity to hunt. Tropical birds search for insects fleeing from army-ant swarms, and animals such as bears and raccoons often prey on smaller animals escaping a wildfire.
In the business world, hunting means looking for acquisitions, and small businesses fit the definition of “prey”—not as old, not as experienced and, of course, not as big as a potential acquirer.
Why not take advantage of that?
During the last economic downturn, big companies took the opportunity to snap up small firms that fit their needs, and they may very well start doing so again. Small businesses that are struggling might consider an exit strategy and position themselves as attractive takeover targets. This involves getting your records in order and figuring out what high-value attributes you can use as selling points, such as a prime location, well-established brand name or market position in a growing industry.
Cashing out and handing your company to somebody else can be a bitter experience. But the reality is that not every business will survive the crisis, and allowing your business to be snagged by a “predator” might be a best-case scenario. Strategy 4: Look for leftovers Crises offer the opportunity a chance to do a form of bargain hunting—scavenging. Various species of beetles fly in large numbers to recently burned trees to take advantage of food, shelter and reproductive sites in the dead tissue. Later on, larger animals such as armadillos will return in search of these very insects for food.
Small-business owners may have similar opportunities right now, such as tapping into skilled workers who have suddenly become unemployed, negotiating more generous terms to get into an ideal space or looking for better prices with suppliers.
Throughout the decades, many small companies have leapt on these kinds of opportunities. When major airlines experienced an economic downturn in 2001, smaller airlines leveraged the opportunity to purchase aircraft at a discount. Likewise, after the dot-com bubble burst, surviving startups grabbed tech employees who had been laid off. Strategy 5: Launch something new Disruption can sometimes be the ideal time for organisms not just to regenerate or seek sustenance—but to reproduce. Lodgepole pine trees have developed hard cones that are glued shut, and to release their seeds, the cones must be exposed to high temperature from a fire. Thus, the timing of tree reproduction is actually dependent on a catastrophic event.
What lesson does that hold for businesses? For individuals or companies nurturing an entrepreneurial idea, a crisis could be the spark they need to take a chance they wouldn’t have taken when jobs or customers were plentiful. In the Great Depression, many small groceries opened in homes or abandoned storefronts, as there were very few jobs available. Individuals were able to start their business by buying a small stock of perishable goods, and lived off the unsold inventory if needed. More recently, Kickstarter and other crowdfunding platforms emerged during the 2008 recession, in response to the difficulty small businesses had in accessing traditional financing.