Connect the dots. Adapt and prosper
The pace of change will never be as slow as it is today. Business has become a race to connect the dots and make sense of a frenetic and fast moving world. Some of us will get lost in the mire. What do you do?
Change happens so quickly we’re lucky if we even notice. Trends are obscure, noise is high and relevance is lost. In spite of these challenges, looking outside your own industry is particularly beneficial when you want to understand what’s going on inside.
According to a new study of small to midsize business owners (1700 with an average revenue of $4.7m), growth begins with control, not revenue. “Getting control of the business … is what leads to real growth.”
It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.” —Charles Darwin
I hope you find my sample interesting, and motivating. Be industrious.
’08
Last time U.S. factories operated at the current 32 month high (79 percent of capacity)
www.bloomberg.com21+
Dow Jones Industrial Average 2013—percentage gain for the fifth consecutive session
www.nytimes.com85%
Consumers who say they are willing to pay above standard price for a product or service to ensure they receive a superior experience
North American Customer Experience Report published by RightNow Technologies1991
Last time single-family housing starts climbed 20.8 percent in a single month. The 727,000 starts in November 2013 was also the most starts since March 2008
Bloomberg—Lorraine Woellert15
Number of companies Apple acquired in the fiscal year ending Sept. 2013. “None [of them gives the company] new users or revenue.”
Bloomberg51
Age of GM’s new CEO, Mary Barra, who on January 15, 2014 becomes the auto industry’s first female chief
Forbes#1
“The Business of Belief,” the best business book of 2013 according to Inc.
www.inc.com18%
Marketers who actively collect data insight to create a holistic view of their customer
Teradata—Lisa Arthur56
Age at which fictional James Bond would have killed himself boozing
British Medical Journal52%
Scorpio Tankers (STNG) expected 2014 sales growth. The tiny shipper (14 tankers) also expects a 298 percent earnings growth.
Bloomberg
$16T+/-
Projected: China’s household wealth. Now growing at its fastest pace in 5 years
Bloomberg/Bank of Japan80%
Number of business owners who say inconsistent cashflow is a problem
2013 Pulse of Small & Midsize Business Study5 years
When computers (PCs) are predicted to see, touch, feel, smell and hear
Dr. Bernie Meyerson, head of IBM Innovation$3,100,000,000
Estimated size of the worldwide additive manufacturing market (3D printing) by 2016 ($5.2 billion by 2020)
www.forbes.com$250,000
Price of one seat on Virgin Galactic. The wait is 650 long for the 2014 space flight
www.virgingalactic.com85,000
Number of GE-Boeing fuel nozzles that will manufactured in 2015 using 3D printing
Bloomberg report143 vs. 70
Cost of a megawatt hour (in dollars) worldwide—solar vs. natural gas
http://theenergycollective.com44%
Portion of those surveyed who say their supply chain will be [modified] to be primarily customer-centric in the next two years
www.supplychain247.comSix in ten
Consumers who say they are more likely to tell others about their experiences today than they were five years ago
Dimensional Research Study
330lbs
Approximate weight of BMW’s I3 passenger frame—made entirely at the company’s $100 million carbon-fiber plant
www.businessweek.com579,814
Number of students enrolled in engineering programs in Mexico in 2011—double the number 5 years earlier
http://www.businessweek.com
4.4%
Manufacturer purchasing managers sales projection for 2014. (2013 projection: 4.8 percent; actual 3.4)
Bloomberg—Michelle Jamrisko$12.7B
Size of global automakers investment in Mexico, since 2010 (Nissan, Honda, Mazda and Volkswagen’s Audi)
Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Mich38%
Number of junior Wall Street employees who told pollsters they would engage in insider trading (to make $10m) if they were certain they wouldn’t get caught
Bloomberg—Kyle Stock2014
GM’s Cadillac CTS—Motor Trend “Car of the year” (2013 sales quintupled 2012 sales)
Motor Trend60/60/63
In a survey of the “Inc. 5000,” about the sacrifices owners make to support their businesses. Sixty percent tapped savings and postponed vacations; sixty-three percent cut back their salary
www.inc.comHIT Solutions believes the more your business keeps up with important trends, the more you will improve your product, and improve your bottom line.
Leave me your comments below; share your thoughts.