Thriving in the midst of uncertainty

KODAK is widely viewed as the classic case of an industry leader that failed to see the digital future coming.

In fact, Kodak developed a digital camera prototype in the 1970s and launched its first commercial digital product in 1991. Its strong brand and ample market power should have made it a force to be reckoned with. Instead, it walked into a set of traps common to large companies trying to come to grips with uncertainty: Its initial moves were small-scale and scattershot. It was unwilling to invest in a business that would cannibalise a highly profitable but rapidly eroding core until it was too late.

A last-gasp big bet was the wrong one - a failed joint venture with Hewlett-Packard to create photo-developing kiosks.