Tempo: The Operating System of Success, #10

The different time dimensions of human time, digital time, and future time will impact us all, and when those different dimensions line up into a rhythm its a beautiful thing. It’s the operating system of the polyintelligent advantage.

You see it clearly in retail. A brick-and-mortar store runs on human-time. Doors open at ten, clerks work shifts, checkout lines move at the speed of hands and eyes. E-commerce, however, runs on digital-time. The site never closes, algorithms recommend products instantly, and payments clear in milliseconds. But neither works without future-time. Holiday promotions are planned months in advance, toys are pre-ordered based on trends, and shipping networks are prepared for the rush.

All three time dimensions—human, digital, and future—show up in every shopping trip. If forecasts are wrong, shelves are empty. If the website crashes, carts are abandoned. If delivery drivers can’t keep pace, the system collapses. The winners are those who can orchestrate the dimensions into one smooth tempo. 

Tempo Inequality – The New Wealth Gap

History shows what happens when tempos diverge. The winners aren’t always the fastest—they’re the ones who move in rhythm with the needs of the age.

In the mid-1800s, sailing ships could outrun early steamships when the winds were right. Clippers set records, shaving days off Atlantic crossings. But wind is a fickle partner. Voyages could double in length if storms hit or skies went still. Steamships, by contrast, weren’t glamorous sprinters, but they were steady. Liverpool to New York became a timetable, not a gamble. Merchants, bankers, and governments shifted allegiance to steam. Tempo inequality—not sheer speed—sank the sailing ship.

The Pony Express fell the same way. Riders crossing prairies in ten days seemed unbeatable—until the telegraph carried messages across the continent in ten minutes. Heroic endurance was irrelevant once a new tempo dimension arrived.

The pattern repeated in retail. Sears built its empire on seasonal catalogs, physical stores, and human-time logistics. For decades it worked. But Amazon entered digital-time. Its warehouses ran on real-time data, its algorithms anticipated demand, and its logistics promised delivery in days—sometimes hours. Customers adjusted to Amazon’s tempo, and Sears could not keep up. Tempo inequality shifted from a competitive edge to a matter of survival.

The lesson is clear: being stuck in the wrong tempo dimension isn’t just a disadvantage. It can be fatal.

The Imperative of Tempo

In a world of rapid change, the only sustainable advantage is the ability to learn, adapt, and execute faster than your competition. — John Boyd

Data analytics is a core business function, especially as we add more automation to our processes. Leveraging data insights is crucial for situational awareness, customer engagement, autonomous operations and early identification of market trends. However, merely accumulating data is insufficient; the essence of competitive advantage now lies in the speed of actionable insight—what military strategist John Boyd referred to as "tempo."

Most enterprises are ensnared in a web of legacy organizational structures, cumbersome decision-making processes, outdated business models, and cultures resistant to change. These elements collectively inhibit agility, rendering companies ill-equipped to capitalize on fleeting market opportunities, act on new data, or respond effectively to unforeseen challenges. In the accelerating vortex of digital disruption and ever-evolving consumer behavior, these companies are at a competitive disadvantage, susceptible to losing market share to more agile competitors.

Organizations need to re-engineer their internal ecosystems to minimize resistance and incentivize a rapid tempo of change. This involves rethinking governance structures, streamlining decision-making processes, and fostering a culture that rewards agility and innovation. The focus should be on eliminating silos and barriers that slow down information flow and decision-making. In this way, organizations can transition from merely 'reacting' to 'anticipating and leading' market shifts.

John Boyd's military strategies offer an illuminating parallel for businesses. Boyd discovered that some fighter planes, despite showing inferior performance metrics on paper, actually outperformed their 'superior' counterparts in real-world scenarios. The secret was their ability to change direction more quickly—a faster tempo. The lesson here is simple yet profound: the metrics that were traditionally considered indicators of capability were not as critical as the ability to adapt swiftly.

Executive Takeaways

1. Strategic Adaptability: The new frontier of competitive advantage lies not just in what you know, but how quickly you can act on that knowledge.

2. Organizational Fluidity: Instituting a culture of agility and breaking down internal barriers are essential for operating at a faster tempo.

3. Leadership Imperative: Executives must spearhead the transformation, advocating for and institutionalizing fast decision-making and rapid execution.

4. Measuring Success: Traditional performance indicators need to be supplemented with new metrics that reflect an organization's adaptability and speed of execution.

In today's volatile business landscape, companies cannot afford to be merely 'good.' They must embrace the concept of tempo and adaptability as their new metrics for success. The speed at which you adapt is the speed at which you succeed.

*I use generative AI to assist in all my work.

************************************************************************

Kevin Benedict

Futurist at TCS

View my profile on LinkedIn

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

Join the Linkedin Group Digital Intelligence

***Full Disclosure: These are my personal opinions. No company is silly enough to claim them. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.

Mobile Strategies, Cloud Computing and the Role of Speed and Agility

If I can develop and pursue my plan to defeat you faster than you can execute your plan to defeat me, then your plan is unimportant. ~ The Art of Maneuver by Robert Leonhard

In our world of near ubiquitous connectivity, the competitive arena in many industries has moved from the physical to the digital, and from the tempo-of-old to the tempo-of-the-new.  The word tempo means the rate or pace of activity (aka, business operations).  Any IT decision made today should consider how different options and choices will impact today's and the future's tempo of operations.  Can and will the solution you choose support tomorrow's required tempo of business?

In many countries in Latin America new and emerging e-invoicing requirements have been passed by national tax authorities.  In some countries today, the seller of a product needs to electronically record a sale/invoice (in real-time) with the tax authority before a product can be delivered.  The tax authority issues a real-time unique transaction code to be attached to the invoice number.  Once the product is delivered, the buyer electronically acknowledges receipt (in real-time) with the national tax authority, and the process is closed and documented with the tax authority.  If a product is found to be sold and delivered outside of this real-time electronic reporting system, stiff penalties will be applied.

These e-invoicing systems are designed to document and make visible transactions in real-time for tax collection purposes.  This process requires an entirely new and faster tempo than most companies are currently prepared to support.  This is but one example of how the tempo of business is being impacted by digital transformations.

Today, companies are looking seriously at cloud computing solutions and SaaS (software-as-a-service) options in increasing numbers for the purpose of improving the operational tempo of their IT environment.    If you instigate a global five-year ERP implementation plan today, your business will likely be unrecognizable by the time the implementation is completed.  This means your ERP implementation will likely be misaligned with the new and different demands of your market and industry.

Every aspect of your IT environment must be evaluated today in the context of tempo.  What tempo will each solution and integration methodology support?  Will my enterprise mobile strategy support the tempo of change and evolution of the devices, networks and apps my target customers want?  Can I keep pace with the demands of my market?

It is critical that enterprises today evaluate themselves in a brutally honest manner and identify weaknesses that drag down operational tempo.  These limitations will have an increasingly negative impact on bottom lines as the operation tempo of your market and competition increases.

*************************************************************

Kevin Benedict, Head Analyst for Social, Mobile, Analytics and Cloud (SMAC) Cognizant

View Linkedin Profile

Learn about mobile strategies at MobileEnterpriseStrategies.com

Follow me on Twitter @krbenedict

Join the Linkedin Group Strategic Enterprise Mobility

***Full Disclosure: These are my personal opinions. No company is silly enough to claim them. I am a mobility and SMAC analyst, consultant and writer. I work with and have worked with many of the companies mentioned in my articles.