The Mid-Market Paradox That Few Talk About
In our work with promoters and CXOs of ₹50–500 Cr companies, a common frustration emerges:
“We are busy all the time, but control still feels fragile.”
This is not because these companies are poorly run. In fact, many are well-led, entrepreneurial, and deeply customer-focused. Most have grown through grit, intuition, and relentless effort.
The real reason lies in a paradox that is rarely acknowledged:
Mid-size companies often struggle more with operations than large enterprises.
Not because they lack intent or capability—but because they are caught in a structural no-man’s land.
Growth Happened Faster Than Design
Most successful mid-size companies in India did not design their operating model.
They simply grew into it!
Let’s retrace the journey.
At ₹20–30 Cr:
- Founder intuition worked
- Informal coordination was enough
- Experience substituted for systems
At ₹75–100 Cr and beyond:
- Volumes multiply
- Product mix expands
- Customers demand reliability
- Compliance tightens
But instead of redesigning processes and decision structures, companies typically respond by:
- Adding people
- Adding Excel trackers
- Adding approvals
- Adding reviews
What looks like “more control” is often just complexity layered over informality.
Large enterprises, by contrast, are forced to institutionalise early—sometimes inefficiently, but structurally.
The Most Dangerous Zone: Process Limbo
Small firms enjoy agility.
Large firms rely on discipline.
Mid-size firms often miss out on both.
What we repeatedly observe:
- SOPs exist, but are outdated or ignored
- Roles are defined, but decision rights are unclear
- Exceptions are frequent—and slowly become the norm
- Firefighting is mistaken for responsiveness
Processes end up being:
- Too loose to be reliable
- Too rigid to be flexible
This “process limbo” creates continuous operational noise—noise that senior leadership absorbs every single day.
Data Exists – But Confidence Doesn’t
Most ₹50–500 Cr firms do have data:
- ERP reports
- Inventory numbers
- Sales forecasts
- Production plans
Yet in review meetings, the same question keeps surfacing:
“Which number/ report should we trust?”
The reasons are predictable:
- Weak master data governance
- Manual overrides (jugad) done for “practical reasons”
- Parallel Excel systems
- No clear ownership of data accuracy
Large enterprises invest heavily—sometimes excessively—in data governance.
Mid-size firms assume data will eventually stabilise.
In practice, it rarely does.
And without trusted data:
- Planning remains reactive
- Automation amplifies errors
- AI initiatives fail before they even begin
ERP Is Implemented – But Not Used to Run the Business
Many mid-size firms have ERP. But a closer look often reveals:
- ERP is treated primarily as an accounting system
- Operations teams work outside the system
- Reports are backwards-looking
- Decisions still happen on calls, WhatsApp, or Excel
Large enterprises struggle too, but they force adoption through governance and accountability.
Mid-size firms hesitate because:
- Resources are limited
- Growth pressure is relentless
Common refrains include:
- “People are not ready”
- “Let’s not disrupt operations”
- “We’ll stabilise after the next phase of growth”
That “next phase” keeps moving.
The Hidden Cost: Leadership Bandwidth
Impaired processes and jerky operations don’t just slow execution – they drain leadership energy. This is the most damaging and least discussed consequence.
In many mid-size firms, promoters, directors, and CXOs spend 40–60% of their time on:
- Resolving operational exceptions
- Reviewing day-to-day issues
- Chasing updates
- Approving workarounds
Strategic thinking becomes a luxury.
Large enterprises distribute strategy, management, and execution across structures designed to handle complexity.
Mid-size firms collapse all three onto the same leadership layer—leading to fatigue, bottlenecks, and slower growth.
Why Large Enterprises Appear More Stable
It’s not because they are smarter.
It’s because they:
- Accept discipline as non-negotiable
- Define process ownership clearly
- Build systems around decision-making, not just reporting
- Endure short-term discomfort for long-term control
- Adopt technology deliberately, not emotionally
Mid-size firms often delay these decisions until operational stress becomes unavoidable.
The Good News: This Stage Is Solvable
Operational excellence at the mid-market stage does not require:
- Massive consulting programs
- Over-engineered systems
- Bloated teams
It requires:
- Process clarity before automation
- Data ownership before analytics
- Decision discipline before AI
- Leadership intent before tools
The advantage mid-size firms have?
They can fix these issues faster than large enterprises—if they act deliberately.
Closing Thought
If your organisation feels:
- Busy but not truly productive
- Digitised but not really controlled
- Scaled but not genuinely stable
You are not failing.
You are simply at a stage where operating informally has become expensive.
And that problem is entirely solvable.