Award-winning author and TrendHunter.com CEO Jeremy Gutsche discusses corporate culture strategy in his innovation keynote speech. According to Jeremy, corporate culture is the responsibility of a CEO. CEOs must provide environments in which employees can act boldly, take risks and feel empowered to innovate within their role. CEOs and managers need to break down the barriers of traditional hierarchy and rational decision-making methods. He states, "Rational decision making is the illness that topples corporate icons."
Jeremy notes the story of typewriter company Smith Corona and how its rational decision-making processes resulted in missing out on a hugely significant opportunity.
"Smith Corona became a victim of rational decision making.
In the 1970s and 1980s, computing didn't seem big enough. A $1 million venture is interesting to a $10 million company. But to a $500 million giant like Smith Corona, $1 million seemed too small. Big companies are hungry for big opportunities.
The rational decision was to focus on relocating to Mexico. Any decent analysis would have told Smith Corona that relocating was the safest medium-term decision."
When prudent managers only focus on the big opportunities, they miss out on the smaller opportunities that put them at a huge disadvantage later.
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Rational Decision-Making Topples Corporations
Jeremy Gutsche Discusses Corporate Culture Strategy
Trend Themes
1. Corporate Culture Strategy - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Redefining corporate culture to empower employees and foster innovation.
2. Breaking Down Hierarchy - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Challenging traditional hierarchy to enable more agile decision-making processes.
3. Embracing Small Opportunities - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Recognizing the value of smaller opportunities that can lead to significant growth and competitive advantage.
Industry Implications
1. Technology - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Applying corporate culture strategy and breaking down hierarchy to drive technological advancements.
2. Consumer Goods - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Implementing corporate culture strategy to foster innovation and responsiveness in consumer goods companies.
3. Finance - Disruptive innovation opportunity: Reevaluating hierarchy and decision-making methods in finance to adapt to changing market dynamics and customer needs.