Global Strategy Series
2014
I read recently, that this technological/information age we are living in, in this, the early part of the twenty-first century, is very reminiscent of the Industrial Revolution at the beginning of the twentieth century. One may wonder how that can be, but simply put, the Industrial Revolution completely changed how people lived their lives at the time…… much like this “Information Revolution” is completely changing how we, in the twenty-first century, live our lives. How so? The ways are endless.
Consider, for example, how everywhere we go now, people are on their phones. If not talking on their phones, they are looking at their phones for some reason: e-mail, news, games, Facebook. Our smartphones are our constant companions. It’s only been within the last decade that we’ve seen this phenomenon take hold in our society.
The same holds true for us in business. Let’s take the fairly new platform of Social Media. In the last 5-7 years, Social Media has gone from being a virtual “unknown” to the majority, to now being an absolutely integral part of every company’s marketing plan. Think about that: what started out as a means for our teenagers to communicate and connect with friends has grown into a multi-million dollar enterprise that today’s businesses are remiss if they don’t embrace and use on a daily basis to keep their online presence visible and within the top three finds of search engines.
Then there’s the entire “mobile technologies” platform. Since 2007, when the first iPhone debuted, mobile technologies have seen a meteoric rise! Now, whatever platform is available for desk-tops, one must also be developed for the mobile platform.
These two platforms alone have brought about phenomenal change in the way we communicate, keep in touch, and do business. We can connect instantly with anyone in our circle of friends, even with one who lives half way around the world. What has become second nature for us now, was not even in our consciousness a decade ago. That is profound change in a relatively short amount of time that has required society both personally and professionally to adapt and change quickly.
These technological changes and advancements bring with them a unique set of challenges. Primarily, how do we keep up with all of these rapid changes? These changes that are designed to “connect us” more quickly and easily with PEOPLE, without losing sight of the very people we are serving?
I’ll be exploring this question in my upcoming blogs. I hope you’ll join me.
This blog was written by Dilip Barot, Founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Etech Global Services, and founder of Creative Choice Group, headquartered in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. Etech employs 2,500 team members across the US, India and Jamaica. If you would like to learn more about Etech, contact info@etechgs.com for more information.
