Even a city can be industry disrupter

DISRUPTION is a term used with ever-increasing frequency.

It’s a movement that now defines our present time where change is considered a constant and where the mantra “disrupt or be disrupted” has reached fever pitch.

In the so-called “age of disruption” there is only one constant to remember — don’t stand still.

Disrupters such as Uber, Airbnb and Tesla each share a common denominator — they’ve all taken an age-old problem or human need and looked at them through a new lens to reinvent tried and true methods of production or service delivery using technology as a powerful enabler.

They’ve dared to dream big and reshape accepted norms and practices to create new ways of doing things and in the process they’ve tapped into and influenced unmet consumer demand.

If Geelong was a business, how might it be disrupted?

If Geelong can be disrupted then it can also be the disrupter.

We’ve heard for years about Geelong’s transformation from traditional manufacturing to Industry 4.0 with an emerging hi-tech hub and burgeoning start-up community.

But when does a city ever stop transforming? When does it take time to “smell the roses”?

Arguably cities like New York or Paris have never ceased transforming, but they also recognise and honour their brand and legacy, and have stayed true to their essence.

Driving the innovation agenda in business or society is no longer optional. But how does Geelong’s 96 per cent of businesses that are in the small to medium sector reshape themselves and come to grips with the changes needed to not just drive revenue growth, but remain viable and sustainable while staying true to their brand essence?

Many businesses are struggling to strategise the changes required and access the funds needed to implement their ideas.

It’s a given that internet shopping is hurting bricks and mortar retailers and many professional service providers where disruption on a large scale is impacting almost every business. But competing with global companies online that have access to massive investment somehow doesn’t seem plausible for most.

Yet we urge our small businesses to do just that.

The sad reality is that these businesses have no choice — it’s either all in or nothing.

If you thought the millennials were pushing the envelope, just wait until the next generation hits the market — let’s call them M2.0 — a generation brought up on artificial intelligence, thought technology and countless other technologies yet to be invented that will be commonplace in their day-today life.

Governments can help by taking a lead to provide support and solutions to this issue.

Funding initiatives to work directly with small to medium sized businesses to futureproof them and assist them to be more globally competitive is one way to tackle the problem and ensure that they continue to be an important source of local jobs and economic growth.

Directly supporting grassroots organisations like chambers of commerce and business associations that engage at a local level with businesses can also be an effective lever to ensure that our “engine room of the economy” not only survives but thrives well into the future. Bernadette Uzelac is CEO of the Geelong Chamber of Commerce and chairwoman of the Small Business Ministerial Council. Twitter: @GeelongChamber