Some of the most valuable companies operating today weren’t in business 10 years ago. Airbnb, worth an estimated $31 billion, was founded in 2007. Spotify got its start in 2008, yet the 9-year-old company is already valued at more than $13 billion. Consider WhatsApp. Launched in 2010, it was acquired by Facebook for $22 billion just four years later.
Fueling these billionaire ventures is widespread consumer affection. Providers of the digital apps and services people can’t live without, they are the reason legacy company leaders are pushing their teams to transform.
Can it be done?
David Rogers, author of the Digital Transformation Playbook and a THINK 17 presenter, believes it can.
For every hindrance to transformation experienced by decades-old organizations, there is an important resource that can be harnessed for innovation. Talent, people, money, and relationships were just a few named by Rogers before a crowd of credit union thought leaders gathered in New York City.
“Every business is fighting for relevance,” Rogers told THINK 17 attendees. “Transformation is about strategy, leadership and new ways of thinking.”
To demonstrate the possibilities, CO-OP generated a documentary telling the stories of three legacy organizations transforming for the digital age. View excerpts of the documentary below.
For its part, legacy shoe company Reebok has found ways to organize its teams for collaboration. By bringing together different leaders from different areas, the 60-year-old company has found a way to inspire a fresh perspective. “If you put all [of your experts] in one room, we’re all forced to sit and work together and learn from each other,” said Dan Mazei, senior director, global newsroom at Reebok. “The more we can get ourselves comfortable with each other’s disciplines and to build ideas from the ground up with that idea, the more successful we will be.
Scotts Miracle-Gro, with roots back to 1860s, is taking a similarly proactive approach and has its teams assembled around more easily rethinking not only its products but the way consumers engage with them. “Over the years, the lawn and garden industry has in part stayed the same,” said Bill Litfin, global director of digital and content for Scotts Miracle-Gro. “But what’s evolved is consumers are now interested in a layer of data, so maybe having their yard talk to them. They are used to it from other categories they interact with.”
Executives with Broadway, seeing the potential of digital transformation to bring theater to entirely new consumer segments, is reimagining the theater experience with the advent of BroadwayHD. “We shot the last show we did with 14 cameras, so you’re not just seeing the show from fifth row center orchestra, you’re see it from 14 different angles in the theater, even on stage,” said Stewart F. Lane, president and CEO of BroadwayHD. “So in that sense, we are creating a whole new art form.”
What exactly do credit unions have in common with these organizations? They, too, were born before the digital age. As legacy organizations, credit unions have begun their journeys towards digital transformation to compete and thrive in today’s competitive landscape.
CO-OP believes credit unions are poised to thrive in the digital age and is constantly working on innovations across all member touchpoints to help credit unions get there. As part of our own digital transformation strategy, we are working to evolve and improve the CO-OP technology and payments ecosystem. We are continuing to offer innovations like CardNav, Apple Pay, Android Pay, Samsung Pay, and soon, Zelle, just to name a few. Our goal is to enhance credit unions’ payments experience and maintain that coveted top of wallet – whether digital or physical – position.
Looking at products, services and experiences through a consumer lens should come naturally for the movement’s leaders. After all, it’s how the industry first came to be, and it’s what has attracted more than 100 million people to credit unions in their communities across the U.S.
We’ll walk through our digital transformation playbook for credit unions, and share key insights from inside and outside the credit union industry. As a bonus, participants will receive a free eBook to guide you on your journey. Register now.
The original article What Credit Unions Can Learn from Reebok, Scotts Turf and BroadwayHD can be found on Insight Vault.
