Michael Long
Jul 20, 2017 · 2 min read

Crane worked to diversify, Gutierrez, on the other hand, is one of those business types (former COO) whose first reponse is to tighten his belt, cut costs, and stick with what he knows.

That’s the primary reason for the divesture.

And yes, moving into a new business can be costly. But in this case failing to do so is [forgive me] a bad move. Someone else is going to move into that space, and they’re going to be left out in the cold.

Read Levitt’s “Marketing Myopia” sometime, and see what happened to the railroads when they failed to adapt to changing times and technologies.

“The railroads serve as an example of an industry whose failure to grow is due to a limited market view. Those behind the railroads are in trouble not because the need for passenger transportation has declined or even because that need has been filled by cars, airplanes, and other modes of transport. Rather, the industry is failing because those behind it assumed they were in the railroad business rather than the transportation business. They were railroad oriented instead of transportation oriented, product oriented instead of customer oriented.”

“For companies to ensure continued evolution, they must define their industries broadly to take advantage of growth opportunities. They must ascertain and act on their customers’ needs and desires, not bank on the presumed longevity of their products. In short, the best way for a firm to be lucky is to make its own luck.”

You might also take a peek at my response to someone else regarding the [increasing] costs of coal.

And it’s entirely true that, today, we can’t suddenly switch 100% to renewable energy. No one, including me, is making that argument.

But the costs of coal production are increasing. As you pointed out, the costs related to gas production and use are not guaranteed to remain low.

While the costs/MWh for renewable energy sources have been steadily declining, year-over-year, and show no signs of slowing down.

In March the US percentage of renewable energy on the grid hit 10% for the first time. Like it or not, it’s going to keep growing.

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    Michael Long is a Senior Lead iOS engineer at CRi Solutions, a leader in cutting edge iOS, Android, and mobile corporate and financial applications.

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