Shift or Drift, Where Does Your Organization Lean? An Invitation to TractionForce in Toronto

Kodak, IBM, Xerox, Polaroid, Nokia, Motorola, Blackberry, HMV, JC Penny, Pan Am, Hitachi, Toshiba, Sears, Sony, National Geographic, General Motors, Nike, Philips, Panasonic, Netscape, AOL, eBay, Compaq, Hummer, Toys R Us, Enron, etc. only to name a few.

Where are they now??? I imagine, some of you have not even heard of some of these companies!

There are innumerable micro and macro economic excuses we can provide for their disappearance, yet ultimately, it is the inability or blatant disregard to be introspective, and even an arrogance….to be open to “shift”. That shift can be one from strategy, reputation, business model, process, technology, or people.

Looking at this list,  there was a lack of introspection, and a failure to see trends, both present and future, and investments made in more meetings over actions, resulting in inaction. Instead of making a “shift”, these companies began to “drift”, with no path back to prominence.

Yahoo: In 2005, Yahoo was one of the main players in the online advertising market. But because Yahoo undervalued the importance of search, the company decided to focus more on becoming a media giant.

Pan Am: Their slogan “World’s Most Experienced Airline” was accurate. Because of tragic accidents and terrorist attacks, Pan Am suffered a reputational set back that they couldn’t recover from. Trust was lost from its customers and Pan Am was associated with being the “unsafe” choice of airlines.

HMV: The company began to struggle with the digital disruptions. At first, HMV refused to believe the boom of online retailers or that people will start downloading music. The leaders of the company felt confident about their brand and loyal customers who in their heads loved coming to the shop for the floor experience

Atari: They viewed gaming as an individual process rather than a shared experience which was the complete opposite of their original design.

Nortel: Their research and development team had fallen behind and the business began to decline because of broadband and VoIP.

National Geographic; A magazine that mastered the art of visual storytelling and inspired photographers and filmmakers all over the world. These were the first pioneers of amazing content. The company was presented with an idea to start a new NG cable channel in the 1980s. The idea was refused and the group of producers who pitched the idea decided to do their own thing and launched Discovery Channel.

I feel the impact of "shifts" regularly, whether it be Hilton Hotels providing workout wear for $5/ a day for the convenience to the business traveller; hotel chains installing in-suite laundry to battle AirBnB; DoorDash delivering food to your gate at the airport.. shifts are happening constantly, in every industry!

Come and see what other businesses and non profits are doing in the GTA. Toronto is becoming a huge innovation hub, not just in technology, but also around people and process. After 7 years in Vancouver,  Traction on Demand is hosting TractionForce Toronto on September 18, 2019. It is a half day event in the afternoon with the theme of "Shift or Drift". 

Come and meet with other businesses and individuals who want to continue to build this amazing community in the GTA. Share experiences and hear, first hand, from some innovators who are “shifting” their businesses.

Get your early bird tickets here: www.tractionforce.ca ( $35- we want to keep professional swag grabbers away, and maintain the caliber of attendee for an overall better experience)

If you are unsure about attending this half day event, DM me and I would be happy to have a conversation with you!

(Reference:Valuer. AI)