It can't be bargained with. It can't be reasoned with. It doesn't feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And it absolutely will not stop... ever, until...

"If we dont create the thing that kills Facebook, someone else will" 
-Mark Zukerberg, Co-founder and CEO of Meta.          

If this seems too recent quote, let's take a step back in time,

"Only the paranoid survive". - Andy Grove, ex-CEO of Intel.        

Ever wondered why leaders constantly worry about their product's position in the market? Let's delve into the journey of a typical company and how it created its top product.

It usually starts with the founder(s) identifying a gap or pain-point based on their own experiences. They embark on a discovery process and create an empathy map, confirming the realness of the problem. Next, they define personas, their needs, and insights.

With a clear vision, they develop a robust business model, validate cost and revenue structures, and secure the necessary funding to move forward confidently. The iterative process begins as they build and launch the product into the market. They may pivot multiple times, and finally get to a point where they find success, with some luck the product clicks. They may be witnessing a steady stream of revenue.

I understand that this may sound like a fairy tale, but in reality, this is the most challenging phase of the journey. It requires unwavering perseverance and a leap of faith as the only factors working in their favor. Embracing the unknown and believing in their vision are what drive them forward during this critical period. It's where true determination and courage are put to the test.

They continue this cycle of iteration, refining the product over time. However, as they grow and capture a significant market share, their focus shifts to protecting their position. For enterprise software, this often means entangling the product with customers' internal workflows, leading to guaranteed recurring revenue. For a consumer product, this means they successfully created a "hook" (TARI - Trigger-Action-Reward-Investment) for users to keep using their service. Yet, this position also creates an opportunity for disruptors who are unburdened by the past.

Disruptors have the power to offer fresh value propositions to existing customers or even venture into completely different customer segments. A prime example is Meta's Threads product, which rapidly encroached on Twitter's market share. Uber is another success story, extending its reach from transporting people (Yellow Cabs and Limos) to delivering food (DoorDash) and goods (UPS and FedEx). You might be familiar with the tale of how Blockbuster failed to recognize the threat posed by online DVD rentals.

Interestingly, disruptors are not immune to the same disruption they bring. However, there are exceptions, as seen when Netflix chose to disrupt its own DVD shipping business by embracing online streaming and later invest in the original content creation to maintain its leadership position. This constant willingness to evolve is what sets apart the truly resilient disruptors from the rest.

As a product manager, challenge yourself to be self-aware, bold and innovative. Foster a culture of disruption and take your community along for the ride. A/B testing serves as a vital tool to observe and analyze customer behavior during key changes. Salesforce's Lighting Experience rollout exemplifies a thoughtful approach in revamping the UX for millions of end users within a large enterprise-grade software. Similarly, Apple's perpetual provision of free OS upgrades sets an exceptional precedent that several other companies have begun to adopt.

Embrace change deliberately, without unnecessarily impacting your customers and revenue. Doing so will lead to a more fulfilling and dynamic journey rather than becoming a sitting duck in a competitive landscape. Stay agile and prepared for the challenges that lie ahead. (Illustration above is the S-Curve of Business Growth).

“a process whereby a smaller company with fewer resources is able to 
successfully challenge established incumbent businesses. Specifically, 
as incumbents focus on improving their products and services for their 
most demanding (and usually most profitable) customers, they exceed 
the needs of some segments and ignore the needs of others. Entrants 
that prove disruptive begin by successfully targeting those overlooked 
segments, gaining a foothold by delivering more-suitable 
functionality—frequently at a lower price. Incumbents, chasing higher 
profitability in more-demanding segments, tend not to respond 
vigorously. Entrants then move upmarket, delivering the performance 
that incumbents’ mainstream customers require, while preserving the 
advantages that drove their early success. When mainstream customers 
start adopting the entrants’ offerings in volume, disruption has 
occurred.” - Definition of Disruptive Innovation by Professor Clayton 
Christensen in his epic book "The Innovator's Dilemma"        

In the next installment, I'll be sharing a practical engineering framework which will help to enable disruption while safeguarding the economic moat of an incumbent. This journey is all about survival, where collaboration across the entire ecosystem becomes crucial. Let's explore how to navigate this path together and foster innovation while preserving our strengths. Stay tuned for insightful tips and strategies in the next edition!

If you are wondering about the title, it is a quote from the movie "The Terminator"

Kyle Reese: Listen, and understand! That Terminator is out there! 
It can't be bargained with. It can't be reasoned with. 
It doesn't feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And it absolutely will 
not stop... ever, until you are dead!