
How HP Turns Business Catastrophes to Their Advantage
What would you do if one of your largest competitors attempted to force a takeover, your supply chain was obliterated, and your cash cow business imploded — almost overnight?

What would you do if one of your largest competitors attempted to force a takeover, your supply chain was obliterated, and your cash cow business imploded — almost overnight?

Rogue waves – radical systemic changes – are hitting business harder, faster and more often. Their violent impact has changed how companies win at strategy. Everyone gets hit by them, but some companies ‘flip their kayaks faster’ and take share while their competition simply try to tread water.

When engaging in career planning, many of us end up unintentionally focusing exclusively on optimistic scenarios: “I want to do X, so I’ll do A, B, and C to make it happen.” Of course, there’s nothing wrong with a bit of healthy optimism. But to ensure your plans are robust, you also need to identify and mitigate the potential risks that could threaten your vision for the future — and nothing has shown the importance of planning for risk more clearly than the current pandemic.