Energy Budget Allocation
Companies must allocate finite resources across operations (survival), R&D/expansion (growth), and margins/dividends (profitability).
The three-way trade-off between survival, growth, and reproduction represents a fixed energy budget that every organism must allocate. Survival costs are continuous and non-negotiable (skip this, die immediately). Growth costs are high early in life, declining after maturity. Reproduction costs are zero before sexual maturity, massive after. Energy allocation strategy is not fixed - it evolves based on environment. High-mortality environments favor early reproduction (might die before second chance). Low-mortality environments favor delayed reproduction (survival to reproduce multiple times).
Business Application of Energy Budget Allocation
Companies must allocate finite resources across operations (survival), R&D/expansion (growth), and margins/dividends (profitability). The allocation ratio should match the competitive environment - aggressive growth in gold rushes, balanced allocation in stable markets.