Try this tongue-twister: “A taut tightrope trains tech titans.” Repeat x10.
Now read on to discover why…
The tech sector is facing some hefty challenges. With diminishing returns on sales, and company valuations dropping back in line with pre-Covid levels, tech companies are under pressure to find operational efficiencies. So much so that 2023 was dubbed ‘the year of efficiency’ for tech companies. This year, the trend continues.
And that has a knock-on impact on people.
The obvious impact is negative: when efficiencies lead to job losses, each redundancy impacts an individual, their family, the wider community. The process undermines trust and staff morale within a company. Although necessary to preserve the jobs of the remaining employees, there’s nothing pleasant about having to let people go.
However, there are more positive aspects of efficiency generation that also involve people - and they involve balancing the innovation and consolidation functions within a company.
When all is going well, a fast-paced company may over-reach on the innovation side, leaning into this aspect of the business while paying insufficient attention to the less dynamic, less exciting consolidation side. Subconsciously, innovators may be held in higher esteem than consolidators and company comms may be skewed to reflect these priorities. The company may become unbalanced, though this may not be noticed at first because the momentum created by innovation continues to carry the business forwards.
In more challenging times, however, the critical role of the consolidator becomes more apparent. Where efficiencies are more nuanced than broad-brush job losses, consolidators are in their element. They love to find efficiencies and they tend to be really good at it. So, when given value and a voice, the consolidators in a business become empowered to create or restore a sense of balance within the company. Not only does this help the business to navigate the tough times, but it also sets the company up for sustainable future growth.
Innovators and consolidators tend to have different personality types, different characteristics. In teams with low EQ, these differences can lead to discord and disagreement. But when individuals are given opportunity to reflect on how these diverse outlooks can strengthen a company, and are equipped to draw out these strengths, a more constructive approach can emerge. Everyone wins.
The key to walking the innovation-consolidation tightrope successfully lies in nurturing excellent communication within your organisation. And if you are aiming to become a tech titan, training on a taut tightrope is a good place to start.
The Innovation-Consolidation Tightrope is a Cinnamon Letters workshop on strategic communications. Discover more here: www.cinnamonletters.co.uk/innovation-consolidation