> There are limited resources so defining success on growth will eventually lead to a point of no more growth and no longer be successful by a growth definition.
Growth depends on resources AND technology. Its quite possible to have growth without any change in resourcing.
> Comparing to GDP gets tricky. Is GDP growing due to actual output growth and wealth generation or due to inflation?
It doesn't make a difference. In this case we are definitely talking nominal growth.
My bottom line would be that a business would generally(!) not be classed as successful if it is not growing.
Of course there are other factors that might make a stationary business considered a success.
Growth depends on resources AND technology. Its quite possible to have growth without any change in resourcing.
> Comparing to GDP gets tricky. Is GDP growing due to actual output growth and wealth generation or due to inflation?
It doesn't make a difference. In this case we are definitely talking nominal growth.
My bottom line would be that a business would generally(!) not be classed as successful if it is not growing.
Of course there are other factors that might make a stationary business considered a success.