 In 1902 Henry Ford obtained the financial backing to start the Ford Motor Company. He sold his first car, the Model A, in 1904. In 1906 Ford Motor Company became the leader of its industry. And in 1920 Henry Ford was a multimillionaire. Ford’s genius? He transformed automobiles from temperamental toys for affluent hobbyists into reliable transportation for the masses. It could happen again, in the realm of Internet computing and Thin Clients for information access. But this time, it won’t take so long. And it may not take bundles of money, overblown mission statements or massive R&D organizations. If anything, the more-is-better thinking of most established companies will work against the kind of creativity and courage required for a "Henry Ford" product breakthrough. What will be required? We think success will depend on a viewpoint sharply focused on the Thin Client’s role: to make Internet access quick, effortless and economical for the millions of people still waiting to be liberated by technology. Henry Ford’s singular objective was to give people a "motorcar for the multitudes," one that would be low in price, of simple design. He designed an adequate product that was easy to make and easy to own.
The result: emancipation for the people, and industry leadership for more than 20 years for the Ford Motor Company.
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||
