In the March 2024 issue of my monthly newsletter, “MCA Talk,” I began to address the question of remaining relevant: 1. How does your business remain relevant? The issue is everywhere; it lingers in the air. It’s one that every manager and business share. 2. Only when you transform do you and your company remain relevant: reinventing, relearning, rethinking.

I know; for many, change is difficult. However, irrelevancy can be even worse.

Today, most companies, even down to the personal level, may be grappling with the three keys to remaining relevant: 

1. Does my company have a relevant business model for the future?

2. Does my company have a relevant organizational structure, talent mix and the relevant suppliers/partners to succeed tomorrow?

3. Do I/we, as leaders and practitioners, have relevant skills and the expertise to lead and navigate the change?

When a company finds itself short on any of these three questions, it tends to be for two reasons:

1. Culture. Maybe it’s some combination of a toxic environment, outmoded incentive models or inappropriate leadership (think Boeing today and Wells Fargo a few years back).

2. Competition. A crisis driven by a new or different economic or distribution model emerging from your usual competitors — or even from outside your business category (think: Tesla and Uber challenging established auto-makers or linear broadcasting networks challenged by streaming).

The culture and competitive “soup” is constantly being stirred by change.

Smart companies and leaders are rethinking their business models in various ways: 

• A blank-sheet approach. Working with internal teams, partners and consultants to reimagine their businesses as if they were starting today. If you were to begin your company today, how would you satisfy the needs of your customers? 

• Attack mode. If you were to begin your company today as a next-age competitor with no legacy constraints — only legal constraints — what would you do?

Both approaches involve no constraints, only those residing in your culture or current business models or in your mind. So, your current mindsets may need to be defeated.

Companies Do Not Transform, People Do

A company remains relevant only if its people and leaders remain relevant. Today, anyone who began work more than five years ago needs to find a way to learn new capabilities — and unlearn some old habits.

Change comes at a speed much faster than we can hope to retire; this is particularly true for senior leaders with many decades of experience. The way it was is not the way it is — and not the way it will be. The latter is particularly important as companies develop succession plans (more on that later).

These changes are not only technological but need to incorporate new mindsets of talent, different economic models and the expectation that leaders and companies will deal with the necessary agendas — whether they wish to or not. The key here is upgrading your mental operating systems.

Those companies that have or are anticipating embracing this sort of change are experimenting and using new technology, hiring coaches, partnering with academia and schools, and connecting with other leaders to share best practices in learning.

The best companies are also reallocating dollars to training — learning and mandating upskilling.

Now, twisting ourselves into new shapes takes time — and practice can hurt. It’s like going to the gym; initially, it’s difficult and painful. 

• Learning. Leaders today should allocate at least five to 10 hours a week to learn; allocate at least 20 percent of their time to reimagine their companies for tomorrow. If leaders only spend time on today, they will not be taken to tomorrow. Ensure that you and your team’s skills are up to tomorrow.

• Stepping out of comfort zones and category definitions. “The future is already here; it’s just not very evenly distributed.” — William Gibson

Too many people go to the same industry conferences. Are they becoming incestuous gatherings generating still-born ideas? What about going to conferences or events of other industries — or even events in other countries? What are those companies doing? How are they planning to remain relevant? What processes did they undertake to sort it all out?

Regardless of what each of us ultimately do, in our unique ways, we need to address the three keys to how to remain relevant.

Finally, how will all this relate to succession planning? For those businesses, including smaller ones that remain independent and family-owned, owners need to be honest with themselves about their own capabilities and those of any family members and other key contributors active in the business. 

What will you need in the way of talent? Not simply replacing what you have. This impacts how you can honestly answer and fulfill the three keys. Don’t take this too lightly; this self-awareness is essential to recognizing potential challenges to relevancy and addressing them proactively. 

It’s time to focus on the future more than the now. It’s not only about key people retiring. You’ll need to position your organization for change impacting its ability to remain relevant.

Think about it — a lot! It’s that important.