The word “pivot” entered the office technology lexicon in 2020. It describes what dealers, manufacturers, and the rest of us did to adjust in the business and life as unusual world of COVID-19.
Pivot, as used in conversation during the COVID-19 era, has a positive connotation and denotes actions taken to survive. The office technology industry pivoted on business plans, business models, and goals for the year. Dealers pivoted around their product offerings, while hardware, solutions, and services providers pivoted by delaying product introductions or, as reported in our September issue, repurposing existing products and solutions for a COVID-19 world.
If Charles Dickens were writing a novel about the current situation, he might have started it this way: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.”
F@#%! Dickens. These are not the best of times. Nowhere close. These are “hard times” to take a page, or in this instance, a title from a Dickens’ book.
Back to the pivot. The way this industry has successfully pivoted is a lesson for future generations, barring a zombie apocalypse or alien invasion. There is power in the pivot. Those who pivot have a better chance of survival than those who don’t.
As you will see in the final section of Part 2 of our 35th Annual Dealer Survey in this issue, dealer optimism remains as high as it has ever been. That surprised us, considering the dealers who responded to our Survey did so at the height of the pandemic. On further reflection, it would not be a stretch to assume that dealers’ ability to pivot has a direct correlation to their optimism.
The Cannata Report is equally optimistic about the future of our business. We also pivoted, successfully navigating many of the challenges faced by print and online publications during this time.
We are proud to say that we are still here and are excited for our future and yours. We remain committed to being an ongoing source of news, information, opinion, and commentary.
The reason I say that is because we understand the power of the pivot, just like you.
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