From Steve Spear's great book Chasing the Rabbit, rabbits are those high-velocity companies that always seem to stay out in front of the pack. He gives examples of Toyota, Alcoa and the US Navy as a few. For the next couple weeks I'll be sharing what I'm learning from the book.
There are two basic fundamental differences between rabbits and chasers. The first is how they manage functions. Chasers live in silos, "You take care of your part and I'll take care of mine." Rabbits tackle the difficult task of, "... the way the work of individuals, teams, and technologies will contribute to (or impede) the process of which they are part."
This means knowing and caring how what team A hands off to team B affects the efficiency of team B and the whole. Chasers think integration is making sure each team is individually excellent and efficient. Rabbits know true integration is making sure the process of the multiple teams is excellent and efficient. In high-volocity rabbit organizations each team takes some responsibility for the success of the other teams. The are no silos or, as Spear puts it, sovereign states. The are structured to manage the functions as parts of the process, not as individual functions.
Next we'll tackle the second fundamental difference of dynamics.
