Equine Management Tips

I recently learned that thoroughbred trainer D. Wayne Lukas has won more Triple-Crown races (13) than any other horse trainer, more Breeders’ Cup races (17) than any other horse trainer, and higher earnings than any other horse trainer (14 years), for a lifetime total of an astonishing $250 million. As a student of management, I learned something even more interesting: that he’s done this by challenging the conventional wisdom that a horse should always be raced in a location near its stable. Bucking conventional wisdom, Lukas shipped horses to tracks around the country, carefully picking locations and races that offered a given horse the best chance for victory, while also gradually increasing the level of competition for that particular horse over time. With this maverick and controversial, yet careful and disciplined approach, Lukas and his minions steadily built a horse’s confidence and ability. And because he did this with a number of horses simultaneously, Lukas also gathered hard data on which of his horses had the best chance to win the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont. After observing his methods, and results, other trainers began to mimick his approach, but they were playing some steep catch-up.

That got me thinking that Lukas is demonstrating what might well be called the twin foundations of sustained competitive advantage:

1. He didn’t merely “continuously improve” his business. He changed the rules of engagement, forcing everybody else to play catch-up with new rules. FedEx, Dell, Southwest Air, Amazon, Honda (light motorcycles), IKEA and Starbucks changed the game by disrupting the conventional wisdom in their industries—and prospered as a result. So did Lukas. When I work with CEOs, I try to get them to realize that in the theatre of business, the stage set doesn’t have to stay the same. The walls of have wheels—and successful leaders are always considering how the set might be rearranged for a more unique production.

2. A great idea is nothing without great execution. Unlike many leaders today, Lukas executed. He meticulously tracked the evolvement of each of his animals, he kept rigorous data, and he religiously followed up with each employee, each horse, each location daily. You examine these kind of “back end” operations of each of the companies cited above and you will be surprised at the fanatic discipline with which top executives approach the details of execution. But it’s that back-end obsession that allows them to breathe life into their radical ideas, and to build speed, cost-efficiency, flexibility, and profit margin in the process. I think it’s appropriate that Harvard Business Review entitled an interview with Lukas as “A Passion for Detail”.

I think it’s also appropriate to note Harvard Business Review’s observation that the very word "manage" has an equine origin. It comes from Latin, by way of the Italian word "maneggiare", meaning "to handle, to train horses." Seems to me that when the Triple Crown series rolls in next season, we might want to crown D. Wayne Lukas as a true management guru.