Article at a glance:

The granularity of growth

• A large company’s top-line growth is driven mainly by market growth in the subindustries and product categories where it competes and by the revenues it purchases when it acquires other companies, according to a growth analysis of more than 200 companies around the world.
• The gain or loss of market share explains only around 20 percent of the difference in the growth performance of companies.
• Executives should identify and allocate resources to fast-growing segments in which a company has the capabilities and resources to compete successfully.
• To make the right portfolio choices, executives should benchmark the growth performance of a company and its peers on a segment level.