It's also possible to optimize for long term profitability.
> There were certain things about the business where it was obvious – speaking to people who had been on that journey for 25 years before I joined – that they were not likely to change in the future because they hadn’t changed in the previous 25 years. The first thing that struck me was an absolutely rock-solid commitment to gaining the trust of the customer, the employees, the suppliers and business partners. Almost every rule or method or procedure of the company was built around ensuring that.
If you're in a stable business like groceries where you can be confident that your market will still be around in 25 years, sure. But that doesn't apply to a lot of businesses.
Precisely. Who accurately predicted the shift from long-haul, high-capacity airliners to smaller, more fuel efficient airliners to fit with a hub-and-spoke model?
Now layer that on top of the decade it takes to get a new plane from drawing board to delivery.
From what I've read, it sounds like Boeing completely lucked into it. It wasn't some smart person who could accurately predict the future.
And to be honest, a lot of companies we think of as being "innovative" and having "foresight" are that way. They made the best business decision they could, based on what was known at the time, and the stars lined up to make it a huge hit.
Saying that a company can plan for future profitability isn't supported by the facts.
Save for perhaps the development of transporter technology or an unending deluge of viral pandemics, making airplanes for commercial aviation seems fairly predictable as to whether or not it'll exist in 25 years.
To some extent, but your airplane customer has quite a bit more flexibility than a grocery customer. I'm probably not going to buy French perishables but an airbus is a different story.
The question was whether or not your market will exist in 25 years, not whether or not your customers will consider a competitor's product.
And regardless, I have quite a lot of flexibility as a grocery customer. I can go to Safeway, Whole Foods, Grocery Outlet, or my local small grocery around the corner. Target and Walgreens even have some groceries too.
The decision to value the long term trust of your employees, customers and business partners more than short term profits would apply to any type of business that wants to survive and thrive over the long haul.
> There were certain things about the business where it was obvious – speaking to people who had been on that journey for 25 years before I joined – that they were not likely to change in the future because they hadn’t changed in the previous 25 years. The first thing that struck me was an absolutely rock-solid commitment to gaining the trust of the customer, the employees, the suppliers and business partners. Almost every rule or method or procedure of the company was built around ensuring that.
https://inpractise.com/articles/aldi-culture-and-operations-...