Once upon a time…
Expressing emotions was linked to being human; today MIT has created a socially intelligent robot Leonardo; go on….. feed the keywords to the Google monster and watch it spurt out a YouTube link to Leonardo.
Powers such as mind control were only bestowed onto the sages who roamed the Himalayan heights and performed their mystical rites. Now we are able control the brain of a fly using Optogenetics. More is yet to come. Check out Gero Miesenboeck @ Ted for a fascinating talk on this subject.
Mules used to carry our load up the slopes and along many a tricky terrain. Today Boston Dynamic’s ‘Big Dog’ is able to do so with as much dexterity as a real mule. It is completely in control despite a good old kick on its side and just goes about its job unemotionally as an ass would do.
Biology used to be defined as the study of living organisms; today biologyistechnology.com; the human genome project took over 12 years and upwards of 3 billion dollars to sequence the human genome. Today there are startup companies such as Complete Genomics envisioning sequencing your genome for $5000 within a year and maybe $100 within 5 years. Check out their web site. It could be that of any technology company selling BI solutions, except of course this one is analyzing the dynamics of life itself.
It started with the innocuous printing of greeting cards. Today they are talking about 3D printing human organs! A whole assortment of innovation is being sparked with 3D printing technology. It is reaching an inflexion point, all set to take off.
Companies used to protect their IP by filing patents galore; today breakthrough ideas roam freely on Startup web sites, right under the noses of uninterested competitors
We used to prefix sustainable to competitive advantage; today we prefix ephemeral to it.
And there is one factor underpinning all these changes. Technology. THE common denominator. Powering a wide array of game changing innovations across a spectrum of disciplines.
Now, you may wonder what has genetics got to do with my business or indeed how does an emotional robot threaten my competitive advantage. And for all you know you might be spot on and all this might not impact your business at all. Or maybe, just maybe the creative thoughts these technologies spawn or the branches of mini-innovations they unleash might already be causing small tremors under the foundations of your competitive advantage. Shaking its roots, in preparation for the big one which will uproot your business.
I often wonder about Barnes and Noble’s executive teams having a discussion on Jeff’s innovation on the web, when it was not written about in business books. I can see them saying “Jeff, who?”! As irony has it, a few years later some of the hot selling, fast moving books on Barnes and Noble’s depleting brick and mortar shelves are about Jeff and his disruptive business model.
The story of course doesn’t stop there. In the next round Amazon again caught the large incumbents napping. Amazon swept the ground under the feet of big players in IT infrastructure by venturing into and then conquering the world of cloud computing. Who in their wildest dream would have thought about competition in infrastructure provision from a book seller!
So I guess executive teams, irrespective of the business they lead, need to pause, and think deeply about these shifting sands underpinned by exponential movements in technology.
Competitive advantage has indeed gotten ephemeral in the shadow of this continuous barrage of technology innovation.
i.t is indeed shrinking our world.
It is shrinking the distance between you and your competitors.
It is shrinking the distance between you and your customers.
It is shrinking the distance between you and a completely unexpected new entrant.
It is shrinking the distance between imagination and reality.
Are you ready for it?
Are you ready to reimagine your business?
Are you ready to broaden your thinking and perspectives while i.t shrinks the world around you?
