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Generational Dynamics
The future at this point isn’t technology anymore as a concept
Eizu Uwaoma
Scientifically, a generation is an average
of 25.5 years. So in a century
of a 100 years, the world is known
to resets itself, and the direct effect
of that is a shift in business models, career
paths and the human capital pattern. In
just one century, we’ve moved from the
mechanicals to electrical and electronics
again, with the last 25 years seeing more
of internet and programming being the
major career paths for young people.
Locally, no one saw Interswitch, Flutterwave,
IrokoTV, Jobberman or even Andela
revolutionise their industries. Globally,
who ever thought the biggest companies
in the world would come out of nowhere
in just ten years and take over companies
that have been in existence for centuries.
The Likes of Apple, Amazon, Google and
Facebook are already amongst the first
trillion-dollar companies the world has
ever seen.
Other than politics, individuals who control
every generation economically usually
come from those who leverage on the industrial
dynamics of that generation. This
is directly reflective on the current Forbes
list as we have more tech billionaires in
it than ever. It’s just the days we are in.
According to the Pareto’s 80:20 Principles,
80 percent of the wealth and power of any
generation will always be owned by less
than 20 percent of that generation. The
remaining 80 percent will work for and
be controlled by the minority 20 percent.
The good news is, the people and trend
are reshuffled every 25.5 years. Now more
than ever, Nigeria hasn’t been left out of
that trend.
From CcHUB to Flutterwave, to Interswitch
to Andela, we see how these fast rising
firms all come from the same trend. But, as
that rush comes, just like every other rush
and torrent, it bursts its channel. It’s sort
of a quadratic curve of the law of diminishing
returns. The need rises, and then
there is a supply, then an oversupply that
crashes the market almost suddenly too.
The most practical example of this is what
is leading to the shrinking of the Andela
workforce in recently. The market seems
to, all of a sudden, be going through an
oversupply of tech talents, both locally
and internationally.
A direct manifestation of this law of diminishing
returns on skill oversupply has been
seen in the past weeks through the draw
back on the Andela Business Model. In the
five years since it was founded, Andela’s
business model of training and outsourcing
junior developers to global companies
around the world saw it become a
champion for local computer engineering
talent across. And now they are laying off
staff as they cant find enough placement
for all of them. In the words of the chief
executive Jeremy Johnson. “We haven’t
been able to scale remote, junior placements,
in part because boot camps and
CS programs have grown rapidly over the
past years”. My advice is that they ask how
can they satisfy the taste for efficiency on
those that they supply talents to.
Now to the students and professionals of
the tech space mainly made up of millennials,
there is something that the current
millennial, learning how to code as a buzz
career path, is missing out. And that is the
ability to solve problems in isolation with
the skills they have. This current generation
mainly of centennials and millennials
are the ones that took a deep dive into the
Internet. They literally live there. But they
really don’t understand systems, thinking
enough to apply that skill of programming
or even social media engagements,
to solving social problems without a big
organisational based framework. If there
is anything missing right now in our
local ecosystems, it will be that. What the
market is asking for are not just those with
programming skills, but social disruption
and revolutionary application of that skill.
The future at this point isn’t technology
anymore as a concept. It belongs only to
businesses set up to revolutionise their industry
using technology as an application.
In a world where most basic inventions
have been achieved, Disruptive Innovation
is the concept to study, especially in
relation to technology. The future isn’t
for sophisticated technology, so simplify
yours. In this emerging generation, people
don’t have time and don’t want to be
bothered to do critical thinking, especially
millennials and digital natives. Use data to
know where your market and data will be.
The two drawbacks to technology-driven
career paths would be its over supply.
Another would be it not being efficient
enough for small businesses (which
make up a large chunk of Africa and even
Nigeria) to hire. Also simplicity is another
challenge. Technology, user experiences
and information immunity from the syndrome
of information overload is a side
effect of this generation’s consumption
of technology and data. Naturally, every
customer gets edgier, lazier and more
price conscious with time. The antidote
will be convenience and cost saving for
him. Andela hasn’t been able to crack that
code with how they supply the market.
The market needs a cheaper alternative
to tech labour. And they’d get it. Whoever
can’t supply that will be on a decline.
This concept is in the heart of Disruptive
Innovation. Staying relevant means being
disruptively innovative. There are different
types of innovations, but there is one that
cuts cycle time and cost for the customer.
That’s what Prof Clayton of the Harvard
Business School defines as Disruptive
Innovation.
Disruptive Innovation is when a company
(most times startups) produces and eventually
masters the marketing of products
that seems to be simpler, superior and
more affordable than the prior products in
the marketplace, thereby creating a new
value network. It’s mostly by the newcomers.
At this point, this underdogs take a
neglected marketplace that the incumbent
leader isn’t interested in because
its focus is to make better products at a
better price for profit. While they are it, the
underdog sneaks up and takes them out.
Disruptive Innovation is a strategy game
of the underdog. And the current tech
space market is in hunger for this.
Disruptive Innovation is a strategy
game of the underdog. And
the current tech space market is
in hunger for this.
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