Is your Company a Sitting Duck? If you are, Startups are about to eat your Company

As much as I dislike the word "disruption", in today's business world you are either the disruptor or the disrupter. If you are not willing to rock the boat and challenge your status quo someone else will be happy to do it for you.

Companies that neglect to see the need to “think outside the box” or that fail to re-invent themselves are nothing but sitting ducks. You can embrace the change or reject it but be mindful that technology, people, and processes are constantly changing.

If you are in a leadership role it is your moral responsibility to lead your “flock” in the right direction, failing to do so is an indication that you are due for an early retirement package.

I’m actually fascinated by the change in dynamics in recent years. It is ironic to see that the things that used to set companies apart such as size, rigid organizational structures and endless controls are the same things that are weighing them down and threatening their own existence. In this context, bigger is not always better. Bigger organizations are plagued with politics and bureaucracy, somehow they have managed to take Change Management to the next level, for the most part, executives are reluctant to rock the boat, the constant search for general consensus is literally crippling organizations.

Big companies move very slowly, their obsessive focus on mitigating risks is making them stagnant (sitting ducks). The risk of doing business with a big company that fails to adapt far outweighs the risk of doing business with a small company that is driven by a fierce drive and fueled by change. The risk of doing nothing is certain death, clicking your heels will not take you back to Kansas Dorothy.

Startups today are eating big companies lunch because of the shift in the way they look at the problem and the solution. Rather than selling scarcity startups have mastered the art of tapping to abundance, for the most part, they have taken a pre-existing model and applied new concepts to it, they have figured out ways to keep the supply cost very low.

Technology is a productivity multiplier but technology alone can't do the trick, technology needs a steady and reliable foundation. Leaders must look at their companies with an open mind; hierarchical management structures are outdated, titles might provide command and control by default but gaining the respect and trust of your peers has to be earned. Giving up some level of power, taking risks requires a major cultural shift.

Change is inevitable, soon we will have cars without drivers, robots taking over blue and white collar jobs, fossil fuel being replaced by renewable energy sources and the list goes on and on. The rate of change is fascinating. There is no safe niche, there is no comfort zone. We live in a constantly uncomfortable state. I personally like it. If you are a leader you are required to know who your competitors are and who wants to eat your lunch, isolating yourself from reality is criminal negligence. Forget about budgets, titles, conventional methods and focus on increasing transparency, agility, efficiency, open communication, innovation and accountability.

Are you a sitting duck?