I believe this is a defining moment in our history. Our nation is in a fight for its soul. What kind of country do we want to be? I think we are the nation that takes care of its own.

Twelve percent of the 240,000 American veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are unemployed. Thirty percent of those under 24 are jobless, double the national average [i].  This is a national tragedy of epic proportions and those reading this post are the ones who can do something about it.

We can’t begin to repay veterans for the years they served for the country, the friends and family they have lost, or the sleep lost over the horrors of war.

But we can give them a chance to have a life when they come home.

Every company in America who is hiring should put veterans at the front of the line.

Hiring a veteran is a gift, not for them (they have earned the right to work) but for us. We should hire them because:

• Veterans make great employees: loyal, trustworthy, disciplined, hard working and tough.

• The Hire Heroes Act of 2011, passed last month (517-0 in Congress) provides up to $5,600 in tax credits to employers who hire a veteran

• Veterans provide inspiration to other employees, and send a message about what kind of employer you want to be

• Hiring war heroes helps drive home corporate values and messaging that resonates with customers, investors , vendors and the communities we serve

• Veterans are capable, many having mastered transferable technical skills

As the last American soldiers return from Iraq this week, we should take pause. As we celebrate our family, friends and faith, we should be thinking about those who have sacrificed so much, and have been received so little.

Most of us entrepreneurs have been the benefactors of American freedom, and it is time for us to show our appreciation.

Below are a set of resources for searching for qualified veterans:

http://www.vetjobs.com/

http://www.militaryhire.com/?gclid=CMT4ksjyia0CFQg1hwodswjGmg

http://www.hireveterans.com/

http://blogs.payscale.com/compensation/2010/01/tips-for-employers-hiring-veterans.html

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[i] Unemployed for Young Vets by Dan Deucke Bloomberg Businessweek November 11, 2011

And now for my very favorite quote of the year, offered by Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn.  In reference to the Nissan Leaf, a zero emission vehicle, Ghosn said “this is the future, and everything else is going to look obsolete, like sending messages with pigeons”[i].

As Gnosh put it in an interview in Fast Company, “if you already have an emissions problem with 700 Million cars, what problems are you going to have with 2 Billion?”. In the case of Nissan, Ghosn is looking beyond the defined needs of customers and is anticipating the needs of the global market in a decade or more. It is not good enough to solve problems we can see, the strategist must seek to solve problems that are not readily apparent. To consider such scenarios, strategists must consider Social, Technological, Economic, Ecological and Political trends and consider how various combinations may change the landscape of an industry.

In my book and blog“ Intended Consequences”, I predicted remarkably volatile prices for fuel and the potential for oil to reach prices of far north of $100 a barrel. The predication which became an eventuality was based on an evaluation of “converging factors”, independent trends that combine to create a tipping point. The automobile industry is on the cusp of such a fundamental shift. Toyota has been selling the Prius since, 1997 but the initial curve for adoption was remarkably slow. What we see in evidence today are converging trends that will provide the impetus to create disruptive change in the form of rapid adoption of alternative vehicles:

Political: The U.S. government’s recent announcement of an agreement with thirteen automakers that will reset the Café fuel economy standards to require an average of 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025.[ii] The willingness of OEM’s (original equipment manufacturers), to work with the government in a race to dramatically improve fuel efficiency illustrates their understanding of radical changes in their operating environment.

Social: Shifting sensibilities towards sustainability will drive adoption. Electric cars are somewhat impractical for working people who may not have time to charge them (up to 8 hours) providing a leg up to hybrids.

Technology: The new Prius plug in will offer up to 87 miles to the gallon illustrating explosive improvement in battery technology. Many of the world’s top scientists are working on batteries that could expediently improve performance, size and cost.

Ecological: In Nissan’s case,  the rapid growth of highly polluted Asian markets is viewed as a driver for future demand. Recent disasters in the gulf and elsewhere have heightened awareness of the risks of oil exploration.

Economic: Americans are still fearful of OPEC’s influence and the ability of the cartel to manage worldwide oil prices. As battery prices decline, the value proposition of hybrids will only continue to improve, and the total cost of ownership for such vehicles will be drastically reduced.

Businesses are well advised to review such variables as to develop scenarios about their industry. It may not be possible to look into a magical crystal ball to predict the future, but careful study of trends provides us context on what products and services to develop in order to create disruption.

The concept of a business cycle is something of a misnomer, as every company operates with an economic cycle, monetary cycle, industry cycle and company life cycle. The trajectory of these cycles, as well external forces and factors combine to provide a unique set of characteristics for every industry at any given time.

The maturity of an industry shapes its acceptance of innovation[i]:

Phase 1 Innovation- occurs when a new entrant exploits a white space.  When Under Armor burst on the scene it focused on a niche market; undergarments for football players. The brand was rugged and authentic.  As Under Armor gained distribution and awareness, it spread to new segments including baseball, tennis and golf and gained distribution in national chains such as Dick’s Sporting Goods.  The incumbent (Nike) ignored Under Armor deeming the niche as too small and the entrant as a non-threat.  Big mistake.

Phase 1 innovation is high risk, high profit

Phase 2 Innovation- occurs when a market is maturing but not saturated, and an incumbent or entrant provides new features or benefits that improve utility.  Frozen yogurt has been popular for a decade, especially in warmer climates such as California where healthier lifestyles are emphasized.

It was not until roughly 2010 that the market moved towards self-serve yogurt shops (fro-yo as the industry is called). Entrants such as Menchies provided a disruption in the form of a better delivery system (consumption is higher, and labor is lower).  The product offering itself hardly changed at all.

Phase 2 innovation tends to be moderate risk, moderate profit

Phase 3 Innovation- occurs when an industry is approaching saturation. Generally, a well funded competitor will invest heavily in supporting the status quo, making subtle changes in terms of efficiencies and distribution. At this stage, the product is commoditized and prices erode sharply.

When McDonalds began offering its McCafe coffee line in an effort to combat Starbucks, it did not offer new varieties of coffees or espresso. McDonalds leveraged its massive scale and distribution to undercut prices.  In this case, sameness plays to their strategic advantage. McDonalds lacked motivation to offer a “leap of innovation” in terms of new products.

Phase 3 Innovation is lower risk and lower profit

As an industry matures, the motivation of its participants varies based on their ambition for growth, profit or strategic position.  Time your innovations wisely.

[i] Adapted from Seeing What’s Next by Christensen, Anthony and Roth Harvard Business School Press 2004

I have been on a speaking tour which has included multiple stops within America’s heartland. A couple of weeks ago I was in Kansas City and was reminded of our nation’s remarkable regional differences.

Perhaps it was the young lady at the front desk of my hotel who was overly impressed with my first generation iPad, the barren retail centers, or my overindulgence of Kansas City barbecue that gave me pause.  It is a place where the only thing more important than burnt rib ends is college basketball. Very different than in Florida, where I once had the misfortune of wanting to watch a Stanley Cup finals game in a sports bar where they had 12 TVs, all showing the same Nascar race – silly me.

As a strategy practitioner, I am overly fascinated by market segmentation, as it often provides remarkable insight. Our clients often segment geographically to reflect the performance of salespeople and the like. Segmenting internationally provides magnification of varying local tastes, wants and customs. Yet similar regional differences are just as apparent and important in the land of Chevrolet and Apple Pie.

For example, people in the Northeast are far more likely to wear a suit than people in the South and business hours are later than they are on the West Coast. “Ocean Pricing” does not play well in the Midwest where the cost of living is lower.  There is an entirely different values set there; people are sensible and humble, and want straight forward solutions to their problems.

In executing marketing and sales tactics, we need to be aware of regional differences and adapt our way of doing business.  It is important to be aware of the local pulse and how your offer may play differently based on the micro-economy, or regional tastes. If you were in the Pacific Rim, you would be aware of protocol; when to give a gift, and when to bow.  It is no different in understanding that when in Wisconsin, there isn’t any sports team to discuss other than the Green Bay Packers.

We should celebrate these differences; it is one of the things that makes America great.  Not to mention the “New Oaaawlens” Jambalaya, Superior Whitefish, Maryland Crab and New York Pizza, the white kind of course.  Try to get that in Los Angeles.

When the Internet was first thrust upon us, we didn’t know what to make of it. Nor did we know which of the entrants of the budding new market would win the beauty contest.  Our intuition was that someone (such as AOL, Netscape, Microsoft, Google, and Yahoo) would, and that the technology would be a game changer.

There are times when a technology is bigger than the first-to-market entrant who introduces it to us.  A current case in point is Toyota, a company who has been vilified in light of their massive quality and public relations problems. Yet Toyota has my attention, as they are braced to create disruption.

I recently bought a Lexus hybrid. I didn’t really buy it for environmental reasons, although reducing my carbon footprint was certainly a bonus. I bought it because I wanted all the toys, Lexus service and quality and was intrigued by the concept of 35 miles to the gallon (in a volatile world where the price of oil is at risk).

At its core, strategy is about managing trade-offs, and this technology provides the potential for consumers to gain the most, and give up the least.  I believe hybrid technology will emerge as a breakthrough, cross-over technology adopted by the majority of drivers in the U.S. in the next 5-7 years.  Electric cars are novel, yet inconvenient.  Americans are not going to adapt to sitting at charging stations for 2 hours, nor will they settle for a lack of power.  U.S. oil producers will not support any material shift to hydrogen, or corn, or recycled Twinkies, or whatever.  While the Prius was perceived as small and sluggish, the Lexus (a Toyota brand) is neither, and proves that the underlying technology can appeal to the masses. Toyota is way ahead of the pack in hybrid technology and I believe the day will come when it will provide a significant competitive advantage.

Of course this post is not about hybrids at all, it is about identifying breakthrough technologies that can disrupt an industry. Often, fortunes are made by the purveyor of a technology, as well as others who create alliances or business that can feed off it.

There are entire cottage industries being built to support such technologies, including the myriad of developers creating apps for The App Exchange (SalesForce) and Apple App Store.

Will Apple beat Microsoft in business computing (the answer is already clear in consumer products)?  Will cloud computing completely alter the technology landscape in ways we can’t even comprehend? Which mobile technologies will change the way we work and live?

What changes in health care technologies will revolutionize the way we care for the sick?  What emerging technologies could reshape your industry? What new delivery systems will improve the way your customers do business (or consume products)?  The answer will come based on who can create the best balance of trade-offs and win the beauty contest.