Managing In An Accelerated World - Gigi Levy - Affilicon Fall 2008

Managing in an acceleratedan accelerated world

Gigi Levy25th of November 2008

The problem

“The trouble with our times is that the future is not what it used to be”

Ambroise Paul Toussaint Jules Valéry (1871 –1945)French poet, essayist, and philosopher

The ‘accelerated world’

Operating in an ‘accelerated world’Operating in an accelerated world

Opportunities in an ‘accelerated world’

The online gaming market and 888The online gaming market and 888

How does success look like

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The ‘acceleratedaccelerated world’

The ‘accelerated world’

P f h i l tiPace of change is accelerating

More info = more choice & less loyalty

Technology is everywhere

A flatter worldA flatter world

Everything is viral

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We live in risky times for businesses

• Disruptive technologies• Frantic consumer behaviorFrantic consumer behavior• Risky structural changes• No second chance• Reduced employee loyalty• No competitive advantage is safe

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So everyone must be able to move quickly

“If the world around us is changing faster than we are, you can bet we are going to be left behind.”, y g g

Jack Welch

Source: FutureBrand

Source: FutureBrand

The Long Tail - BooksHarry PotterHarry Potter

John GrishamJohn Grisham

5,000,000 books

Dutch Dutch PoetryPoetry10,000 books

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The Long Tail - GamingBlackjackBlackjack

Slot MachinesSlot Machines

100s of games

SkaatSkaat10s of games

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““We have 6.2M customers and we We have 6.2M customers and we should have 6 2M stores for themshould have 6 2M stores for them””should have 6.2M stores for themshould have 6.2M stores for themJeff Jeff BezosBezos

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YouTube:YouTube:

• 10s of millions of videos loaded

• More than• More than 100M monthly users

• More than 2Bn videos viewed

• More than 10K viewing years

In the US:

• More than 30M blogs available

• Only ~21K ‘official’publications of all sorts…

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More than 2.5M Turks in Germany. Almost 40M Chinese out of China. Hispanics who speak Spanish at home are more than 10% of the US population and the fastest growing segment. 2.2M Buddhists in France, UK and Germany.

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Source: FutureBrand

In average, people live 2.5 years longer every decade:•Born in 1940 – 63.6 Years•Born in 1950 – 68 4 Years•Born in 1950 – 68.4 Years •Born in 1960 – 70.0 Years •Born in 1970 – 71.1 Years •Born in 1980 – 73.7 Years •Born in 1990 – 75.4 Years •Born in 2000 – 76.7 YearsBorn in 2000 76.7 Years•Born in 2025 – 79.1 Years

Source: FutureBrandSource: National center for Health Statistics

Time compression

100

70

80

90

people

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40

50

60

70

millions o

f Cars

Radio

Television

Internet

20

30

40

dopti

on (

m Internet

iPods

0

10

1 5 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

Ad

Time (years)

Operating in an ‘acceleratedaccelerated world’

Being slow in an ‘accelerated world’

Sony and digital music players

Film companies in a digital photography world

Studios in the Internet era

888 and the Poker market888 and the Poker market

So easy to miss

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Affiliate world is progressing From quantity to quality

From spam to contentp

From content only to complex value propositions

From linkage to service ownershipFrom linkage to service ownership

From mail to web 2.0

F t tti dFrom gray to cutting-edge

From talented webmasters to pros

From short to long term

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The ‘secret weapon’ – people!A few clichés which are very true:

People are a company’s main assetSuccess depends on great teams, not great technology or product

These are even more true in an ‘accelerated world’Everyone ‘knows’– but often do not act accordingly

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Building the right team takes time and effortLook for your ‘stars’:

Get the job doneAct on their commitmentsAlways do moreCCareHave fire in their eyesL h t th dLove what they do

Hire for attitude and train for skillThere is no such thing as too goodThere is no such thing as too goodBuild a team rather than a group of great individualsDon’t be afraid to recruit unique and different people

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Don t be afraid to recruit unique and different people

Keeping great people

Care

Empower p

Give positive feedback

…and great compensation for results…and great compensation for results

Listen

Don’t let people burn outDon t let people burn out

Ensure everyone knows the strategy

Make decisionsMake decisions

Celebrate successes

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Culture fitting an ‘accelerated world’Culture fitting an ‘accelerated world’Critical success factorsCritical success factors

Thought innovationThought innovationOpen mindednessOpen mindednessListeningListeningExcellence Excellence CaringCaringCaringCaringAdmitting and accepting mistakesAdmitting and accepting mistakes

Helps handle change and challengeHelps handle change and challengep g gp g gCare about people Care about people -- the rest followsthe rest follows

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The online gaming market andmarket and 888

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The gaming world is changingSmall operators s fferSmall operators suffer

Big get bigger – a few leaders emerge

Multi product strategies

Competitive landscape Is changing

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The meaning of regulation

Regulation is coming Big opportunity - also a big threatg pp y gMany types of new entrantsLeveraging existing assetsA major change

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So where is 888 heading?

Maintaining our position

as a leading B2C operator

Becoming a leading B2B

provider to new entrants

Consolidation is comingPl t h WHO d lPlaytech – WHO dealAccelerated by current pressuresForced by regulationForced by regulationMany different potential deals…The present, not far futurep ,

Opportunities in an ‘accelerated‘accelerated world’

It’s tiring to be told: ‘risk is also an opportunity’…

“Opportunity is missed by mostmissed by most people because it is dressed in overallsdressed in overalls and looks like work.” -- Thomas Edison

Taking advantage of the ‘accelerated world’g g• Competitors ‘share’ the same challenges• Being readier = over performing• Attitude• The second-team• Many examples:• Many examples:

• Apple• Googleg• Amazon• Dell• Skype

Many new opportunitiesUGCSEM Vi litViralitySocial platformsNew value propositionsNew value propositionsNiche domain leadershipConsolidation

And limitations are mostly in our minds

“ The worldwide demand for automobiles will not exceed one million”

Gottlieb Daimler

“…if only due to the lack of chauffeurs.”

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How does success look like$$$$$$…Clear strategy thateveryone ‘sings’everyone sings You and your team are open mindedInnovation is in the heartof the businessY h t dYou have to send people home You enjoy what you doYou enjoy what you do

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So...Stay open mindedStay open minded Innovate!Accept the accelerated worldAccept the accelerated worldIdentify trends early and actRide the waves of changeRide the waves of change

Thanks you!Thanks you!