The title says it all, and Supply House Times gives us the actual statistics in an article by that name. I had no idea, judging by the state of the tile industry, that housing starts were at an all-time high in 1977-78 the year I came into the industry and they plummeted to less than half of that in the first three years I sold tile. Seeing today's downturn through a prism of experience and a product development bias, I can't imagine how I kept growing my territory during in that climate.
Being young and green, I knew that the new computer inventory control system the company had purchased from IBM was problematic and those of us in the field spend untold amounts of energy circumventing it. Only in hindsight can I see why more was not done to keep the product relevant - given the statistics. The company was in hunkering down mode, just as I see happening in many companies today.
The company survived that downturn through the efforts of a commissioned sales force, but now I can see how the many seeds that had been planted in the previous downturn lead to the demise of the company in the following housing downturn, and how the company all but put out directional signs for the competition.
This weeks Fortune has an article entitled "Calculated Innovation" that speaks to the hi-tech industry, but applies to every company affected by the current downturn that wants to set themselves apart from their competitors for future growth.
"Economic indicators suggest that we are slowly pulling out of this global economic downturn. Despite the uncertainties ahead, this is the optimal time to think about innovation in a different light: what new groundbreaking product or service would truly resonate with your customers? It's probably something they can't articulate themselves. But it's worthwhile to take the time to discern what motivates your customers and how you could meet a need they don't even realize they have... we call this calculated innovation."
Focus groups can't have the answers, there is no question that it will take hard work for those who step up to the plate.
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