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In his pioneering Crossing the Chasm, Geoffrey
Moore introduced readers to a gap or chasm in the Technology
Adoption Life Cycle that innovative products must cross
to reach the lucrative mainstream market. From Internet
subscriptions to cellular phones, Moore provided guidelines
for getting new paradigms beyond early adopters and into
mass markets.
Now, in this fascinating sequel, Moore shows
how to capitalize on the profit-rich niches and hyper-growth
mass markets beyond the chasm. Continuing to chart the impact
of the Technology Adoption Life Cycle, he explores its effects
not just on marketing but on overall business planning,
especially strategic partnerships, competitive advantage,
positioning, and organizational leadership.
Moore's most startling lesson is: "As
markets move from stage to stage in the Life Cycle, the
winning strategy does not just change -- it actually reverses
the prior strategy. The very skills that you've just perfected
become your biggest liabilities; and if you can't put them
aside to acquire new ones, then you're in for tough times."
As challenging as this lesson is to apply,
Moore leads the way. Using actual examples of cutting-edge
firms, he applies the Life Cycle model to all aspects of
managing a market-focused business strategy, including how
to manage people effectively through each phase of the cycle.
There are significant management implications: Chasm crossers
who love the customer intimacy of niches may rebel against
the depersonalizing power of the tornado; tornado managers
who relish the gales of hypergrowth may resist the inevitable
return to the niche, in the guise of mass customization,
once the rush to the new paradigm subsides.
All industries relying on technology --
not just computer hardware, software, and telecommunications,
but entertainment, publishing, broadcasting, banking, insurance,
health care, aerospace, defense, utilities, pharmaceuticals,
and retail -- must master Moore's lessons to see the year
2000. If you are marketing technology-based products or
managing the people who do, then you will find yourself
Inside the Tornado.
Geoffrey A. Moore is chairman of The
Chasm Group in San Mateo, California, which provides consulting
and education services to such tech-based firms as Hewlett-Packard,
Apple, PeopleSoft, AT&T, Oracle, NeXT, Sun. Silicon
Graphics, and Sybase. Prior to founding TCG, he was a partner
at Regis McKenna, Inc., and a sales and marketing executive
in the software industry. He holds degrees in literature
from Stanford University and the University of Washington.
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