I have always been fascinated by ecosystems. It was one of the most interesting topics in my college biology courses. The complex and connected relationships between living organisms and their environment. Ideal ecosystems are sustainable and thrive, supporting themselves over the long-term. Sustainable ecosystems conserve and maximize vital resources while remaining collaborative and productive.
Ecosystems underlie many aspects of business including marketing, customer experience, and overall business model construct. Successful digital transformations generate new sustainable ecosystems and improve the sustainability of their current ecosystems. Sustainability is typically handled as part of the larger corporate strategy but the core principles apply to marketing, customer experience, and technology transformations and leaders across these functions should consider sustainability. When considering ecosystems, perspective matters. Observation and understanding of the interconnected relationships, the flow of resources, and the environmental impact is necessary for business leaders to appreciate the impact of their transformation choices.
A few insights from natural ecosystems:
Ecosystems are Geographic - Location matters. Even in a very digital world the local last mile engagement and experience is highly influenced by culture, demographics, and attitudes within a small location. This location may support your customers, your partners or even your own offices.
Ecosystems Grow Until they Encounter a Limiting Factor - Within your business what is your limiting factor? In many instances, the ability to scale, the lack of specific resources, or gaps between touchpoints is inhibiting an ecosystem to grow which in turn limits overall business growth. Automation is increasingly applied to reduce resource demand (time, talent, financial) to unlock growth.
Ecosystems Thrive on a Flow of Resources - Take stock of resources that underlie your ecosystems and pay particular attention to the flow of these resources. Often resources flow in unexpected ways. For example team's time and talent (a finite resource) are spent on less valuable activities reducing sustainability. Increasingly data is a critical resource flow that needs to be mapped.
Each Ecosystem Species has a Niche - The people within an ecosystem also have a niche. This frames their specialization (consider this what makes them great), the resources they need, and the role they play in the broader ecosystem. Understanding these niches can unlock significant value.
When designing more sustainable ecosystems ask yourself these questions across 3 layers of the business.
Experience:
How will my choices impact the ability to delivery a consistent customer experience?
What are the critical locations and physical interaction points that impact my customer ecosystem?
Where the points of waste/pollution in my ecosystem that are draining resources or inhibiting growth?
Operations:
What resources are limiting my operational quality and speed?
Where are the operational niches that are under supported?
Where does niche talent and specialization exist that can be a bigger driver of change?
Technology:
What are the ongoing talent needs to sustain this technical ecosystem?
How does data flow across your ecosystems and are there areas starving for insight?
How will this technology choice support the conservation of resources or the generation of resources in the short and long term?
