“Tomorrow belongs to those who can hear it coming.”
– David Bowie
One of the most important items I encourage you to note is how the financial press will continue to demonstrate their misunderstanding of the changes that impact our economy. They will breathlessly report on financial facts and data that are increasingly irrelevant. Let me explain with some examples:
- World’s largest taxi company owns no taxis (Uber)
- Largest accommodation provider owns no real estate (Airbnb)
- Largest phone companies own no telecommunications infrastructure (Skype)
- World’s most valuable retailer has no inventory (Alibaba)
- Most popular media owner creates no content (Facebook)
- Fastest growing banks have no actual money (SocietyOne)
- World’s largest movie house owns no cinemas (Netflix)
- Largest software vendors don’t write apps (Apple & Google)
Technology has created a “digital disruption” that is completely changing how we gauge the rate of change in our business markets. What do we learn from shipping data, purchasing manager indexes and inventory levels when the world’s fastest growing and most successful companies have no inventory, no manufacturing and require no shipping? When you hear the news reports, ask yourself if they are reporting on the “old economy” or the new one.