•  Approximately every 500 years the world experiences a major technological revolution.  Moveable type was invented in the 15^th Century.  The invention of the printing press was pure and simple, an information revolution.  It changed which institutions controlled information and how it was disseminated.
  
  

• Until the invention of the printing press, the church controlled the information in society.  As a result, the church and its leaders were the most powerful and esteemed influences in society.  The church used a variety of methods to control information available to the public.
  
  

• The printing press moved control and dissemination of information to political leaders. Mass printing resulted in the development of large, bureaucratic, nation states and allowed for centrally controlled communication necessary for the bureaucratic operation and expansion of national governments.  Paperwork became synonymous with governmental and business bureaucracies.
  
  

• Politicians and government bureaucrats became the acknowledged power brokers.  They amassed power by providing for comforts, perks, subsidies, grants, entitlements, guarantees and the so-called equality of the modern welfare state.  Governments promised to provide cradle-to-grave protection and support.

In many instances, politicians and bureaucrats attempted to control virtually all economic relationships.  The flow of capital could be regulated tightly within national borders.  Most industries and forms of employment could be regulated, protected, expanded, limited or even prevented (private mail service) through political intervention.  The former Soviet Union represented the ultimate attempt to control all aspects of human endeavor.

• The science of semiconductors and the development of the microchip have moved the control and dissemination of information from the political realm to the economic realm.  The power of the political elite over economic activities is being eroded daily.  The most obvious example is the collapse of the former Soviet Union.

Bureaucracies used to provide capital, resources, reputation, expertise, decision-making, training, education and sanctions.  The microchip makes them irrelevant.  Micro technology does not make bureaucracies more efficient, it destroys them.

• Bureaucracies and bureaucrats are processors of information.  Microchips are more efficient processors of information.  Microchips make it possible for individuals to collect, organize, store, transform, package and distribute vast amounts of information more efficiently than bureaucracies.  Microchips shift power to the individual.

• Global capital markets and currency traders now dictate policy and performance to national politicians and bureaucrats.

The use of the microchip in a wide array of communication technologies has virtually made political boundaries irrelevant and toppled many political leaders.

• The invention of bar coding shifted the control of information from the manufacturer to the retailer and hence shifted power to the retailer.

• The development of the Internet now promises to shift power from the seller to the buyer and hence significantly increase the power of the consumer.

Note: much of the above information was taken from the ideas of Dan Sullivan, founder of "The Strategic Coach" program.

QUESTIONNAIRE

1. Describe the three most important changes and forces that are affecting your business today.

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

2. Describe three important changes and forces you think will affect your business in the future.

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

3. What technological changes do you think will have the biggest effect on your business?

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

4. How will the global economy affect your business?

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

5. Describe any opportunities your business may have to source products and services globally. 

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

6. Describe any opportunities your business may have to sell your products and services globally. 

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

7. Have you considered growing your business by developing customer/ vendor partnerships, strategic alliances, licensing agreements, joint ventures or equity stakes? 

(      ) Yes      (      ) No

If Yes, describe. _________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

8. What new technologies can you use to improve your products and services over the next three years?

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

9. What new knowledge and skills will you personally need to improve your company over the next three years?

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

10. What new knowledge and skills will you need in employees over the next three years?

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

11. Who will be your customers three years from today?

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

12. Who will be your vendors three years from today?

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

13. Who will be your competitors three years from today?

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

14. How will you reach your customers three years from today?

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

15. What will your competitive advantage be three years from today?

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

16. Where will your best margins come from three years from today?

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

17. What business will you be in three years from today?

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

18. Describe three areas in your business where you think you can improve productivity. 

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

19. Describe three areas in you business where you can reduce costs. 

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________

20. Describe three things you are doing to make it easy for potential customers to find you on the Internet. 

a. ___________________________________________________________

b. ___________________________________________________________

c. ___________________________________________________________