The conditions for business are changing so quickly, that you either innovate every 12 months or someone else takes your place.
Something we’ve noticed with our clients and the wider marketplace, particularly in the last three years, is the speed of which change is happening.
We have two particular clients who only launched a year ago, and the rate of innovation, change and opportunities that have happened is astounding. The original vision we helped craft has totally changed as their business has grown organically, and reacted and moved with the opportunities that have come their way.
Planning is dead.
Long term strategic planning is becoming pointless.
Things are changing so quickly that the five year vision questions we used to ask clients in our strategy workshops are just pointless. It just seems too far away. If I ask what their business looked like five years ago, they look back as though it was a different era, almost in black and white.
Remember that only 5 or 6 years ago there were no iPhones, no iPads, no Twitter, no Cloud and people still faxed things.
People are glad just to survive another year.
I think this new fluid twelve month cycle is down to two things: Recession and Technology
Recession
The great depression v2 has scared the shit out of people. This long and deep recession has taken many casualties, and there isn’t a single person in business who isn’t nursing some injuries. It’s made people wary and afraid to invest or innovate. Most people are just glad to survive another year.
Technology
Things change so quickly in technology, that if you don’t keep up you are a dinosaur within a few short years. There are so many young ‘on it’ brands ready to take your place, that you’ve got no choice but to innovate.
It’s not about keeping up, that’s not good enough.
It’s about leading the way.
There is a dichotomy in my next statement, I urge you to ignore the news and keep up with what’s really going on.
It’s time to read deep and wide on your industry, technology and market forces, while ignoring mainstream media which will depress you to within an inch of your life.
Business is fluid, flowing and organic, and for some opportunities the window is only open for a short time. It’s time to become fast, flexible and quick to turn to hit new things head on, rather than cranking up the cogs and turning so slowly that the new thing has moved around behind you.
You’ve got twelve months starting now, what is your brand going to become?
So true – we can’t recognise our business from a year ago – and excited to see what it will be like in a year’s time!
Great blog Doddy! Insightful and bang on… Especially in sme land. Probably suggest it’s ok to have an idea of where you want to be personally in say 3-5 years…. But to get somewhere close to this will require us to be constantly adapting, evolving, reacting and creating.
Reality: drink more, play hard, sleep less, have fun, die young