Building a business like Building a sports team

Tl;dr:

  • We truly believe that Every founder/business owner should focus on building the business, just as they build a product or a brand.
  • Do it right by design.
  • If you could do that, you’ll create a lasting legacy, like a great sports team.

The hard-earned lessons of a founder

Just last week, in the cozy corner of the tech district of one of Asia's busiest cities, I had a delightful chat with a founder leading a vibrant team of 60 in their fast-growing SME.

They’ve been making waves in the industry for 4 exciting years now.

How would he sum up those years? Brutal.

  • 12-hour days, every day.

  • Firefighting mode all day: Fixing problems before (or while) they blew up.

  • Hiring, firing, tons of people-related headaches.

  • Stuck in every transformation attempt because “we’ve always done it this way” no longer worked as the company hit mid-size.

Now, they have finally gotten into good shape. They have a steady client base from businesses of all sizes. The company runs like clockwork, with established processes in place. People are heading in the same direction and have the shared missions.

Sipping his coffee, he shared:

"I realized the business wasn’t the problem. The way we were running it was."

THE EPIPHANY: Running a business is similar to building a sport team

As we talked, a brilliant analogy clicked, from the sport we both play and love.

Running a business is like building a basketball team.

At its core, what is important boils down to:

  • The playbook (the product/service) – What you build or deliver.

  • The fans (the customers) – Who you serve.

  • The team (the business itself) – Process + Key Players + Enablers.

Get these three right? Everything falls into place.

Get them wrong? You’ll always be chasing, reacting, and firefighting.

A struggling business is like a struggling team: focusing on everything, except the game.

THE HOW - The secret behind great teams

Another friend once asked me: “Why do great sports teams have so many loyal fans for years - even as players and coaches change?”

Great question. Stuck in my mind for years.

People aren’t just loyal to one player, one coach, or one game. They’re loyal to the team itself.

I wouldn’t attempt to answer “why” for all sports, all fans, or all teams. People love something, are loyal to something, and follow something for different reasons. It might be the philosophy, the legacy, the journey, and the emotions of being part of something bigger. It's hard to simplify it, like a religion.

But no matter “why” - that’s definitely a good indicator of a GREAT sports team.

A great sports team is more than just people, it’s a legacy that lasts.

A great business? Same thing.

Great businesses have loyal customers who return repeatedly and a strong base of followers, supporters, and employees.

So, what’s the ‘formula’ for a lasting legacy?

The best teams don’t just throw talented players together and hope for the best."

They have:

  • A strategy.
  • The right DNA and culture.
  • A system.

In an attempt to summarize the conversation that we developed upon this epiphany, we have condensed into 3 lessons that he had over the years - that surely founders would learn through a lot of trial and error but hardly spoke about:

Lesson 1: Pick the right game, the right league

Not every team plays in the NBA. Some thrive in smaller leagues and dominate their niche.

Some, after years of playing, might realize that basketball isn’t even their game - maybe it’s pickleball instead 😆

  • Which game do you have an advantage?

  • What niche can you actually compete in?

  • What’s the ultimate goal? Stay in the big leagues? Dominate smaller ones? Play the game for the love of it?

Your long-term strategy defines your game plan for every match, and vice versa.

Just like in business, every decision, every bet should align with where you want to go.

E.g., Even in a crowded fintech space, this founder found an opportunity in B2B2C lending, leveraging strong client relationships instead of chasing mass markets.

👉 Play the game that suits your strengths. And passion. And dream.

Lesson 2: Gather the right people, build the right DNA

You can’t play a good game (let alone win a championship) with the wrong team.

  • Key players ≠ Talents. A star player in one system might not fit in yours.

  • You will make wrong hires. That’s part of the game. Learn, adjust, move forward.

  • Keep the right ones happy. Develop them, support them, grow them. And grow the game together.

The best teams’ legacy aren’t just built on skills, they’re built on chemistry, trust, and a shared vision.

That means, try real hard to define, keep, develop the ‘right’ key players.

That also means, it's okay to let the ‘wrong’ ones go.

Lesson 3: Build a system that lasts

Great teams don’t just rely on talent. They build a system that allows key players to work together.

The People: What roles and capabilities do you need? How many PGs, SGs, SFs, Cs? (Or in business terms, what’s your core team/key players structure?). Who’s accountable for what - in one gameplay, and in a system as a whole?

The Process: (1) Develop and package processes/programs/enablers centered around Product, Customer, and Key Players. (2) Establish rules/policies to shape a Ways-of-Working (WoW) framework that aligns with the defined DNA/Culture.

  • How do you develop, test, and refine new gameplay?
  • How do you onboard/offboard players?
  • How do you deliver each game as a team? (e.g., rule/process to communicate and collaboratively execute gameplay, communicate on-court/off-court, match reviews)

The Enablers:

  • What mindset, skillset, and toolset enable the team (or business) to execute the playbook smoothly? (Planning systems? Measurement & tracking? Analytics?)
  • Ways-of-working: Establish rules/policies to develop Ways-of-Working (WoWs) that align with the defined DNA/Culture. (e.g., clear reward/disciplinary policies to reinforce core culture.)

And more importantly, can this system work consistently, at scale, over time?

💡 A legendary example from my friend:

He shared how he structured his sales process for B2B clients. Not a complicated multi-layered sales funnel with fancy terminology.

His approach? A simple 4-step framework: 4Cs - "Contact - Convince - Close - Care."

Breaking it down:

  • Contact – Finding and attracting potential customers.
  • Convince – Consulting, discussing, and building trust.
  • Close – Closing the deal, converting leads into customers.
  • Care – Post-sale service, customer retention, and loyalty.

He packaged it into just four words. Each stage has dedicated personnels, clear KPIs, measurable targets, and a structured SOP. Over time, they analyze performance and optimize accordingly.

Super simple, clear, easy for the team to follow, easy to optimize, and easy to scale.

It was my turn to be impressed with his 4C model. The man is truly a system design expert! 🚀

In business, this means building a lasting ops system, so it can handle scale, culture shifts, and market pressure.

The outcomes / WGLL: After restructuring, he started to see what-good-looks-like:

  • No more micromanaging. The right workflows, systems, and trust let the business run itself.
  • Scaling smarter. Instead of hiring more people (and clashing cultures), they leveraged shared platforms.
  • Escaping survival mode. Less firefighting, finally, time to focus on strategy and growth.

Now?

They work on (building) the business, not in it.

They get to play the game with 100% heart-head-hand, fueled by passion, drive, and love.

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