Seilern ’ s Raphaël Pitoun says companies with competitive advantages that create high barriers to entry will be the real winners of the tech boom

NEVER BEEN SO IMPORTANT . The impact is obvious and the rate of change is accelerating . The time it took for 50 million callers to adopt the use of the telephone was 74 years ; this was reduced to 13 years for television and only two years for the internet . If investors are to capitalise on the opportunities these trends throw up , it is vital that they assess what makes a business successful year after year and deliver consistent profits in a fast-changing environment .

For businesses , the spread of technology has accelerated thanks to the globalisation of trade in goods and services . Clearly it would be difficult to work with outdated production tools in an environment of globalised competition , as was recently acknowledged by Tom Enders , the chief executive of Airbus : “ What if somebody in the industry could cut the production time or cost by half ? Would that be disruptive ? Yes ! We need to go towards that direction , otherwise somebody else will .”

Even the most established businesses need to continuously evolve and embrace new technologies and those that do not may find their modus operandi challenged . Companies dependent on people , patents and corporate culture are fragile by nature .

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