Achim Müllers

Well, actually he could, if you give evolution enough time.

In German, we say ‘Über seinen eigenen Schatten springen’, meaning ‘jumping over one’s own shadow’. Actually, I like that description better.

Karl Kraus made the point that ‘when the sun of culture is low, even dwarfs will cast long shadows’. And the longer those shadows, the more difficult it obviously becomes to jump over them.

A similar behavior can be observed in many companies, when the sun of innovation is low. In those companies, those desperately trying to maintain the status-quo including their own standing, cast long shadows, thereby creating often unsurmountable obstacles to the necessary change.

Think about the expression ‘high noon’ in this context: At noon, the sun is at its highest and the shadows at their shortest. And that is true without a shadow of a doubt.

Like many other brands, Unilever has a presence on Twitter. Due to their activities in the area of sustainability, I decided to follow them.

2 days ago, they posted a tweet with an apparently interesting link. Clicking the link revealed the following message: ‘You are not authorized to access this page’. Now, why would anyone post such a link?

Well, hiccups do happen, so I tweeted Unilever that posting a link to a page that can’t be accessed is rather self-defeating.

Did Unilever ever respond? No!

A rather dismal performance by a brand that claims to use Twitter to share content and engage.

Also called ‘Locomotive Acts’, these pieces of legislation – there where three in total – were passed in the UK in the late 19th century to control the use of ‘mechanically propelled vehicles’ on public roads. Mechanically propelled or self propelled vehicles included road locomotives and automobiles.

Amongst other things, the Red Flag Act of 1865 stipulated that ‘self propelled vehicles should be accompanied by a crew of three: the driver, a stoker and a man with a red flag walking 60 yards (55 m) ahead of each vehicle. The man with a red flag or lantern enforced a walking pace, and warned horse riders and horse drawn traffic of the approach of a self propelled machine.’ (Wikipedia)

Officially the legislation was passed out of concern for the state of the roads and the safety of the public. Needless to say that it was ‘supported’ by the railway industry and manufacturers of horse-drawn carriages.

Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?

‘Red Flag Acts’ are alive and well, albeit under different names. Combined with red tape – I wonder whether the identical color is pure coincidence – they are passed to obstruct change and innovation, often ‘supported’ by obsolete industries.

The other day, I received an email from Avis, in which they informed me about a new service: For EUR 9,90 one-way, they offered to deliver the rented car everywhere. Everywhere?

This special offer was printed in bold type and had an * attached to it, i.e. time to look for the small print! And, as was to be expected, the small print put the offer into perspective. ‘Everywhere’ meant within the city limits for selected locations only.

I’m sure that Avis would argue that the offer is transparent, since all of the facts are included, albeit some in small print. But there is nothing ‘great’ about offers that don’t stand up to close inspection. As a matter of fact, it is bad enough that we have to closely inspect offers from so many brands, not only those from Avis.

Honest, direct and straightforward communication of a value-adding product and/or service will build trust, small print will not! Why is that so difficult to understand for many brands?

Operative efficiency is of course a must, but once efficiency becomes a strategic imperative, things often turn problematic.

Optimizing existing processes and continuous cost-cutting, often at the expense of jobs – but that is another story – aim to keep your existing product and/or service competitive compared with others offering the same product and/or service. But what about those that offer something ‘different’?

It is riskier to optimize the obsolete than it is to innovate. Efficiency didn’t save the horse carriage and it won’t save the automobile.

No doubt, Joseph Schumpeter would agree.

Last Sunday, State elections took place in the Saarland, a small German state bordering France. With 61%, the voter turnout was rather low -> 39%, i.e. almost 2 out of 5 having the right to vote, chose not to exert that right.