Innovation – the only way to outdo hyper competition
There is no scarcity of competition today in the business world so much so that barriers to entry are so low with new competitors coming out of nowhere and disrupting entire industries at the blink of an eyelid. To be successful, you must always find new ways to innovate and distinguish your company, no matter what your specific industry. You have to do things better, sooner and cheaper, and connect your customers and partners in new and significant ways, according to Dr. Sunil Erevelles who mesmerised a packed crowd at the recent 2016 Strategy Summit organised by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (CA Sri Lanka). Hyper competition is a key feature of the new global digital economy and in this there is tougher and smarter competition in which the rate of change in the competitive rules of the game are in a such flux that only the most adaptive and nimble organisations will survive, he said.
Customers want it quicker, cheaper, and almost on a daily basis; the rules of the game for doing business are changing and we have to struggle to keep up with the fast moving, constantly changing landscape.” This has had a colossal impact in the workplace, and nowhere more so than in the so called traditional sectors, he said. To succeed in this new era, big organisations that up to now have been profitable and leading examples in their areas of business for decades are confronted with the need for swift, radical change, he noted. According to him why people lose is because they decide to do so. Losing is a decision. Reiterating that in the hyper competitive world either you reinvent or perish. A global Consultant and Executive Education Expert for Boeing, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Lowe’s and Prudential, among others, Mr. Erevelles said that most firms are dinosaurs today.
“The Fortune 500 is based on ‘revenue’,” he said reiterating that this isn’t a good benchmark to gauge a firm. Noting that at the time General Electrics filed for bankruptcy it was number 4 in the Fortune 500 list, he said it’s not so much about these numbers. “Innovation doesn’t come from giving customers what they want it’s giving them what they can’t ever imagine,” he said. He said that a shift in competition requires organisational change on an unprecedented scale, and the competitive advantages must constantly be reinvented. Transformation which has proven to be a vital strategic element in companies’ policies does not involve merely fine tuning a few areas but requires radical changes in critical business factors, he added.
The 2-day summit brought together internationally renowned strategy gurus such as D. Erevelles, Martin Roll, Sam Dias and Omid Ghamami who shared their expertise and insights to help corporate leaders in Sri Lanka redefine the strategy of their organisations to achieve long term success and sustenance. Mr. Ghamami, who is also known as the ‘Godfather of Negotiation Planning’ and also the world’s most sought after purchasing and supply chain management speaker and trainer, discussed the entire spectrum of purchasing, supply chain management, purchasing contract law, negotiations, and supplier management. Mr. Roll is a global business strategist, senior advisor and facilitator to Asian firms and family-owned business where advising on how to build and manage strong, global brands as well as leadership of high-performing, marketing-oriented business. He also gave a thought provoking presentation.