What is a 21st Century Business Perspective?

Businesses must realize that they must now operate in a 21st century business model with the perspective of a 21st century company. But what is a 21st century business perspective? A 21^st century business must operate with the perspective that it is a global, Internet economy. As a result of this, all companies must have 4 perspectives – Domestic, International, Virtual, and Environmental.

Most businesses begin life as local or regional businesses. As a result, many business models operate in a “regional box”. But, now that we are living in the 21^st century, that model is outdated. Because of globalization each company must be integrated with the Internet and technologies appropriate for each business.

If a business is not prepared to compete internationally, management should develop a game plan to achieve specific goals. At the very least, a company must know what to do if it receives a foreign, unsolicited inquiry. Additionally, companies may start to seek foreign business through a partnering model or an international sales department.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, businesses must also have a plan to sell their products online. Think of it this way – what is the first thing you do when you are researching a company to do business with? You Google the company, right? Even prospects looking for employment will Google a business before the job interview. Do you want prospective customers and employees to view your website as it is right now? Will they be able to find all of the information they need to decide to do business with your organization? A strong website is necessary in the new global, Internet economy.

Just a few caveats for businesses:

Make sure to devise a plan that makes sense for your business

Manage your growth - Don’t grow too fast too soon. Just make sure that you are able to adapt effectively.

Keep an eye on your competition.

We can use Blockbuster as an example of a company not adapting to the 21^st century business environment. Blockbuster was a billion dollar company that failed to recognize that the current business model they had would soon be outdated. When Netflix started, Blockbuster decided that Netflix was not a major threat to them. Netflix rented movies exclusively online. Blockbuster thought that their 5,500 stores could compete against a company that did not have even one physical store. Within a few years, Netflix has become the biggest movie company, surpassing Blockbuster. Netflix would eventually force Wal-Mart out of the online video rental industry as well.

Over the next several weeks we will discuss ways that companies have changed their business model to meet the demands of a global, Internet economy.