New Breed of Competitor
Innovates Ten Times faster!
By Marc Dresner, Senior Editor, IIR
Innovates Ten Times faster!
By Marc Dresner, Senior Editor, IIR
In just the past five years a new breed of competitor has
emerged. And chances are it is ten times faster, more efficient and more capable
of innovating than your company.
emerged. And chances are it is ten times faster, more efficient and more capable
of innovating than your company.
They're called 'exponential organizations' and, as the name
suggests, they scale amazingly well.
suggests, they scale amazingly well.
With a few notable exceptions'Apple, Google, Amazon'these aren't
(at least initially) big name players, but according to Salim Ismail, Founding Executive Director of Singularity University, they can outperform them by a factor of ten on a variety of
metrics.
(at least initially) big name players, but according to Salim Ismail, Founding Executive Director of Singularity University, they can outperform them by a factor of ten on a variety of
metrics.
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| Salim Ismail |
'Procter & Gamble takes about 300 days to go
from a new idea to a product on the shelf at Walmart. Quirky does that in 29
days.'
from a new idea to a product on the shelf at Walmart. Quirky does that in 29
days.'
'Procter &
Gamble takes about 300 days to go from a new idea to a product on the shelf at
Walmart. Quirky does that in 29 days,' noted Ismail, co-author of 'Exponential Organizations: Why New Organizations are Ten Times Better, Faster and Cheaper than Yours (and what you can do about it).'
Gamble takes about 300 days to go from a new idea to a product on the shelf at
Walmart. Quirky does that in 29 days,' noted Ismail, co-author of 'Exponential Organizations: Why New Organizations are Ten Times Better, Faster and Cheaper than Yours (and what you can do about it).'
Traditional
organizations, Ismail observes, tend to be hierarchical, centralized and
closed, and they operate around an 'ownership' model predicated on scarcity (of
people, resources, assets, platforms, etc.).
organizations, Ismail observes, tend to be hierarchical, centralized and
closed, and they operate around an 'ownership' model predicated on scarcity (of
people, resources, assets, platforms, etc.).
In contrast, ExOs'as
he calls them'function in a way that's fundamentally different; they embrace
and leverage openness, transparency and abundance.
he calls them'function in a way that's fundamentally different; they embrace
and leverage openness, transparency and abundance.
ExOs focus
outward, not inward, and according to Ismail this gives them an edge in a world
where the pace of technological advancement is increasing exponentially.
outward, not inward, and according to Ismail this gives them an edge in a world
where the pace of technological advancement is increasing exponentially.
'The external world is now moving so fast that if you try to
do innovation solely from inside, you're dead.'
do innovation solely from inside, you're dead.'
'The external world is now moving so fast that if you try to
do innovation solely from inside, you're dead,' said Ismail in a podcast
interview with Forward Focus.
do innovation solely from inside, you're dead,' said Ismail in a podcast
interview with Forward Focus.
Ismail'who, by the way, launched and ran Yahoo's Brickhouse internal
incubator'added that companies that cling stubbornly to
innovating from within will more likely than not strangle their own innovation pipeline.
incubator'added that companies that cling stubbornly to
innovating from within will more likely than not strangle their own innovation pipeline.
'When you try to do a traditional skunkworks, the
immune system of the company will attack you.'
immune system of the company will attack you.'
'When you try to
do a traditional skunkworks, the immune system of the company will attack you,'
he said, 'because our traditional organizational structures are built to withstand
change and withstand risk and keep doing the same thing.'
do a traditional skunkworks, the immune system of the company will attack you,'
he said, 'because our traditional organizational structures are built to withstand
change and withstand risk and keep doing the same thing.'
Editor's note: This
same argument was made by Steve Blank in an earlier interview with Forward Focus.
Check it out here.
same argument was made by Steve Blank in an earlier interview with Forward Focus.
Check it out here.
Another of ExOs' distinguishing
(and potentially alarming) characteristics is that they like to play in different
sandboxes.
(and potentially alarming) characteristics is that they like to play in different
sandboxes.
Accordingly, Ismail says large, established companies at the
top of a category are particularly vulnerable to being disrupted by them.
top of a category are particularly vulnerable to being disrupted by them.
'We think they are sitting ducks.'
'Most large
companies are stuck in a particular vertical trying to build products and services
for that vertical. We think they are sitting ducks,' Ismail said.
companies are stuck in a particular vertical trying to build products and services
for that vertical. We think they are sitting ducks,' Ismail said.
It's this propensity to hunt for opportunities outside its
resident category'maybe more so than its design capability and underlying technology supply chain'that
Ismail credits with Apple's success.
resident category'maybe more so than its design capability and underlying technology supply chain'that
Ismail credits with Apple's success.
What Apple does'
'What Apple
does'unlike any other big company in the world'is they take a small, disruptive
team, keep them completely stealth, put them at the edge of the organization
and say, 'go attack another industry,' leveraging an information capability and
then adding to their platform,' said Ismail.
does'unlike any other big company in the world'is they take a small, disruptive
team, keep them completely stealth, put them at the edge of the organization
and say, 'go attack another industry,' leveraging an information capability and
then adding to their platform,' said Ismail.
'Apple has no
theoretical limit to their market cap,' he added. 'I fully expect they will be
the first trillion-dollar company because they are not stuck in one
marketplace.'
theoretical limit to their market cap,' he added. 'I fully expect they will be
the first trillion-dollar company because they are not stuck in one
marketplace.'
In this podcast with
Forward Focus'FEI's expert interview series'Salim Ismail acquaints us
with the exponential organization and what it will take for established
companies to compete.
Forward Focus'FEI's expert interview series'Salim Ismail acquaints us
with the exponential organization and what it will take for established
companies to compete.
Editor's note: Salim
Ismail will be delivering a keynote at the 13th Annual Front End of Innovation taking place May 18-20 in Boston.
Ismail will be delivering a keynote at the 13th Annual Front End of Innovation taking place May 18-20 in Boston.
For more
information or to register for FEI 2015, please visit www.frontendofinnovation.com
information or to register for FEI 2015, please visit www.frontendofinnovation.com
ABOUT THE INTERVIEWER
Marc Dresner is IIR USA's sr. editor and special communication project lead. He is the former executive editor of Research Business Report, a trade publication for the marketing research and consumer insights industry. He may be reached at mdresner@iirusa.com. Follow him @mdrezz.