Quote:
Originally Posted by Artemis
Some BMW execs could use a pair of glasses to adjust their myopic business eyesight.
|
Thanks for this interesting perspective. I have a few questions though.
1. Ultimately cameras became functionality housed within mobile phones. Who, in Kodak's hay day, would have had the foresight and vision to realize this. Even if they correctly interpreted their business and asked the right questions, who could have possibly known then, how things would eventually evolve. Truly brilliant visionaries are an extreme rarity, and hind sight is 20/20. Retrospective analyses are interesting, but in our era it won't necessarily help predict how markets might eventually evolve in the future. Often the brilliant visionaries themselves, who shape future markets, owe at least partial credit to accident and fate to find their niche.
2. Even if someone at Kodak was a brilliant visionary who had predicted the future, could they have convinced everyone else to be on board? Drastically changing direction often means lost jobs, turmoil, expense, and butting up against others who can't possibly share your vision. This will never change. It's why there are so many stories of geniuses who were tragically ahead of their time.
3. How much investment would be required for a company like Kodak to change direction? This was a company that was invested in film based photography despite having some fledgling interest in digital photography. Who was better poised to capitalize on digital photography, companies dedicated to electronics and computing like sony, or a company who grew on film technology? Which company had the expertise and resources to most efficiently adopt the new platform? Kodak would have required a complete paradigm shift and all the challenges that entails.