Comeback Stories: Growing Through Adversity to Win

I recently watched the new film “The Mountain Within Me”, which recounts the story of how Ed Jackson, a former rugby player and someone I’ve got to know through his charitable foundation Millimeters 2 Mountains, went from spinal injury to mountain climbing. It’s an incredible personal story of growth through adversity, defying the odds to thrive in spite of ongoing challenges.

In the business world, catastrophic events can also hit organizations hard, with only a few able to overcome it and come back to create an “unfair advantage” in their market. Inspired by Ed’s story, I want to explore those business comeback stories, and draw insights and strategies other organizations can use, no matter the scale of their own challenges.

Rebuilding after a devastating human loss

One story that has stayed with me over the years, especially around the time of the anniversary of September 11, is Cantor Fitzgerald. The financial services firm suffered a devastating loss that day, when 658 of its 960 New York employees were killed in the attack of the World Trade Center. At first, it looked like the company would not survive. By 2009, during a time of recession when its competitors were struggling to stay in business, the firm was thriving. Today, Cantor Fitzgerald has 12,500 employees globally across over 300 locations, with about $9 billion in annual revenue. How did it overcome such adversity to create this great market advantage? Here is what stands out for me:

Bold Leadership: On September 11 and in the days that followed, Cantor’s leadership had to take swift action to keep their business running while also dealing with unimaginable loss. The head of their London office helped reconfigure their trading systems so that trades could be processed through London instead of New York. Their CEO, Howard Lutnick, made the decision to stop the paychecks of the victims, and established a plan that included providing their families 25 percent of its profits over the next five years instead; these actions were very controversial at first, but in the end delivered positive outcomes for these families. My takeaway: a show of boldness during a crisis demonstrates clear conviction on what is needed to safeguard the future and is a sign of great leadership.

Innovative Ecosystem: Cantor's earlier investment in electronic trading systems allowed the firm to resume operations just 47 hours after the attacks. When that investment was initially made, some of the firm’s brokers were fearful that the technology would eventually replace them. This sounds oddly familiar to objections we have heard more recently in the business world about AI – but as I covered in my previous “unfair advantage” post, part of what makes an ecosystem great is the people working in tandem with the technology to deliver value. My takeaway: investments in innovation often provide the unexpected benefit of enabling flexibly when the unexpected happens.

Strong Culture: One of Cantor’s key characteristics is a unique company culture based on resilience, entrepreneurship, and social responsibility. The tragedy of September 11 fostered a commitment to honoring those lost while driving the firm to rebuild and thrive. Cantor promotes an entrepreneurial spirit within a collaborative, flat organizational structure. Philanthropy is integral to its identity, exemplified by the Cantor Fitzgerald Relief Fund and their annual Charity Day. The firm is also known for their strong sense of community: before 9/11, they had a unique hiring approach that emphasized personal connections, and this practice has continued with the hiring of family members of employees lost in the attacks. My takeaway: the famous quote “culture eats strategy for breakfast” comes to mind… at the end of the day, no matter how good a company's strategy is, its success ultimately depends on the strength of human connections and ability to work together.

Reinvention after near-bankruptcy

Did you know that LEGO almost went under in the early 2000s? At the time, the company was on the verge of bankruptcy, accumulating $800 million in debt by 2003 and losing hundreds of millions of dollars annually. The company had overexpanded into areas outside its core business, such as theme parks and clothing lines, while also increasing the complexity of its product lines by doubling the number of unique brick types. Additionally, LEGO faced intense competition from video games and cheaper copycat products, leading to a loss of market share. Fast forward to today, and it is the world’s largest toy company, quadrupling revenues in less than a decade; in the first half of 2024, their revenue jumped 13%. What are some of the key strategies they adopted to achieve such a spectacular turnaround?

“Back to Basics” Approach: Following their financial woes, LEGO decided to shift back to what made the company successful in the first place - their iconic plastic bricks, and a focus on creativity and play. The company sold off non-core assets like Legoland theme parks and eliminated unprofitable product lines that had strayed too far from their core offering. They centered all new offerings around this core, similar to Disney's approach of building everything around its core intellectual property. This strategy allowed LEGO to expand into movies, TV shows, and branded stores while maintaining focus on their fundamental product. My takeaway: a "back to basics" strategy allows organizations to focus on what they are best at, and ultimately enables them to strengthen brand identity while better meeting their customer needs.

Open Innovation: As part of its turnaround strategy, LEGO also embraced open innovation. The company shifted from viewing customer modifications as a threat to seeing them as an opportunity for collaboration and innovation. This approach was exemplified by the evolution of LEGO Mindstorms, where LEGO encouraged users to modify and expand the capabilities of their robotic creations. The company also launched platforms like LEGO Ideas, allowing fans to submit their own designs for potential production. By fostering a collaborative environment with its user base, LEGO tapped into a wealth of creativity, revitalized interest in its products, and transformed customers into co-creators. My takeaway: open innovation not only leads to stronger customer loyalty, but it can also accelerate development and market responsiveness.

Strategic Partnerships: As part of its reinvention strategy, LEGO also employed strategic partnerships and licensing to enhance its product offerings and market reach. By collaborating with popular franchises such as Star Wars, Harry Potter, Marvel, and DC Comics, LEGO tapped into existing fan bases and attracted a wider audience. These partnerships allowed LEGO to create themed sets that appealed to both children and adults while leveraging recognizable characters and storylines to enhance product appeal. This approach not only helped LEGO maintain brand consistency with its core brick-based play concept but also ensured mutual benefits for both LEGO and its partner brands. My takeaway: strategic partnerships can significantly expand a company's market reach, generate new revenue streams, and enhance brand visibility.

Building resiliency after a massive disruption

My next story isn’t the story of one organization; it should be the story of every organization. No matter how recent massive disruptive events like the global pandemic have impacted yours, there is one important lesson: proactively build organizational resiliency, now. Having the right level of resiliency will ensure your organization’s preparedness for whatever adversity the future may bring—and emerge stronger on the other side. Insights from McKinsey highlight the following key resilient behaviors by organizations as less likely to face bankruptcy and more likely to outperform peers financially during challenging times like the COVID-19 pandemic.

Agile Organization: Companies should shift towards faster, more decentralized decision-making processes that are informed by data. This involves creating structures that allow for quick testing, learning, and adjusting when facing complex business challenges. Agile principles like rapid decision-making and accepting "good enough" outcomes enable teams to adapt swiftly as circumstances change. My takeaway: great decision-making leans on great data, so manage your data as a critical organizational asset, not just a means to an end.

Self-Sufficient, Empowered Teams: Organizations should create teams that feel accountable and have ownership over outcomes. These teams should be empowered to carry out strategic plans, stay close to customers, and have access to the information needed to continually innovate or change course. Providing teams with psychological safety and self-sufficiency allows them to respond effectively to challenges. My takeaway: empowering people includes providing them with new, essential skills that will safeguard their future – and yours.

Adaptable Leadership: Companies need to find and promote leaders who don't just react to crises, but take time to coach team members through change. Adaptable leaders catalyze new behaviors, develop capabilities for both short-term response and long-term resilience, and are more likely to embrace workplace paradoxes rather than viewing everything as black and white. They should be willing to challenge employees to step out of their comfort zones to achieve goals. My takeaway: effective communication is at the core of good leadership. It's not just about sharing information effectively; it's about inspiring, connecting, and influencing.

The comeback stories of Cantor Fitzgerald and LEGO showed how very different organizations overcame catastrophic events to thrive, through innovative strategies. Crises create tremendous uncertainty, but they can also open up a greater willingness to change and become more resilient. No matter your present circumstances, I encourage you to leverage some of these strategies to create your own unfair advantage – or find your own approach that helps your organization stand out! As Ed Jackson, the rugby player I mentioned at the beginning, said in his brilliant documentary, “Rewrite the rule book of what’s possible, you don’t know until you try.” I think that’s excellent advice not just for individuals facing great adversity in their personal lives, but for corporations as well.