I know it's scary to read this, but the reality is this: there's a good chance your company won't exist in just 10 years

Large taxi co-ops could have created a mobility app like the one I developed in 2011 before I did – I even offered them this possibility and received a straight “no” answer. Most companies listed on the Global Fortune 500, ranking of the world's 500 largest corporations, in the 1950s were not on the list in 2014. The average age of a competitive differentiator has dropped from 30 years in 1984 to five years in 2014.

I know it's scary to read this, but the reality is this: there's a good chance your company won't exist in just 10 years. We are in the era of exponential growth and the market religiously respects the conclusion of Charles Darwin, described in his masterpiece “The Origin of Species” – those who survive are not the strongest or the fastest, but those who have the greatest capacity to adaptation.

The corporatist culture carries selective blindness as a side effect. Some executives prefer to see only what suits them – after all, why bother with something that, at the very least, will give them a huge problem to defend in front of their colleagues? Yes, I'm talking about those disruptive projects that completely change the way a company operates, often for decades. You know that project you shelved because you preferred not to have to face half the executive team to get it approved? Or worse, you tried to pass it but were vehemently vetoed – after all, the company already works that way, business is doing well and there is no need to risk change.

If you are an exemplary employee/leader, you probably identified with the above paragraph, but let me tell you a secret: the only risk a company runs these days is NOT CHANGING! To get out of the cliché of citing North American examples, I'm going to talk about Brazil itself. Large local pizzeria chains could have foreseen the phenomenon of mobile adoption, for example – Sala Vip or Parmê could have created their pizza delivery app, before IFood did. NET could have created its streaming service before Netflix.

Do you know why none of these examples above anticipated what was to come? Because of selective blindness. My grandfather used to say that “the idea is worth 10 cents a bowl” and I couldn't agree more. Certainly some executives/employees had the idea of doing something disruptive in their business, but the collective blindness brought about in the corporate environment has cut these points off the curve – and these companies will likely be severely penalized for making this mistake.

We currently have more than 2 billion devices connected to the internet and within 35 years this number will be 1 trillion. There is a world of opportunities to be seized and your company has two options: vaccinate against mass blindness or be run over by new entrants, the famous startups that are eager to disrupt new markets with an extremely lean team and a transformative purpose under their arms .

I'm going to list 3 practical points to be adopted to prevent your company from being run over in the coming years.

(I) Do one hackaton per semester: Hackatons are development marathons, generally adopted for software, but which can easily be adapted for processes and products. I recommend that you run two hackatons a year in your company and that each winning project is executed religiously; without a doubt it will be the best R&D investment your company will make.

(II) Democratize opinion: It doesn't make sense to hire smart, well-educated people so that the final word is a director/manager. It is important to adopt the culture of argumentation; if the intern has a point, let him explain that point. If the manager does not agree, he has the duty to argue back to prove the reason why the point presented is not feasible. By embracing this culture, you will encourage your employees/colleagues to contribute.

(III) Sit one day a month in the call center: Every manager, from the CEO to the manager, should obligatorily sit at least one day a month in the call center. That's where you'll find the answers for your company's next big launch, or the adaptation of your product that will make you gain market share (not your Excel spreadsheet).

The CEO's duty is to build a company that will destroy yours in a few years. Remember, truth is perishable and currently its validity is like an ice cube in the desert.

Tallis Gomes — Singu Founder and CEO

Source: ADMINISTRADORES.COM (https://administradores.com.br/noticias/como-sua-empresa-vai-morrer-em-10-anos) Publication 11.01.2018