The central challenge for mid-market companies is making the shift from "scrambling" to "scaling." Few organizations effectively navigate this transition due to what Stagen refers to as the performance paradox: the "winning formula" that created a company's initial success becomes the very thing that holds it back from getting to the next level. Additionally, typical entrepreneurial organizations are limited by a number of factors, including: executive leadership experience, infrastructure limitations, poor understanding of key financial drivers, an overemphasis on sales and top-line revenue growth, and a reliance on individual heroics to solve problems.

As illustrated in the table below, new competencies and a radically different mindset are required for an organization to make the move to scaling.