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We see businesses closing their doors all the time and this unfortunate circumstance even hits the businesses that appear to be healthy. How does this happen and how can business leaders stop the inertia that's driving their business into the ground?
Extinction doesn't discriminate and has no boundaries. But it does end up attacking a high percentage of old school companies that failed to adapt with today's times.
"If failure is defined as declaring a projection and then falling short of meeting it, then the failure rate is a whopping 90 to 95 percent." - Harvard Business School
Businesses should not take new ideas and products and merge them with an old business model from yesteryear. Although many companies try to do this, their model must change with the new ideas, the customer, the technology and the market. Nor can businesses launch new products and services and continue to position the company based on where it is positioned today or years ago. The company position and value proposition must be headed in the direction of where it needs to be in order to succeed. Believe it or not, brands are not positioning themselves and their products correctly. This happens more often than you might think and is common among some companies and even industries that can't seem to innovate and can't see that an agile business is a healthy business. Of course, with an agile business also comes the need for staff that has skills your current staff may not have.
"When companies begin their agile transformation, one of the first challenges is understanding the new roles necessary to support the initiative." - Universalmind.com
New Products Thrown On Top of an Old Business Model
It is much easier to bolt on a new product with an existing business model than to start everything from scratch. This does happen more frequently than not. Businesses will see that the process of launching new products, the people who have to participate in new product launches and the technology and customer experience channels needed to succeed just aren't up to speed.
A lot of money is invested on a failed new product launch that is a brand new idea attached to an old business model. The concept or new product may have been spot on, but the systemic infrastructure buckled under the pressure of the new product launch and the requirements being attached to an old way of doing business. It's not just a systemic challenge; it's also difficult for employees who are not used to change.
Companies need to re-position the brand and value proposition so that it is based on where the new products are launched... not where the business is today. This requires innovative thinking and a vision for future growth.
Innovation Touches All of Your Business
As innovation touches nearly every aspect of how businesses operate, it won't be long before the companies that resist change just won't be in business any longer. This is not only a survival of the fittest mentality but also a survival of adaptability. With new technology and IoT driving new ideas, products, company mergers, partnerships, new commerce systems and so much more, the use of mobile technology and how it interfaces with the customer experience are absolutely critical.
As Millennials become the economic powerhouse and corporate leaders (which is closer than you might think), new business models that are built on never been done before concepts will rule the business world. This will be the norm, not the exception. Watch out aging business leaders, if you don't learn to adapt your personal and professional skills, your job and maybe even your company will be extinct.