e-dreaming

All right, granted, "innovate or die" may seem a bit extreme, and there are probably some businesses that may never have to innovate to survive, but, off the top of my head, I cannot think of what that company would be.  Nonetheless, as a general rule, it's absolutely true.

I was blessed in my early career to work for a little company now called FedEx.  The basic business is pretty simple, really—pickup and deliver packages.  Our founder, Fred Smith, was known for his daring and audacity (I think he actually believed anything was possible).  Fred thought that there was a better way to move packages around the country.  But, there were many who thought his idea of bringing every package to Memphis and back out was nuts.  After seeing some early success, Fred sent everyone reeling again, when he insisted that technologist ride around with the truck drivers/couriers to see how technology could help us provide a better service to our customers.  As technologist, we thought the idea was a little silly, yet elected to humor the boss.  The truck drivers on the other hand, didn't take to the notion AT ALL, and frankly, I think they were a bit suspicious of what we were REALLY doing.

Well, the rest, as they say, is history.  FedEx developed innovative technology that changed the industry—and arguably, the world.  Since that time, every direct competitor has copied that technology.  As consumers, who among us can imagine NOT being able to track our package status?  And just TRY taking one of those tracking devices away from a FedEx courier. You'll probably pull back a bloody stump.

If you are an executive or owner of a company (or an employee who wants to be irreplaceable), and you aren't constantly asking yourself, "how can we innovate?" or "how can we take advantage of advances in technology to do things differently, to give us an advantage over our competitors?" or "what can we change to provide a better, faster, cheaper, stronger, less painful, more fun, prettier, smarter, more reliable, more convenient, more profitable product or service?" well... we'll be bringing flowers to your company's funeral sometime in the near future, I suspect.

Note: You don't have to be a Fred Smith or have millions of dollars on hand to innovate.  Some of our clients have dramatically impacted their industries (and profits) through innovation.  Innovation is not an expense, it is an investment.  It just takes creativity and a willingness to try.  Try, don't die!