BHAG, the audacious ideal
The audacious ideal is the free translation of the English ‘BHAG’ (pronounced ‘bee-hag’): Big Hairy Audacious Goal. Also referred to as the Big Bold Ambitious Goal, or the audacious ideal. The term BHAG was first used by Jim Collins and Jerry Poras in their book Successful Habits of Visionary Companies. Collins described it as follows:
“A good BHAG is clear and convincing, serves as a unifying beacon on the horizon, and is a pure catalyst for team spirit.”
A BHAG is the ultimate dream that inspires, guides, and connects your employees. This dream may and should be challenging, fun, and even exciting. Because you don’t know if you’ll just make it or just miss it. And what’s the result? Companies with a defined big goal tend to be more successful. Just look at big brands, big missions. Growth means thinking big and daring big.
“People need BHAGs – Big Hairy Audacious Goals.” – Jim Collins
BHAGs can be distinguished into 4 categories:
- A goal BHAG: This involves a quantitative goal with a specific number. For example, ‘Become a $125 billion company by year 2000’ (Wal-Mart). Or: ‘Before this decade is out, landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth’ (John F. Kennedy), and recently: ‘Sending humans to another planet – get a group of individuals to Mars by 2025’ (Elon Musk).
- A competition BHAG: The idea here is for the entire team to do their utmost to eliminate a competitor, often the market leader. For example, ‘Crush Adidas’ (Nike).
- A role model BHAG: For emerging companies, a highly successful company from another sector can serve as a role model. This often occurs in the world of tech startups, where companies aim to become the best in their niche. For example, ‘Become the Nike of the cycling industry’ (Giro Sport Design). ‘To turn the Starbucks brand into the most recognized and respected consumer brand in the world, a position that’s currently held by Coca-Cola’ (Starbucks).
- A transformation BHAG: This BHAG mainly occurs in established companies undergoing major changes. The company’s goal is to redefine itself. For example, ‘Transform this company from a chemical manufacturer into one of the preeminent drug-making companies in the world’ (Merck).
Identifying a good BHAG
As you can see in the examples above, a good BHAG has several characteristics:
- Ambitious. It should be just achievable, not easy. This means it should still be realistic. A BHAG that is too ‘over the top’ can be demotivating.
- Inspirational. It should capture the imagination!
- Aligns with the core activities of the company and focuses on what you excel at.
- Consistent. Once formulated, stick to it and go for it.
- Shared grandly. A BHAG is not a solo action by the company’s leader. It’s important to develop a BHAG with the management team, and it’s important for it to be embraced by the whole company.
- Recognizable. The BHAG should be immediately recognizable as a sort of footprint of your company.
