Sample of companies added to and removed from the S&P 500 in the last decade
The average length of time a company stays on the S&P 500 has gone from 61 years in 1958 to around 18 years now. Companies in the S&P 500 are replaced for a variety of reasons, including decline in market value or acquisition by another company. However, many of the changes are due to “creative destruction,” in which companies that once dominated industries have seen their profits fall and their dominance vanish as rivals employed new technologies that disrupted the old way of doing business.
In a now famous 2012 study, Yale professor Richard Foster conducted research based on almost 100 years of data to determine the causes of the accelerating turnover in the S&P 500. He concluded that:
In a now famous 2012 study, Yale professor Richard Foster conducted research based on almost 100 years of data to determine the causes of the accelerating turnover in the S&P 500. He concluded that:
- Your days may be numbered. At the current churn rate, 75% of the S&P 500 will be replaced by 2027
- Most corporations fade, meaning that most firms see their performance and their stock price wither as new technologies and startups with new business models enter the economy
- The only way to fight is to embrace the "creative destruction" and commit to constant change and innovation
Innovation is a key to having a company that endures. So a company should be smart about innovating and not just throw money at the problem. Here are three things your company can do.
1) Embrace the concept of Open Innovation, "which is fundamentally about operating in a world of abundant knowledge, where not all smart people work for you, so you better go find them, connect to them, and build upon what they can do." Siloed research and development is no longer sufficient to generate new ideas at a pace and a cost that will sustain your organization.
2)Get ideas from a diverse set of players. This means leveraging insights not only from your employees but from, customers, startups, academia, conferences, and consultants to name a few. Go a step further and seek out new views to add to your idea ecosystem. If I go to the same conference every year and talk to the same professor I will get a similar perspective on the changing landscape. Constantly search for new entities that will improve your viewpoint.
3) Don't let ideas remain ideas. Have an effective way to get great ideas into the product roadmap. So many great technologies or ideas don't become game changing innovations because they don't make it from the lab to the product. Be intentional about leveraging the ideas to differentiate your product or create new products or services.
Companies have a choice of changing ahead of the marketplace, with the marketplace, or falling behind. A consultancy, like DAF Technologies, would be a great resource in your toolkit to help your company innovate and endure. As a consultancy we have the benefit of interacting with numerous varied players and will facilitate knowledge transfer from the external innovation ecosystem to your organization.
Members of DAF Technologies regularly advise organizations on leveraging emerging technologies to innovate and endure. If you have questions, please contact Director, Innovation & Technology Faith Davis at 301.541.8569 or faith@daftechnologies.com
1) Embrace the concept of Open Innovation, "which is fundamentally about operating in a world of abundant knowledge, where not all smart people work for you, so you better go find them, connect to them, and build upon what they can do." Siloed research and development is no longer sufficient to generate new ideas at a pace and a cost that will sustain your organization.
2)Get ideas from a diverse set of players. This means leveraging insights not only from your employees but from, customers, startups, academia, conferences, and consultants to name a few. Go a step further and seek out new views to add to your idea ecosystem. If I go to the same conference every year and talk to the same professor I will get a similar perspective on the changing landscape. Constantly search for new entities that will improve your viewpoint.
3) Don't let ideas remain ideas. Have an effective way to get great ideas into the product roadmap. So many great technologies or ideas don't become game changing innovations because they don't make it from the lab to the product. Be intentional about leveraging the ideas to differentiate your product or create new products or services.
Companies have a choice of changing ahead of the marketplace, with the marketplace, or falling behind. A consultancy, like DAF Technologies, would be a great resource in your toolkit to help your company innovate and endure. As a consultancy we have the benefit of interacting with numerous varied players and will facilitate knowledge transfer from the external innovation ecosystem to your organization.
Members of DAF Technologies regularly advise organizations on leveraging emerging technologies to innovate and endure. If you have questions, please contact Director, Innovation & Technology Faith Davis at 301.541.8569 or faith@daftechnologies.com
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