Read the full script of Module 4, Episode 6 of the Global Growth Master Class below. Want to get certified on global expansion? Simply click here to access the complete course today.

The final related question, that bridges alignment and strategy is:

How should we approach localizing our business to fit new markets and navigate through the stages global growth?

The fourth and arguably most crucial commitment that Global Class Companies uphold while expanding globally is to keep utilizing an agile approach to reach company-market fit and grow in new international markets. We call this approach “the Global Agile Methodology”. 

The Global Agile is a method by which companies select markets to expand into, localize their business for these markets, and support an increasingly complex organization operating at global scale

A subset of the Global Agile Methodology, the Global Agile MODEL is a set of steps that companies go through to progress from aspiring to expand in global markets to reaching global scale. It is an extension of the Customer Development Model developed by Steve Blank, and Eric Ries’ Lean Methodology. Think of the Global Agile METHODOLOGY as a set of principles and supporting concepts (like iterating, pivoting and Minimium Viable Products, MVPs, in the Lean Methodology) - The Global Agile equivalents that we will discuss like Localization Premium, Complexity Management.

Think of the Global Agile MODEL, as the step-by-step process you progress through to go from wanting to expand to new markets to successfully reaching global scale. Compare this to Steve Blank’s Customer Development Model which helps companies go from Idea to validated business model and profitable company. Steps in Customer Development like Customer Discovery and milestones like reaching Product-Market Fit are akin to Market Building Stage and Company-Market Fit in the Global Agile Model which we will detail in the coming modules and summarize at the end of the course in Module 11. 

The methodology, which has companies continue the iteration and pivoting process of lean, involves everything from the organizational readiness process discussed in this module, to navigating the market selection and localization processes, described in upcoming modules - the final result being a company achieving company-market fit and scale in international markets.

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While we will discuss this methodology and each step in the MODEL in much more detail in the modules focused on localization, it is worth explaining why it is crucial in the context of the other commitments outlined in this module.

Global Class Companies are aware that it is uncommon for a product or business model to work effectively in all regions, considering the diversity of the world. Instead of trying to impose their ways on local markets and expecting them to conform, Global Class Companies see their existing model, which was established in their primary market, as a set of testable assumptions. 

As you heard us say in the introductory Module, “Global is the New Agile,” We make this parallel because there are a number of aspects of the lean or agile methodology that align with the Global Class Mindset. While it’s not exactly the same, for example, they are aligned in many ways. The Customer Development Model is a process of organizing and searching for a business model, testing, iterating, and pivoting along the way; while the the Global Agile MODEL is the pathway for companies to gain traction in global markets while managing a global presence at scale.

For the iterative, agile process of Customer Development to work, the entire team must be bought in and not insist on using the waterfall method of sticking to roadmaps. The parallel in global is that the entire team must adopt the Global Class Mindset and not be stuck on the Legacy Mindset. In the traditional Customer Development Process, you start with hypotheses for what your business model will look like, pivoting as you go. 

In Global Agile, you start with your Initial Market’s validated model and pivot that to fit new local markets, visualized by the Business Model Localization Canvas, which you will learn about in Module 5.

In the Customer Development Process, there isn’t the same formal launch where a perfect product is brought to market, it is iterative, which also allows fewer resources to be spent until an idea is validated. The same principle is true for Global Agile. Global growth is no longer hiring large local teams and opening offices in new markets the same way they used to. It’s much more iterative, where you may not even create a local entity before entering a new market. Platforms and employee of record (EOR) and business process optimization (BPO) firms allow you to test out a market while committing fewer resources. 

There are also a number of parallels between the Customer Development Manifesto, core tenets outlined by the father of modern entrepreneurship, Steve Blank, that ring true with global expansion.

• The parallel for, There Are No Facts Outside the Building, So Get Outside is the importance of Localization Discovery and getting “in the market” to experience it directly instead of just doing market research from afar

• “Continuous Iterations and Pivots” - While Interpreneurs can leverage products successfully launched in the initial market (and the operational model that supports them), they realize that changes needed to the operating and go-to-market models to successfully grow in global markets

• The parallel for, Startup Metrics Differ from Those in Existing Companies, is that early on the metrics for a new international market must differ from thresholds and what is tracked in more mature markets. Metrics should be less about profitability and revenue and more about uncovering localizations and validating the go-to-market and operating models

• Preserve Cash Until Needed, then Spend, closely matches the Resource Alignment outlined in this module, one of the purposes of the Global Agile Methodology being to spend less to validate new markets using a more iterative approach, and to sustain resource commitment over time

• Communicate & Share Learnings closely matches the Communication and Clarity commitment, which is illustrated by the importance of establishing Feedback Loops, creating playbooks to capture and share best practices, and enabling two-way innovation

• Finally, the tenet, Customer Development Success begins with Buy-In closely matches how global success begins with internal alignment, and buy-in to the Global Class Mindset and 4 Commitments.

Despite these similarities, global is different, and the agile methodology in its pure form does not work well in a global context. The tenet “Fast Decision Making, Cycle Time, Speed and Tempo” is actually what gets some companies in trouble because they only focus on the speed of growth in one market and not keeping a global purview. This is because the whole focus of the agile methodology is to iterate and pivot until you validate the right model.

That is great for one market, but if you go through this process in 5 or 10 markets then eventually you have 5 or 10 models to manage that become nearly impossible to scale. The Global Agile Methodology helps you manage the complexity that comes along with localizing for new markets, better-enabling companies to reach global scale without running into a wall and needing to stop expanding, step back, and rebuild to have the foundation to support scale.

There are 5 stages of the Global Agile Methodology each with specific milestones, accompanied by tools that you will learn in the other modules of the course.

The topic of this module, Organizational Readiness, for example, falls under the Preparation stage of the model, followed by developing a list target markets before transitioning into the Market Readiness & Strategy Development stage where companies analyze target markets, map out required changes to the business for that market (localizations), finalize market selection, and then build a strategy for market entry - this will be detailed in Modules 5, 6 and 7. 

Then comes Market Entry, where a company launches in a new international market and iterates on its go-to-market model until it finds Product-Market Fit. This is followed by the Market Building stage where the company continues to iterate on the Operational model and cultural models to find what works in the market, which we call Company-Market Fit. As part of this step, companies build a presence in multiple countries, working to manage the complexities that accompany this. 

Finally, companies reach the Global Scale stage where the company manages a distributed global organization at scale. All of these stages and supported by processes and structures, which we call Momentum Builders that facilitate growth and scale, which we discuss in detail in Module 8. We will discuss the stages of the Global Agile Methodology in greater detail in Module 11 after we have introduced all of the other related frameworks utilized in the process.

Unfortunately, many companies tend to abandon the Agile principles once they have validated their business in an initial market, primarily for two reasons

(1) This occurs because they have already answered key questions about their business such as validating their customer base and go-to-market strategy. Additionally, as the organization grows

(2) Functional expertise outweighs agile expertise within the organization.

Maintaining a dedication to the agile approach while establishing a global organization provides the versatility necessary to accomplish both company-market fit in a specific market and expansion across multiple markets. The notion that agile is only applicable to smaller businesses venturing into new markets is incorrect. It is a vital tool utilized by Global Class Companies of all sizes, regardless of their stage of global expansion. 

As an example, Google's focus was on the competitive home voice assistant market in America. However, after observing data indicating a significant opportunity in Latin American markets, which were untapped and had limited competition, the Google Nest team shifted their priorities and launched their products in eleven countries in the region using an agile approach. This enabled them to effectively address the varying technical specifications in each country and work with key partners who had local market expertise, even with varying models. As a result, Google was able to seize a first-mover advantage in the region.

Here are the Keys to Success in utilizing the Global Agile Methodology

• When building an international growth team choose members who are well-versed in agile/lean principles. This applies to team members in the local market and those at HQ who are supporting growth efforts.

• Reward when agile methodology is used (even when iterations fail) and do so until the local operating model is validated over adhering to set plans and timelines.

• Understand that agile methodology is the clearest pathway toward identifying the localizations necessary to find traction (and scale) in new international markets.

• Realize that this global agile methodology is not just about speed to market, focusing on markets individually, but also being mindful of the complexity that arises when localizing for multiple international markets. A significant amount of focus goes into managing this complexity and we have developed a number of tools to assist you in navigating this process.

NOTE: Don't miss out on the next episode! If you want to continue learning about global expansion strategies and dive deeper into the course material, simply click here to access Module 4, Episode 7 of the Global Growth Master Class.