Three Reasons Why Executives Should Adapt to New Technologies

Technology today changes at lightning speed. While employees coming into the company straight out of college are likely up-to-date and comfortable with using the latest technology, executives of all ages need to adapt, too, and here are three reasons why.

Competitive Advantage

Adopting new technology gives company executives the competitive advantage. This is true not only on a personal and professional level, but also for their company as a whole. An executive who can effectively learn and use the latest advancement in technology gives him or herself an edge over other executives.

According to the Harvard Business Review, companies that gain a competitive advantage are no longer good at doing just one thing. Instead, the companies that are leaping out in front and staying ahead of their competition are those that learn to adapt to new advancements as well as innovate to stay ahead of the competition.

Avoid Possible Extinction

When a company doesn’t adapt to change, especially in technology, it can lead to the extinction of the business. Consider Kodak and Nokia — companies that pioneered the photographic film and cell phone industries, respectively.

Once digital technology took over for photo capturing, Kodak’s once successful and prosperous business fizzled. The company was forced to file for bankruptcy reorganization. Similarly, when the iPhone was introduced, Nokia lost its footing as the leader in the cell phone industry.

Prevent Potential Financial Loss

Executives that do not encourage their employees and company leaders to adapt to new technology can cause the company to fall from its current standings. While the company might not go out of business altogether, it can cause a leader in an industry to suffer a loss of profit and reputation.

Adapting to the use of new technology can have quite the opposite effect on a business and its place in the industry. Consider a company like Hewlett-Packard. HP started out in the audio oscillator business. It wasn’t until the 1960's and 1970's that it started to look like the computer company it is today. Following further technological change, it transformed again in the '80s, '90s, and 2000s when it expanded into the printer, storage, and services areas of computers.

Change is inevitable. Those that keep themselves and their companies educated on what’s happening in the marketplace and have processes in place to adapt, have the greatest chance to thrive and succeed.

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