at an initial price of $50,000, the VTR became a big success with broadcasting companies. Ampex had a strong patent position and actively improved the VTR product with solid-state circuitry and color capability. But it did not have a sufficiently clear vision of the possibilities for the VTR in the consumer market, choosing instead to focus on the

Without any deliberate process for evaluating a core strategic vision, it’s all too easy for executives in a company to neglect it. They may have the best intentions and know that it’s something they need…

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Some companies, on the other hand, tend to be too shortsighted, not seeing far enough into the future. They may be very good at the immediate tactical issues of management, but they don’t see opportunities in time to take advantage of them, or threats in time to defend against them.

IBM’s Bill Lowe also suffered from tunnel vision when he maintained an IBM-centric view of the future. In 1985, he gave Microsoft the rights to sell the jointly developed DOS operating system to other manufacturers in return for IBM’s free use of it on IBM PCs. IBM, after all, had 80 percent of the DOS market. Microsoft’s Bill Gates saw that this

Core Strategic Vision

Another shortsighted company was Ampex Corporation, which invented the video tape recorder (VTR) in 1956. Even

Shortsightedness

Some companies are virtually blind because they see things in so many different ways that their vision is blurred. Dozens of incompatible visions may be scattered throughout the company. Individuals may have beliefs about where they think the company should go, but there is no collective vision. There is no visionary leadership.

Try to find a way to maintain revenue and find something for all of these employees to do, in any way at any cost. Invest R&D in anything that is interesting and keep investing in operating systems, computer systems, and microprocessor technology even if the future for them is questionable.