I don’t know anything about hockey. In fact, I went to a game as a guest last week and had a hard time figuring out who was the home team. But I do know who Wayne Gretzky is and that he famously said, in response to the question, why do you score so many goals, I skate where the puck is going. Where is the marketing puck going to the airline’s industry?
What is the airline going to do when driverless cars come on the scene in a big way in a few years?
Let’s face it. Air travel sucks.
Just this week, United Airline dragged a doctor off a flight so that the airline could seat their own employees. The videos went viral of this poor bloody customer. Friendly skies?
A simple trip to the airport is replete with delays and terrible customer experiences. There are lines for the line to get in line. There is little about it to like anymore. All the pleasure of air travel is gone. What’s left is so unappealing.
If I could sit in the backseat of a car, why would I fly from Raleigh to Washington, DC for business? Can’t you see short-haul flights disappearing?
Imagine the challenges that the airlines are starting to worry about as they recognize that their world will change. Driverless cars don’t seem like an obvious challenge to the airline industry, but a new option may challenge shorter trips (within 500 miles).
What Challenges are Skating Your Way?
Are you in an industry that is about to be disrupted by a new or evolving technology? What are you doing to plan for that challenge?
Smart business managers realize that if they aren’t testing the waters on ways to adjust, adapt or transform, they will get caught with a shifting market.
Newspapers and Online
Although many print publications were late to the game, by placing small bets on online newspapers, publications like The New York Times were testing the waters as they realized that physical, print newspapers would go away or greatly diminish. They needed to rethink their business model and started with some small tests and experiments. They began testing and failing and readjusting but their strategic intent was clear. They knew they needed to be skating where the puck was going.
Today, the online version of the NY Times is growing in popularity and succeeding with a different approach to advertising. Had they stood still, they would be stuck with the puck. But they realized they needed to stay focused on a new reality, even if they initially were stumbling to get there. They are skating where the puck is going.
Come Drive with Me?
Maybe American Airlines needs to invest in Lyft, Uber or Tesla so that they have a front seat in the future of self-driving cars. It is counterintuitive but in twenty years from now, might be so obvious to any strategist.
Hotels are also likely to be challenged since you could, in theory, sleep in a driverless car. Why would you need a hotel room? Imagine if Marriott had invested in Airbnb just a few years ago? Is it too late for them to take a significant position in Ford or GM, where driverless technology is front and center on their plate?
Strategy and Scenarios – What to do now
Get a group of senior team leaders offsite with a facilitator. Break them into several small groups and have them time travel to ten years into the future. Let them create a few scenarios of how your current business will change. When you get the teams together, let each group present one scenario that scares the crap out of everyone because they realize it will disrupt your business dramatically.
Then ask the big question, if one of these scenarios are true, what small bets should we start placing to diversify or challenge ourselves. What piece of advice would you like to hear from your future self?
Is your business stuck with the puck, or are you trying to figure out where it is going?
Need help figuring out where the puck is going in your industry? I can skate over to your office and help. Let’s lace up the skates together. 919 720 0995 or jeffreylynnslater@gmail.com – I never played ice hockey but did get to take batting practice with the MLB all stars in 2000. That’s Frank Thomas watching me. Really!
Photo credit: https://pixabay.com/en/photos/ice%20skating/
