Being big isn ’ t always easy , but bringing smaller companies into your orbit can re-energise your organisational outlook and culture

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Disruption . It ’ s the term multi-billion dollar companies use to describe a couple of people working from someone ’ s garage , yet somehow beating them at their own game . And big companies have reacted to this in a variety of ways . They ’ ve tried to beat them . Unsuccessfully . They ’ ve tried to join them . Unsuccessfully . They ’ ve acquired them , only to sell them at a discount when the magic dust somehow did not magically scale .

Some of those garage-based disruptors have , in turn , become the world ’ s largest companies – and they too have found that innovation stagnates with size . So what ’ s the solution ?

More and more of the companies I talk to are actively working to encourage partnerships with smaller companies . They get the benefit of disruptive energy without the work and ultimate disappointment of trying to absorb it . They get to move on quickly when the next shiny disruptor arrives on the scene .

Companies need to embrace open architecture for this approach . But that ’ s the easy bit . The hard bit is modelling your company to work with companies of a different scale and mindset . In many cases it ’ s a total cultural change . You might even call it disruption .

PADDY SMITH paddy . smith @ bizclikmedia . com © 2021 | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED technologymagazine . com 5