Striking a Sustainable Harmony of Innovation Between Customer- and Market-Driven Forces

Every organization is caught between the tug of customer-driven demands and market-driven forces. And the scary truth is that many leaders ignore one half of the equation, in favor of short-term revenue gains — to overall organizational detriment.
It is so prevalent it has become cliché: Companies typically embrace “The customer is always right” and “It costs more to acquire a new customer than to keep an existing customer” sentiments well. Yet, what if a customer does not or will not represent your overall buyer portfolio? What if the customer your organization hones in on here and now is not indicative of where the overall market is headed — or what tomorrow’s buyers will need? Is your product innovation strategy reliant on your customer’s ability to be innovative?
In other words, is it possible to be too customer-focused?
You can probably already guess the answer: Yes. Many organizations today focus solely on the