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When I founded Appfire in 2005, hardware was king and corporations like Dell, IBM and HP were the pioneers and innovators in all areas of technology. Companies were heavily reliant on hardware to run their IT infrastructure and the concept of the cloud gave the look of a utopian dream. My partner and I built our company to support traditional hardware-centric models and that system was also a very good success in those early years.
In 2010, I used to be at a turning point since the rise of cloud computing was slowly shifting the main target to virtualized environments and we were in the course of developing latest collaboration software on a hardware-based platform. VMware burst onto the scene and made virtualized software an enormous hit. Hardware disappeared almost overnight.
As a business leader, I needed to make a difficult decision: should I take my team and my company in a direction where we’d essentially abandon all of the work we had put into our hardware-based product to hitch the remainder of the market and our competitors in jumping on the virtualization trend? Or should we stay the course and proceed with our product built on a hardware platform? After careful consideration, we decided against investing in virtualization immediately since the timing was not right for us.
I even have to think about this anecdote since the AI boom continues and shows no signs of slowing down. Just take a look at: Nvidia’s recent earnings or Atlassian Introducing Rovoan AI assistant. When we glance back within the history books at some point, that point can be marked by the incredible rush and alter we’ve witnessed in corporations of all sizes integrating AI into their offerings. This goes beyond simply providing AI-powered solutions. Companies are reinventing, restructuring and reinventing themselves in an AI-centric strategy to attract investment, talent and market share.
As business leaders, we’re continuously faced with the challenge of whether we must always jump on the newest trend. Do we follow the group and alter our entire strategy and product roadmap, or can we stay on our current path?
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In my very own journey to grow and scale a number one software company from $10 million to over $200 million in ARR in 4 years, I discovered three suggestions that will help leaders determine whether to embrace a trend or stay the course.
1. Make sure the change meets customer needs
In times of change, don’t lose sight of your customers’ wishes and desires. It is more necessary to do the precise thing on your customers than to be right. Research found that greater than 90% of individuals consider that corporations should hearken to their customers to drive innovation. Even in the event you, as a business leader, are desperate to include AI into your final model, you’ll fail and never make a profit if it just isn’t necessary to your customers.
There are several ways to get this feedback out of your customer base. Conducting customer surveys, establishing a customer advisory board, and meeting with customers in person are all great ways to search out out if what you are constructing is sensible on your customers. If your organization has a powerful sales program, talk over with your partners usually about what they’re hearing from customers.
2. Determine if you will have the precise resources
It may be tempting to leap on a trend, especially when the market demands it and the competition is already on board. One of the foremost reasons we decided to not quickly move from our hardware platform technique to virtualization in 2010 was that we did not have the precise individuals with the talents needed. Because of this, we knew we would not have a hit with virtualization that will have a direct impact on our customers.
When there may be a drastic market change, you must not jump on the bandwagon, but put your efforts and resources into training your employees. Many are ready and wish to expand their skills – Actually a study shows that just about 75% of employees are willing to learn latest skills. Then, when you will have the precise individuals with the precise skills that may aid you make a difference, you may give attention to innovation. When employees get the precise training to amass the talents they need, the corporate itself can will see the advantages.
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3. Stay true to your core values
Think concerning the core values you established while you founded your organization and use them as guidelines on your decisions. Almost all employees agree that a company culture based on core values is critical to long-term success.
If the newest trend aligns together with your mission, vision and purpose, it might be a precious addition to your strategy. But if it doesn’t, following it might not profit your corporation in the long term. Staying true to your core principles will ensure your corporation stays focused, authentic and purpose-driven amid evolving market dynamics.
When a brand new trend disrupts the market, it could possibly be difficult to search out the precise path. Consider the approach Atlassian took with Rovo. While others were quick to launch an AI assistant last 12 months, Atlassian was purposeful and strategic. For them, releasing a tool that aligned with their mission to make teams more practical was more necessary than being “first.”
Remember that doing what’s right for the shopper is more necessary than attempting to slot in. Blindly going with the group without critical pondering can often result in conformity and a lack of modern pondering. Don’t lose sight of your mission, vision and purpose. These values are likely what attracted employees and customers to your organization in the primary place and what is going to keep them coming long after a trend fades.
