Before the 1990s, companies were in fairly stable markets with clearly identified competition. Today, with the rise of digital technology, the participatory economy and new consumer trends, they have to anticipate trends, constantly adapt, and sometimes reinvent their business so that their competition does not overtake them.
Digital and easy access to a large number of people is revolutionising all industries. Managers have to completely reinvent their business. Apart from a few sectors where technicality remains a very high variable, new players can enter the market with very low investment costs, disrupt the existing hierarchy, and become multi-billion dollar players in a few years.
By addressing the consumer directly, they are revolutionising the way we consume. For this reason, in some sectors, it is necessary to completely reinvent access to the customer: from the point of sale, to distribution, to communication on twitter...
First of all, you have to get out of your office, out of your perimeter. Be constantly curious, read, explore everything related to your business. You have to listen to the market, to your customers, to the competition. This monitoring used to be carried out by the marketing department, by R&D, but it must be expanded today.
This intelligence must "infuse" the company. Managers must take hold of this skill and use it constantly. You must always be one step ahead, broadening your view beyond your business area. It is a learning process for each individual and for his or her team.
You have to go into the gaps, look for the rough edges. Competition from many different sectors makes it difficult to see the future of your business. To cope with this, many companies are flattening the hierarchical levels and asking the younger people to think about new trends. What counts is to go much faster, to be more agile, to be focused on permanent innovations.
Many leaders attend conferences given by sociologists, anthropologists and philosophers. These are very inspiring and pragmatic bridges, which can create links between the real and the future. Others invest in start-ups to better understand their market trends, accelerate innovation and understanding of their business. Or even reinvent it at the same time. The key is to broaden your vision, to find connections, commonalities between different industrial worlds.
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