This is Michail Tsatsanis signing in to continue talking about my Technology Marketing Center case study on How to Balance Standards and Innovation.
This week I want to discuss the standards process from the customer's point of view; that is, discuss why it is important and what kind of value it brings to the table.
This may seem like a no brainer discussion. Everybody knows that open standards stimulate vendor competition, accelerate commoditization of hi tech and create an open ecosystem where adjacent technologies can develop. So, this seems like it's going to be a short discussion...
But I am not interested in the general principles stated above, or in high level strategic directions in the customer's organization. I am looking to discuss how the process affects the people in the trenches, the middle managers that have to put together a new technology deployment and the technologists from the customer side that interact with the standards bodies.
I am focusing here on standards bodies where there is clear customer engagement and influence. For example, many telecommunications standards in the ITU, North American ATIS, IEEE, DOCSIS etc., have strong influence from the service providers (phone companies, cable companies, etc) who are the ultimate customers deploying the standardized technology. In other cases, for example in consumer electronics, where the ultimate customer base is diffused, the discussion (and customer relationships) may be more complicated.
An aspect of the standards process that has been overlooked, is its use for technical vetting of a new technology by customers. As systems become more complicated and interdependent, it is not possible for a single technologist to do technical due diligence on a new proposed technology. In many cases it is even beyond the capabilities of a single company to do it, and takes pooled resources from the whole industry to ensure the integrity and interoperability of a new deployment. The standards bodies is where customers learn about the strengths and weaknesses of each technical solution, as exposed in the harshest light by competitors supporting rival solutions. This is where all corner cases are discussed and wrinkles are ironed out.
The standards process not only gives confidence and piece of mind to the customer, it also is a forum to assess which companies are leaders in their respective areas. Technical excellence is demonstrated through hard work, persistence, and innovative contributions over long periods. Especially for a startup, the standards process is an opportunity to establish technical leadership and secure an endorsement from the technologists in the customers organization. In that sense, standardization is part of a startup's sale cycle, irrespective of whether the final specification is favorable to the other objectives the startup is aiming for. A startup is not expected to have the broad coverage of the various aspects of different technologies a bigger company may cover; but a respectable startup is expected to be a technical powerhouse and a leader in the standardization process in the narrow area of their expertise. Engagement in standards is an investment in establishing the startup's credentials with the customer and its importance cannot be understated.
Tune in next week for more discussion,
Until then, be well and do well,
-Michail.
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