The Big Guys Are Coming

Topics: HRExaminer, John Sumser, by John Sumser

The big guys are comingI love Dave Winer. Here’s how he summarizes the internal development process when big companies go after successful upstarts. If you’ve worked for a bigco, you’ve been to this meeting:

  1. CTO: We need to kill Facebook.
  2. CEO: What will we do?
  3. CTO: It can’t just be Facebook.
  4. CTO: No one will use that.
  5. CEO: It has to be better.
  6. CEO: It has to be something only we can do.
  7. CTO: Some place where we have the advantage.
  8. CFO: Something people have no choice but to use.

The approach never works because it’s always an attempt to extend the brand without cannibalizing the cash flow rather than meeting the need. Big companies try it all of the time when they’ve been outmaneuvered. Somehow,’leveraging’ our unique market position ends up meaning coercion and bullying.

In this era of the minmum viable product and agile software development, customers are a part of the formula that makes winning possible. Winer notes that customers were an inherent part of Facebook’s development. For better and worse, the consumer market is completely transparent. Tech companies live and die in public.

It’s amazing to watch the process. 15 years ago, big publishing companies were making the exact same mistake set. Huge expense and great fanfare spelled the end of the era, not the launch of innovations.

LinkedIn is 8 years old. Facebook is 7. Twitter is 5.

What’s different about these bigco offerings?



About the author

John Sumser

John Sumser is a principal analyst for HRExaminer, an independent analyst firm covering HR Technology and the intersection of people, tech, and work. John’s mix of experience over the course of his career gives him a broad and unique perspective on the industry. Like anyone trying to process a lot of information, he is two or three steps ahead in some areas and still learning about others. Sumser’s work includes deep research into the nooks and crannies of HR Technology to identify and explain rapidly evolving trends. Built on a foundation of engineering, design, and philosophy, John’s seeks to understand and advise clients on where their technology works best, for whom, and in what context. Each year, John examines the insides of hundreds of companies, their products, and ecosystems. He delivers vendor analysis by building the framework from which to deliver the critique. He is constantly connecting and making visible the front end of change. He can help you see the path of evolution and the risks on the journey. The HRExaminer is Sumser’s vehicle for understanding and explaining the inner workings of the industry. With three weekly podcasts, and written commentary, he covers emerging ideas, the state of the industry, and the executives who operate it.

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