Say “Cheese”

Say “Cheese” About a year ago I lamented the demise of Kodachrome, the venerable film that rendered exceptional photographs, and joy, to millions of professionals and amateurs for generations. Yesterday I read an article in the Wall Street Journal which reported that Kodak’s shares plunged 27% and the company is teetering on the brink at $1.27 a share. On the real estate front the company is scrambling to sell off and lease pieces of its “once flourishing” corporate campus to generate cash. The company is a case study for not foreseeing the impact of new technology on its core business and failing to adapt. The last five years are littered with other companies that missed the boat–Blockbuster, Borders, the music industry at large–all sticking with hard goods and missing the digital sea change. Alas, Kodak may soon fall into the same bucket; it actually already has, it’s just a matter of time before the last flashbulb goes off. It behooves every business to read the tea leaves and adapt to shifting technologies and new innovations which will, if not embraced, make relics of once-thriving companies. This also applies to how companies incorporate technology into their businesses and services to make them more efficient, and thus more competitive.