realisedevelopment.net

Just another WordPress site

Dragons’ Den is a Bare Faced Lie About How Business is Done

March 24, 2009 by admin

You can usually trust a good comedian to get down the truth of the matter, and David Mitchell has done just this with the Dragons’ Den format.

“Dragons’ Den is a bare-faced lie about how business is done,” he says. “The people who do that job are not rude because there’s no percentage for anyone in them being so.

“They don’t sanctimoniously tick people off nor do they spend 10 minutes thinking up a weak pun which combines their wish not to invest with the field of the invention in question – ‘A new type of cheese, I’d have to be crackers to invest’ as if they’re auditioning for the Beano.

“Dragons den not only misrepresents rudeness for straightforwardness, but also implies that this is how successful business people behave.”

Rudeness aside Dragons’ Den is responsible for other misconceptions that damage the perception of enterprise and entrepreneurship:

  1. Getting investment is a competition. The best entry wins whether it is good bad or indifferent. (Specifically this is what the enterprise professionals ‘teach’ when they try to piggy back on Dragon’s Den to get their engagement numbers up.  The dragons themselves would invest in any and every opportunity that meets their investment criteria.)
  2. Any business that does not meet the criterion for investment from a venture capitalist is not a good business. “It might make a decent business for you and your family – but there is not enough in it to interest me – I’m out“.  This echoes and reinforces the disdain that much of the public sector has for ‘lifestyle’ businesses.  They seem to forget that most entrepreneurs learn the ropes in life style businesses before some of them get bigger aspirations.  As I believe Peter Drucker said – ‘You can’t have the mountain top without the mountain.’
  3. You have to conform to venture capitalist norms and conventions if you are to succeed – everything from the way you dress, your hairstyle through to your knowledge of the numbers (you had better pretend WITH CONVICTION that your crystal ball is good for revenue forecasts at leas three years ahead.
  4. Investment readiness should be evaluated on a single pitch – there is a simple binary response – yes or no.  In fact most investments come as a result of a relationship between an investor and client.

So come on.  Let’s drop the Dragon’s Den emulations.  No more ‘Strictly Enterprise.’

Instead let’s get down to the hard work of having some informed conversations about enterprise and what it can do for our communities.

Filed Under: enterprise, entrepreneurship, management Tagged With: enterprise, entrepreneurship, management, professional development, social media, strategy, training

Recent Posts

  • Hello world!
  • The Challenges of ‘Engaging Community Leaders’
  • Are rich people less honest?
  • 121s – The single most effective tool for improving performance at work?
  • Wendell Berry’s Plan to Save the World

Recent Comments

  • Mike on Some thoughts on Best City outcomes
  • Andy Bagley on Some thoughts on Best City outcomes
  • Mike on Strengthening Bottom Up
  • Jeff Mowatt on Strengthening Bottom Up
  • Jeff Mowatt on Top Down: Bottom Up

Archives

  • November 2018
  • March 2014
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • August 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • August 2010
  • July 2010
  • June 2010
  • May 2010
  • April 2010
  • March 2010
  • February 2010
  • January 2010
  • December 2009
  • November 2009
  • October 2009
  • September 2009
  • August 2009
  • July 2009
  • June 2009
  • May 2009
  • April 2009
  • March 2009
  • February 2009
  • January 2009
  • December 2008
  • November 2008
  • October 2008
  • September 2008
  • August 2008
  • July 2008
  • June 2008
  • May 2008
  • April 2008
  • March 2008
  • February 2008
  • January 2008
  • December 2007
  • November 2007
  • October 2007
  • September 2007
  • August 2007
  • July 2007
  • June 2007
  • May 2007
  • April 2007

Categories

  • Community
  • Development
  • enterprise
  • entrepreneurship
  • Leadership
  • management
  • Progress School
  • Results Factory
  • Training
  • Uncategorized

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Copyright © 2025 · Enterprise Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in