At
the helm of perhaps one of tech industry’s greatest turnaround is an Indian,
Satya Nadella of Microsoft. His recipe for reinvigorating the company from a
Windows-centric one to that which provides a range of online services to
companies and individuals is watched by other industry behemoths like HP,
Cisco, and IBM to name a few. Most of these long-standing companies are either
undergoing similarly wrenching changes or are attempting to reinvent
themselves. Microsoft has untethered itself from the conventional windows only
strategy to embracing open-source. They better. The competences and behaviours
that revolved around desktops or an array of computers at the basement, which
primarily fuelled growth of these companies have suddenly paved way to apps
that can be activated with a tap on the mobile. The biggies seem to have been
caught in a time warp.
The
thought of these biggies struggling to get a grip on the market they once ruled
was a bit unsettling for me. As professionals, what if we have to confront such
sudden volatility in our career? Well,
not that Microsoft didn’t know of the imminent market challenges. And, not that
as professionals we don’t know about the lurking and potentially career-altering
changes. What’s alarming about such a change is that even if we know about it,
having firmly entrenched ourselves in a certain comfort zone, we might not be
able to embrace it with the agility that it demands. Remember, Microsoft had once
considered open source an anathema. Similar to how companies steer investments
to initiatives that offer the most tangible and immediate returns, and shortchange
investments crucial to their long-term strategies, we also have to channelize our
time, talent, and energy. This however needs to be done basis one of the most
fundamental requirements – a purpose in life.
While
the industry and its long-standing incumbents undergo a tectonic shift, there
is one thing that doesn’t change. It is the purpose of these companies. For
instance, irrespective of the changes, Microsoft will continue to create technology
that is accessible to everyone. And, the company will do it by even cutting
deals with rivals. Example – users of online version of Office can save their
files on servers of Box, a cloud-storage firm. Who can forget that Office is
now available on Android and Apple mobiles? Like the companies, our purpose can
be spread or fortified only when we have a humble eagerness to learn something
from everybody and when we help others build or promote their purpose.
It
is quite a task but as the established companies have found, it is definitely
not about building individual prominence but about the manifold individuals that
we have helped.
Personal views
