Digital disruption: threat or opportunity? (PART 1)

Digital disruption: threat or opportunity? 

A huge impact

The impact of the digital revolution is huge. The technology continues to evolve and as long as that happens, the entire playing field evolves the consumer, competitor and the market as a whole. Innovation has a fundamental influence on the existence of a company. So we have to learn to deal with a rapidly changing environment. Consider, for example, the recent announcement of the mass redundancies at ING Bank. One of ING's motives is "technological innovation". Or take the travel sector: via which route did you book your trip this year? There is a good chance that you have done this online.

Fight, flight, freeze

In the past, only a few sectors were susceptible to digital disruption, but that has changed. In the current digital age of social media, smartphones, and wearables, newcomers can conquer the world in no time. How you actually tackle digital disruption depends on the industry in which you work, but sooner or later every sector will be confronted with it. With digital disruption, existing business models are shaken by new technologies. Changes are usually accompanied by the necessary anxiety. Drastically overturning the steering wheel can, for example, be a flight reaction. Stopping new competition may mean that you are fighting. It seems to us that it is not the ideal way to deal with disruption. So being anxious, fleeing or fighting are not sustainable strategies. But what then? To adjust!

Times change and you have to adapt

As a company, you can protect yourself against digital disruption. You can do this by fighting your innovative opponents with their own resources. By crawling into the skin of the potential disruptor, you can find the vulnerable places in your own business model. So they offer the opportunity to improve yourself. Large, established organizations are more likely to survive digital disruption by thinking again as a start-up. Take a close look at your own business model and see where you can innovate. Also try to have a mix of experienced experts and young, digital talents within your organization, and give room for creativity. So be innovative: follow the topicality of your industry and make sure you recognize new technologies in time. Try to map this out faster than your competitor and see what it can mean for you. Timing is of course very important in the case of digital disruption because investing too early can lead to high costs, without results.

Disrupt the disruptor

It is a matter of being prepared for digital disruption. There are many companies that see it coming, but ultimately do not do much with it. Above all, know the driving forces behind digital disruption and respond to it: everyone is online, the internet is available everywhere, costs have fallen, there are many platforms with a highly developed network and people are increasingly trusting it. So be present in the digital world! Be inspired by the innovative newcomers on the market to improve yourself and 'disrupt the disruptor'. Would you like concrete practical examples of digital disruption? Keep an eye on our blog, because you can read them in the following article!
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