This is a break off of another discussion on the Glock forum... but I feel that it belongs on this forum more because those with experience with more guns that just Glocks can, I think, better illustrate and argue the point.
Here is a comment that was made, and a response I quoted directly from this month's Harvard Business Review. It is scary in how much it addresses Glock's mindest (and the mindset of their ardent supporters). Let me say up front that I like my Glocks and I am not bashing the company. Business is business and I think we can see some strong trends and where they will likely lead the company.
Why did Henry Ford, who was such a visionary in the industry's infancy, fail to see tha the Model T was about to run its course and that a smooth transition to a new vehicle was essential? Evidence of his signature mode's declining fortunes was everywhere apparent at the time. But Ford dismissed sales figures documenting the Model T's declining market share, because he suspected rivals of manipulating them. One of his top executives warned him of the dire situation in a detailed memorandum. Ford fired him.
Ford's blindness resulted from a conviction that he knew what customers wanted: basic transportation. He was equally convinced that this desire would never change. His favorite slogan about the Model T-- "It takes you there and it brings you back"--captured this myopic view. What Ford didn't grasp is that every product or service has tow components: the core (the product's primary purpose) and the the augmented (additional functions and features). In every industry the border between the two inevitably shifts oer time.
In 1908 the automobile was mostly core: it got you there and back again.
By the 1920's, however, the world was changing, whereas the Model T wasn't. U.S. consumers had more money and more leisure time. The automobile had become more than a machine; it was a status symbol as well. GM's president, Alfred P. Sloan, Jr., recognized this and responded with the augmented-product strategy. Gm's cars came in a variety of colors, and it's models changed every year.
...Freud himself was a victim of the very knowing-but-not-knowing that he described in others. he kept smoking cigars evern after his oral cancer was diagnosed. Both Ford and Freud were smart, successful men who paid a terrible price for denial. Don't let it devastate your company, too. "
Harvard Business Review, August 2008, "Leaders in Denial"
So I guess we can only hope that Glock is not the Model T of guns. It appears, however, that already they share some basic traits that I'm sure Glock would like to avoid.
Many will likely bristle at this... and that's fair... and I would love to see you prove that Glock is secure in its market position.
Here is a comment that was made, and a response I quoted directly from this month's Harvard Business Review. It is scary in how much it addresses Glock's mindest (and the mindset of their ardent supporters). Let me say up front that I like my Glocks and I am not bashing the company. Business is business and I think we can see some strong trends and where they will likely lead the company.
"The Model T was introduced in 1908 and over the next two decades the Ford Motor Company sold more than 15 million of these cars. But by 1927 sales had flagged so severely that Henry Ford discontinued the line in order to retool his factories for its successor, the Model A. To make the change, he shut down production for months, at a cost of close to $250 million. This chain of events was disastrous for the company because it allowed Chrysler's Plymouth to gain market share and permitted General Motores to seize market leadership.
Why did Henry Ford, who was such a visionary in the industry's infancy, fail to see tha the Model T was about to run its course and that a smooth transition to a new vehicle was essential? Evidence of his signature mode's declining fortunes was everywhere apparent at the time. But Ford dismissed sales figures documenting the Model T's declining market share, because he suspected rivals of manipulating them. One of his top executives warned him of the dire situation in a detailed memorandum. Ford fired him.
Ford's blindness resulted from a conviction that he knew what customers wanted: basic transportation. He was equally convinced that this desire would never change. His favorite slogan about the Model T-- "It takes you there and it brings you back"--captured this myopic view. What Ford didn't grasp is that every product or service has tow components: the core (the product's primary purpose) and the the augmented (additional functions and features). In every industry the border between the two inevitably shifts oer time.
In 1908 the automobile was mostly core: it got you there and back again.
By the 1920's, however, the world was changing, whereas the Model T wasn't. U.S. consumers had more money and more leisure time. The automobile had become more than a machine; it was a status symbol as well. GM's president, Alfred P. Sloan, Jr., recognized this and responded with the augmented-product strategy. Gm's cars came in a variety of colors, and it's models changed every year.
...Freud himself was a victim of the very knowing-but-not-knowing that he described in others. he kept smoking cigars evern after his oral cancer was diagnosed. Both Ford and Freud were smart, successful men who paid a terrible price for denial. Don't let it devastate your company, too. "
Harvard Business Review, August 2008, "Leaders in Denial"
So I guess we can only hope that Glock is not the Model T of guns. It appears, however, that already they share some basic traits that I'm sure Glock would like to avoid.
Many will likely bristle at this... and that's fair... and I would love to see you prove that Glock is secure in its market position.
). IMHO, it bears repeating because, while I respect the products that Glock puts out (IMO, they are the 'AK-47' of handguns), I'm really tired of how they simply ignore the segments of the American shooting populace that they do:
