In fast-changing markets, long-term survival requires astute and effective adaptations in response to shifting market fundamentals. When a marketplace is in constant flux, the rules of engagement are constantly being rewritten, and no company can count on using the same strategies that made it successful in the past. Keep doing what you’ve always done, and you may be in for a rude awakening.

Today’s leaders must become familiar with the various models for sustainability and learn to employ them as an effective response to rapidly changing markets. Reliable growth depends on it.

It depends on trend-spotting, early recognition of industry shifts, and decisive action in the face of market discoveries—action that may require significant shifts in your business strategy, and sometimes even your business model.

Successful companies can quickly recognize the signs that indicate a need to adjust course, change direction, or take assertive action. While irrefutable evidence to justify such change is rare, organizations can learn to detect early signals that will make them more confident when considering a strategy change.

Key warning indicators

In fact, there are several key signs that it may be time to re-evaluate your business strategy or business model.

• The rate of growth in your current market is substantially different than the rate of growth in the market overall.
  
  
• Innovative product introductions or service enhancements regularly fail to garner the widespread customer acceptance they once did. Are existing products/services performing far better than necessary to meet customers’ basic needs? Have industry innovations simply become irrelevant to consumers?   
  
  
• Profits and revenues are projected further into the future than the organization’s product development pipeline can support.
  
  
• A once-innocuous competitor has become a significant threat, endangering and disrupting your market foothold. 
• Core customers can no longer afford your products or services.
  
  
• Your bread-and-butter product or service categories are being viewed as commodities.

Once an organization learns to identify these and other market factors that signify change, it can collect additional game-changing rationale to support its decision to shift strategies. Such information gives decision-makers better visibility into the levers that push profitability and growth. This includes the accurate translation of customer perceptions and understandings and the effective application of market analytics.

Embrace change or perish

A willingness to reinvent your business can itself be considered a strategic asset. When all signs point to change, sustainability may depend on your ability to transform your business model before the writing is clearly visible on the wall.