The Father of Evolutionary Theory, Charles Darwin, celebrates his 200th birthday this year. 2009 is also the 150th anniversary of the publication of his seminal work ‘On the Origin of Species.’ Museums around the world have celebrated with exhibitions, including Australia’s National Museum in Canberra.

Their broad exploration of Darwin – the man, his life and his theories – is on display until March 22 (hurry or you’ll miss it) and I had the pleasure of visiting yesterday. Informative, inspiring and entertaining, I learnt a great deal more about many things. Which led me to think that applying his learnings could benefit us in business.

Natural Selection, explains how species have evolved over time. Why some creatures are now extinct and others are changing right before our eyes. One thing is clear; whether over millenia or hours, organisms must continually adapt to their changing environment in order to survive.

The same can be said of business. A company that created longer-lasting wax candles in 1850 would have had a thriving operation. Until Thomas Edison invented the light-bulb. Then, unless their ‘mission’ was to ‘supply the best light’ and they evolved very quickly to replace their candles with electric light bulbs, that company would have become a dusty side-show, only appropriate for romantic moments. 

In today’s rapidly changing business environment, it is worthwhile thinking about how your company may need to change and grow in order to survive. Though currently focused on today’s financial turmoil, a return to bouyant times will once again require a change from current survival strategies.

So dust off your crystal ball and let’s look at some trends growing in importance. How might they affect your business? How could you apply Evolutionary Theory to forecast prospective growth strategies for your company?

Using a scientific acronym used to describe Evolutionary Theory’s key concepts (VISTA), here is a series of questions that may help create some clarity and insights for your business. 

V – Variation

Variation describes differences in offspring and subsequent generations. It may be the result of inherited genetic variation (such as eye colour) or may be the result of external, environmental causes. “Darwin’s Finches” are a clear example of how environmental impact created variations in the Galapagos Islands’
bird-life. Though from the same ancestor, by the time Darwin discovered the Galapagos finches, each island’s population had significant beak variations, according to the diet and feeding habits available at each location.

How could Variation apply to your Business?

1. What monitoring systems do you have in place to determine which of your practices and products are the most/least popular?
2. Are you being notified early enough, of changes in their ranking?
3. Are you forecasting future trends?
4. What variations will you require in order to meet upcoming demand and minimise losses from outdated models?

I – Inheritance

Inheritance describes the basic building blocks (or genes) passed from parent to offspring. For example: hair colour, eye colour and height. Some inherited genes may never come to fruition. Over time, external factors conspire to enable or subdue many potential characteristics. For instance, though someone may have the ‘tall’ gene, a poor diet and ill-health may mean that they never exceed the average height. In other words, inheritance describes what may happen but not always what does happen.

How could Inheritance apply to your Business?

1. What characteristics has your business simply inherited from industry norms/practice?
2. Do what degree does your parent company or its Directors impose their viewpoint on company practice? 
3. Does this influence positively or negatively affect your performance?
4. Are these inherited (often subconscious) practices open to change?

S – Selection

An environment will favour certain characteristics over others. For example, Darwin’s finches’ beaks range from the stout beaks of seed-eaters, to the curved beaks of flower-eaters to the delicate, slender beaks of insect-eaters. Over time, nature favours characteristics which deliver the strongest survival prospects, ensuring that it becomes dominant, then entrenched.

How could Selection apply to your Business?

1. When looking at the inherited characteristics above, what changes could you apply to effect a variation (point-of-difference) from others in your category?
2. What external forces (such as the economic climate) are changing the face of your business?
3. How can you respond/change favourably, so that you adapt to survive such effects? Note that in Darwin’s Theory, these are simply minor, incremental shifts rather than one massive upheaval.

T – Time

Time is a critical factor in Natural Selection and characteristics’ dominance. One generation does not entrench a mutation but its consistent survival and occurrence may eventually result in its dominance. Evolutionary periods vary greatly in their rate of expansion and development, which indicates that certain circumstances produce an explosion in growth potential and other circumstances inhibit rapid change.

How does Time apply to your Business?

1. Have you ever taken time to analyse your current business and industry in the context of history? It may seem like this is a tough economic period, but there have been others. 
2. What strategies did your industry and other business’ apply during similar, past circumstances, that ensured their survival?
3. What are your businesses 3 month, 6 month, one year, five year and ten year Plans? How does time affect your goals and ambitions?
4. What minor changes could you implement today, that may build to have a cumulative and lasting impact over a ten year period?

A – Adaptation

Adaptation is the gradual formation, through evolution, of a number of different species from a common ancestor, each adapted to a different niche. A species is defined once a population is divided and each sub-group taking a different evolutionary route until they have diverged so much that interbreeding is no longer possible.

How does Adaptation apply to your business?

What is your company’s core focus?

Are each of its departments complementary and working towards this one goal, OR, are they diverging along separate paths and towards different end goals?

Is this creating efficiencies or losses? Now? In five years?

At what point should you move these divisional lines into clearly separate businesses in order to ensure future, long-term survival?

Today’s Snapshot

What have you learned about your business today? Is it well-positioned to take advantage of future change or it will it find its resting place alongside the dinosaurs? 

Has this discussion sparked any further questions that may help ensure your business’s survival? Please share them with us.

Let’s get this conversation started,
Charlotte