Project 2012: Day 291
Tonight I’m talking at my very first Ignite.
Ignite is borne out of frustration with Corporate Powerpoint Presentations. Generally overloaded with content, and death by bulletpoint. So an Ignite presentation has a strict format: 5 minutes, 20 slides, 15 seconds per auto-advancing slide. Talk on anything you want.
Terrified.
But hey, scare yourself at least once per day, right!
Give Up the Day Job
I feel very strongly that the era of Enterprise Companies is sunset. I.e. within a few short years, we won’t have large companies – or at least there’ll be very few. My rationale is that the latest disruptive technologies: Cloud, Mobile, Social & Big Data, effectively remove barrier to entry. All of the reasons you needed scale in the first place:
- Access to skills
- Access to Global Reach
- Household Brand
- Access to Capital
you can cheaply, if not freely, get as an individual.
So with individuals able to compete with the largest corporations (think Instagram vs Kodak) the diseconomies of scale:
- Cost of facilities and infrastructure
- Cost of people – especially support staff like recruiting, HR, finance, IT
- Cost of processes and (computer) systems
Now outweigh the benefits. In short, if I can get any skill I need from Odesk or Freelancer, any reach through eBay, Amazon; any capital or resources through Kickstarter, AliBaba and don’t need capital because of Saasu, Skype, and Basecamp; and I can achieve household brand status through Facebook, Google, and YouTube; then I don’t need to be as big as the enterprises to compete for the same business.
But as a tiny startup I can be more agile, more price friendly, and I don’t have to make a gazillion dollars to pay for the diseconomies of scale like the big companies do.
Don’t believe me?
- Kodak
- Blockbuster
- Borders
and look at the whinging you’re getting from Harvey Norman, and local retailers.
Here’s the presentation I’ll be delivering. Enjoy.
And if you work for a large company: Give up the day job. Start a business. Change the world.
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Great presentation – good luck tonight.
Thankee kind sir.
While I didn’t see your presentation, a thing which seems to be missing is the quest for personal power. Since before the days of King David men (usually men) have sought to exercise power and control over others, be it an army, a state or an enterprise. Such people will always seek to draw followers, & others will equally be drawn to follow. That factor of humanity seems absent from your model. But it’s nice to think things through…
Absolutely.
I believe there’ll be a long tail for a couple of reasons. Incumbent power being one of them.
Unfortunately in 5 mins I didn’t have time for the counter argument…
Thanks for commenting – I’d love to think this through with you.
Excellent slides Roger. I agree wholeheartedly
Well you’re living proof
Good luck with Moore’s Cloud