Mark Helow
10XCEO.com
Number of CEO’s
Source: Correlation Ventures
21k funding rounds, 2004 to 2013
Top 4% = 10X return
Return on investment
Number of CEO’s
Source: Correlation Ventures
21k funding rounds, 2004 to 2013
The next 6%
= 5X to 10X return
Return on investment
Number of CEO’s
Source: Correlation Ventures
21k funding rounds, 2004 to 2013
The next 25%
= 1X to 5X return
Return on investment




This is your curve. CEO skill is the primary
determining factor for your company’s place on the
curve.
Any CEO skill rating rating below the top 10% (for
venture backed companies) is not really good
enough.
Most business challenges for the bottom 90% are
really CEO skill challenges.
This reality can either be frightening or
empowering, depending on your perspective.




CEO effectiveness is largely predicted by six
individual skills: three personal skills and three
business skills.
The difference in these observed CEO skills is
gigantic.
Like an athlete, these skills can be observed,
quantified, practiced and usually elevated.
What to do about it…is to study and train your skill
like you are an elite athlete.
Skill #1 – Extreme Time Focus
The ability to select and focus only on the most
vital priorities (3 or less) that unlock the
enterprise’s primary constraint and make your
future job easier.
Skill #2 – Accelerated Learning Ability
The motivation, skill, and practice to learn
at an accelerated rate.
Skill #3 – Motivation and Skill Match
The desire and ability to master the skills required
at each business growth stage.
Business stage
I — Prototype
Objective
1. Validated product/market fit
CEO role
Fatal flaws
One-man band (or small team), 1. Customer need isn’t there
with helpers
2. Solution doesn’t work
Sales: <$3 Mil
Employees: <25
Venture Stages: Angel, A
2. Delighted customers
II — Business Validation
1. Customer need isn’t there
1. “Emergency” player
1. Competition gets tougher
2. Solution doesn’t work
2. Selector of players
3. Coach for players
2. CEO is a good player but
lousy coach or architect
4. Process architect
3. ROI isn’t good enough
1. Chief culture officer
1. Processes don’t scale
2. Selector of coaches
2. Leaders don’t scale
Sales: $3-$25 Mil
Employees: 25-200
Venture Stages: B,C, D
III — Growth
Sales: $25-$100 Mil
Employees: 200-500
Venture Stages: D or Later
IV — Maturity
Sales: +$100 Mil
Employees: 500+
Venture Stages: Public or Sale
3. Reasonable profit/value
assumptions
1. Business grows without CEO
involved in operations
3. CEO becomes bottleneck
(can’t hire leaders or let go)
1. Leaders and processes still
work.
2. Innovation happens faster than
existing business dies
1. Seeing what’s next
1. Leaders get distracted
2. Processes don’t scale
3. The ability to create dies
Skill #1 – Business Model Creation
Creating a product/market fit where customers can
be delighted and served with significant profit.
Skill #2 – Process Design
Creating and refining processes where sales are
easy and customers are predictably delighted at
scale.
Skill #3 – Talent Environment
Creating a culture of high-performing individuals
and teams.
Extreme
Time Focus
Accelerated
Learning
Ability
Motivation
and Skill
Match
Your
10X
Rating
Business
Model
Process
Design
Talent
Environment
#1 Watch Game
Film
(CEO X-RAY)
A framework that
analyzes both
your business and
your true CEO
effectiveness
#2 TOP THREE
PRIORITIES
Identify and focus
only on your three
highest leverage
priorities
#3 ACCELERATED
LEARNING
Apply an accelerated
learning process
to those top
three priorities
#4 CASCADE
Cascade the
10X discipline
throughout your
organization




#1 – Focuses only on the highest leverage CEO priorities.
#2 – Uses a written learning document that can be shared
and updated.
#3 – Creates and leverages an “Expert Network” that
includes books, frameworks, best practices and smart
people that are beyond the CEO’s usual range of
experience and contacts. This Expert Network must be
greater than 5 people/books/frameworks.
#4 – Cascades learning methods, best practices and smart
people to build the company’s “learning muscle”.