How incumbents can disrupt themselves to remain competitive

A couple of days ago I compared the rise of the 2 peer-to-peer payment apps Venmo (U.S.-based) and Swish (Sweden-based). I noted in my post that Swish, which is owned by the leading Swedish banks, is a rare case in which incumbents succeeded in “disrupting” themselves.

After I had written my article, I came to think a bit more about the success of Swish, which according to my estimates has a market penetration of more than 50 % among Swedish adults. I happened to have an electrician at my apartment who helped me to install a new stove. After the work was done, I paid him through Swish (his company uses the business/retail offering that was recently launched by Swish). He told me that Swish is great and that he also uses the service in his private life, e.g. to send money to his son. He looked like about 50 years old. It’s only an anecdote but it shows the user penetration past the usual early adopter groups of teens and tech savvy people.

At first, the story of Swish might not appear to be very relevant to people outside of Sweden, since it is not available abroad. However, if you look closer, it provides some valuable insights for companies, industries and organizations that are trying to adapt to the digital age. The success of Swish should serve as best practices for how incumbents can reinvent and disrupt themselves. Here are some of the lessions I find noteworthy: Continue Reading