why good companies fail/ become extinct!!

[drdent]

Brilliant and revolutionary ideas create seismic shifts in the intellectual landscape and usually spark the creation of new things. Most often, such ideas generate a lot of enthusiasm and inspire others to dream further and imagine what new frontiers can be reached by extending/ building on the original idea. There are several notable examples in the history of US corporations that can be pointed out, the most recent being that born out of the mind of the founders of Google.

It takes a lot of work to stay current, and a lot more work to stay ahead of the pack of competitors. A company or product cannot possibly provide all things for all people. Attempting to do such dims the focus, dissipates resources, and keeps the company from doing that which it is best at doing. At its core, it must remain committed to the original vision and its stated mission; this requires focus and avoiding distractions.

For such an entity to grow or develop further, growth must be desired, and needed resources identified. Such resources have to be brought in and put to work in order to get to the next level. Becoming insular, or failing to stay current with what is happening in the general marketplace of ideas, is same as planning to become extinct.

As a consequence of industry/practice evolution there are program functionalities that are now needed, which even some of the older/ legacy programs have already managed to put on board. These are not fancy, star trekky functionalities. OD has started with a lot of promise, has been around for a while, and will continue to be. Here is hoping that necessary adjustments can be made to catch up and keep OD ahead.

[Rickliftig]

What features are you thinking about?

[jordansparks]

Yeah, let's hear some specifics. That post was so broad that it could apply to any software company. I'm going to guess that you are after some web-enabled features.

[wjstarck]

Perhaps you are aware that OD already includes the functionality of a feature request/voting system? I am aware of exactly *0* other dental practice management systems that offer this functionality.

Beyond that, the contents of your post are rife with such vague generalities that it's hard to know how to comment on it. Beware of business buzzword bingo....more companies have probably ridden that into the ground than just about anything lol ...

[jordansparks]

Well, at least "ROI" didn't make it into the business buzzword bingo. That's my very favorite.

[Rickliftig]

Maybe we need a paradigm shift in our thinking.

How about a mission statement?

[wjstarck]

See "business buzzwords" above.

From what I've read, mission statements have not proven their value and are generally viewed as passe.

Did I miss a memo or something? OD seems to be evolving just fine to me...?