Combining legacy with innovation: a global perspective on strategy

Lenovo is a company that is in continuous evolution: with beginnings as a hardware provider in the 1980s, we’re now a leading technological organization, with an overarching aim to deliver smarter technology for all by way of holistic solutions.

Part of my role is to oversee the complexities of bringing new tech to the market. My team helps to ensure that we have a demographic that wants to see new products, as well as the supply chain available to ensure rapid delivery. From localized delivery to new global technology, it’s a continuous process of both nuances and complexities.? Across 180 markets, there is no end to the sheer range and variety of different products and customers.

Delivering innovation is one challenge, but combining it with the legacy of Lenovo is another. We’re renowned for our technology: the ThinkPad is a living legacy and one that will be loved and revered for many years to come. However, both software and hardware are advancing rapidly: how does our overarching aim to deliver smarter technology compete with this rapid evolution?

We compete through continuous adaptation. While our overarching aim remains the same, we are constantly evolving and adapting our short-term plans and strategies to suit the current climate.

The world changes faster than long-term strategies can adapt

A robust and broadly positive long-term focus like 'smarter technology for all' can be broken down into more flexible short-term strategies that keep up with radical changes happening globally.

We all saw what happened with Covid: described as a quantum leap by McKinsey, the changes that the pandemic brought about in terms of digital transformation were unprecedented. I have written about this in my other articles: in “Prevenire è meglio che curare ” (Prevention is better than a cure), I explore how Lenovo overcame the challenges and complexities that occurred during this time with our Smart Collaboration portfolio.

Now we face new challenges: digital inclusivity and the rise of AI are two huge developments that are rapidly changing the technological landscape. Our ethos at Lenovo is to embrace change: while keeping our overarching long-term strategy in mind, our short-term goals and aims will be fine-tuned to serve and seize all relevant opportunities.

The rise of AI

?AI is dominating the tech industry. Its shifting net market value reflects this; the AI market is projected to grow to $407 billion by 2027, when in 2022 its estimated revenue was $86.9 billion.

?Global trends like AI influence how we as a company adapt our shorter-term strategies. Take our latest Tech World event, where we unveiled our latest vision, developments and technologies surrounding AI.

?We know AI is a technology disruptor. We believe the tech industry must embrace and innovate with AI, uncovering its potential to change the world for good purposes. That’s why we’re leading a transformative shift in personal computing: so that every consumer can utilize this technology transformation to their advantage. At our Tech World event, we emphasized the importance of AI-enabled devices, and how at Lenovo we would continue to invest in AI solutions, including future AI PCs and the Motorola adaptive display concept .

?We also recognize the potential of AI for businesses: our Lenovo workstation ?range enables companies to have their own on-premise, scalable AI solutions, that will continue to drive and challenge the future of? AI-powered computing.??

?Concept to creation: a matter of dynamics

?Adaptivity is the perfect blend of proactiveness versus reactiveness.

?While we can predict expected market trends based on our own data, we can’t predict every global shift. Our customer insights and industry partnerships are incredibly influential in how we learn about and play to these new waves.

?When it comes to creating our own space in an increasingly competitive market, we know where to make strides. Thanks to our internal dynamics, such as our entrepreneurial spirit and our readiness to accept change, we are able to go from concept to creation in a relatively short time period, particularly considering our size.

?It’s here where we can seek further advantage, particularly in local markets: take the Aotearoa New Zealand bilingual keyboard that we unveiled in March earlier this year. It takes the form of one of our fan-favorite ThinkPad keyboards, complete with TrackPoint, while also including physical keys for macrons or tohutō, the little line used above some vowels in te reo Māori. A simple innovation of a much-loved product provided a way for users to communicate in their language of choice, allowing Lenovo to strengthen its ties with the Aotearoa community and help people practically engage with the indigenous language. With Lenovo’s Product Diversity Office aiming to have 75% of all products vetted for inclusion by 2025, this was a great reinforcement of the importance and potential success in their mission and a viable product to bring to market.

The Lenovo legacy: innovation at the heart

?While our long-term mission of ‘smarter technology for all’ remains strong and present in all of our moves, our short-term strategies will always adapt to make the most of current global climates, research, and trends. Despite our size, or perhaps because of it, we can be both focused and flexible at the same time. We can honor our Lenovo history while innovating for new opportunities.

?Since Lenovo’s founding, the company has changed a great deal; so has the world. We have found that the best way to build on past success is to have a long-term focus that enshrines the best of what we can offer the world, and leave ourselves room to grow and adapt with whatever comes next.