Faster, Cheaper AND Better!

The majority of us were raised to believe in the age-old adage: ‘Faster, Cheaper, OR Better – You can have two, but never all three.’ For those that don’t recognize this, it was the universal mantra of the Industrial Age; a truism readily evident in our professional work and beyond question, rising nearly to the level of a principle...until now! 

In just the last couple of years, software development has evolved tremendously and changed EVERYTHING!  Rather than being measured in 2-3 years and distributed via disks, the development of software is now measured in a matter of 60-180 days and distributed on the Cloud.  It has enabled most everything to become ‘Faster, Better, AND Cheaper’. A well-recognized example relates to the downfall of Blockbuster Movies, once considered the undisputed retail movie distributor in the United States. In the early 2000s, Blockbuster had a retail store on nearly every corner (like Starbucks, today) and virtually complete dominance over the market… That is, until a relatively innocuous start-up, NETFLIX, came along and introduced new distribution schemes beginning first with direct mailing – which was ‘cheaper and better’ if you didn’t mind waiting a couple of days.  Personally, I never thought it would work -- people are too impatient to wait for movie entertainment by 'snail mail', I mused.  Well, that was until I discovered my own parents (and apparently many others) were loving the convenience of it!  Seemingly overnight, NETFLIX advanced further to online access – ‘Cheaper, Faster, AND Better’ for those customers on the internet – accessible on the move or at home.  Now, NETFLIX (and several others) provides the newest movies via your cable television, available to everyone with a laptop or TV, and in the comfort of one’s living room or 'on the road/in transit': ‘Better, Faster AND Cheaper’ not just for a segment, but for the entire consumer market.  Seemingly overnight, Blockbuster’s market advantage evaporated, and it was forced to file for bankruptcy in 2010.  

That's already old news -- what will be next to fall?  Movie theaters? (with ridiculous $10 sodas and equally-overpriced candy and popcorn, but still providing a welcomed and very accessible, fun get away); digital cameras that can’t compete with the iPhones’ integrated and immediately distributed photo functions, and phones quickly closing the gap on photographic quality?; physical stationary/greeting cards made obsolete by electronically-transmitted ones, assuming they can generate the 'warmth' of a 'mailed' letter?; musical instruments replaced by electronic versions sounding amazingly similar (like bugles)? something else?  New technologies are popping-up every day in this Digital Age, enabling valued solutions that are indeed, ‘Faster, Better, AND Cheaper’! So many, in fact, that we almost take it for granted.  

Anything and everything is up for grabs! Customers are seeking the best value, and that value is often measured in terms of “Faster, Better, AND Cheaper.”  Expectations are being fueled, too, by the progress seen in other industries (e.g., Amazon's success, and why not us?). Beyond your customers' expectations, your competitors are scheming to defeat your competitive advantage(s).  If you’re feeling safe, you’re in trouble. So, think about what could make your products and services available to your customers ‘Faster, Better, AND Cheaper’ -- what's emerging in other industries that could be applied, what internal processes are incongruent /inconsistent, what perfectly-good processes are ripe for digital disruption, etc -- and then, mobilize the full potential of your team to achieve it.  Assemble a team of diverse experts to inform the challenge; foster their free and unconstrained sharing of feedback and ideas, and innovate. Challenge them with the same vigor your competitors are almost-certainly also exercising. There's no better way to engage your workforce, and your business’ survival depends on it.