5 points that separate Winners , in the race to adapt to business changes

Ever wondered why so many business-owners lose heavily from changes in industry, even though they know change is coming?

And these losses happen in-spite of the fact that the business-owners are otherwise smart and intelligent, well-informed about the changes expected in the industry, and the possible impact.

In the vast majority of cases, the differences are not simplistic facts like abundant surplus capital, or sympathetic customers who put up with the difficulties of the transition. Both sets of people typically face the same pressures, with very different outcomes.

Delving deeper, a few key difference emerge

1. Key team which yearns for "good-old-days" versus a hungry team that seeks " lead in the future" : If some (or many) of the members of tge key team yearn for the good-old-days instead of the opportunities offered by uncertain-future, the key team members may well be part of the problem. A key team with eyes fixed firmly on the future is a sign of winners, and a key team with eyes on the rear view mirror runs the risk of colliding with hard reality unprepared.
2. Search for "ideal option" vs. "workable and profitable option" : The ideal option for a merger, or a collaboration, or even a joint-venture is like the ideal match for our son or daughter : they exist in the mind's eye, but not on planet earth. In contrast, a focused search for a workable option which can be leveraged profitably, more often leads to success.
3. Willingness to invest in the search, and an action-bias vs armchair analysis-paralysis : The winners are willing to invest time, energy, and money, in the search process. So they go through the real-life options available for mergers-acquisitions-joint-venture-collaboration-funding , and get a realistic picture . This deeper understanding gives them the confidence to decide on realistic options that are usually not perfect, but good enough.
4. Winners are open to alliances and sharing the rewards, they do not want 100% of zero : If a smart business does not have the technology, they license it. If they do not have the manufacturing facility ready in time, they outsource the manufacturing. If they do not know how to license a brand, or how to license technology, or how to outsource design, they outsource that skill. And if there are too many things to be learnt, they enter a joint venture with a company which has been there and done that before.
5. Tracking whether they are followers or leaders : Winners are found tracking how often their company is a change-leader and how often their organisation is change-follower. It acts as a cold douche of water to find that often, when a organisation begins the journey, they are 100% followers and 0% leaders. This pressure gradually lifts the figure from 0% to a healthy level, and also transforms the company, and the culture.

There is no rocket science involved : any business owner who seeks to win from change, can take steps to re-shape his business to the winning contours.