How to Survive in the Evolving Technological Environment

Technology has changed the way people do business. With different platforms emerging every year, most entrepreneurs are now adapting to various media channels to promote and sell their products and services.

Image Source: useoftechnology.com

Pointing out the extinction of dinosaurs as an example, Nitin Pangarkar, associate professor of strategy and policy at the National University of Singapore Business School, emphasizes the threat of “technological change” in the survival of companies that fail to adapt in today’s technological evolution.

According to Pangarkar, a company’s ability to integrate internal and external knowledge is crucial for survival. He adds that by achieving this, businesses will not only achieve integration, but will also be able to enhance their competitive position in the market.

In his article, Pangarkar exemplified Kodak’s failure to adapt to the digital photography revolution, and Nokia’s inability to adjust in the smartphone market.

“With an appropriate strategy, companies can maintain, or sometimes even enhance, their competitive positions during technological revolutions. For every Kodak, which failed to adapt, there is a Canon, which successfully handled the challenges posed by such upheavals; and for every Nokia, there is a Fanuc,” he explains.

This said, it is indeed important for companies to stay proactive not only in following technological trends, but also in filling both internal and external knowledge gaps to survive technological evolution.

Steven Rindner is a real estate investor with experience in residential and commercial real estate. He’s also into architecture and interior design.  

How to Turn Your Employees into Leaders

Staying on top of the game is what company leaders do. However, they must face the inevitable somewhere along the way. Whether they get a promotion, a resignation, or a transfer, respectable leaders always have an exit plan.

Among these is to train people to fill in their roles when they leave. This is beneficial not only to exciting leaders but also for the betterment of the careers of those who are left behind.

Leaders must prepare employees for leadership roles because even high-potential employees cannot do it on their own. The stage must be set for them to assume a new position.

A proven way to push people to higher performance is through leadership training programs that suit a company’s culture and environment. The use of varied training modalities is important to engage employees. Once is not enough; hence, there’s a need for take-away materials and follow-up instructions for continuity.

Meanwhile, Forbes provides five ways to hone employees’ leadership skills. They are as follows:

1. Teaching them networking skills
2. Showing and giving them the right experience
3. Giving them room to find solutions to situations themselves
4. Doing the mentor-mentee progression
5. Instilling in them the value of an ‘ownership mentality’

Leaders’ mentality must be cognizant of the fact that telling people to lead is different from teaching them how to lead.

Steven Rindner is a real estate investor with experience in residential and commercial real estate. He’s also into architecture and interior design.