A quick illustration created to support the post
Soon enough our lives and everything that we do are going to
be uberized, but are we going to be ready when that happens. Let’s start at
the beginning by asking what this new word is.
Uberization is the new buzz word, maybe not as new anymore.
I remember the day in New Delhi when the term “Uber” was
introduced to the younger me for the first time during the early nineties. Back
then it was not a complete word by itself but came as the first part of the
phrase “uber-sexual” men. It was defined as a male who has traits similar to
that of a “metrosexual” but also possessed the traditional manly qualities such
as confidence, strength, and class.
A person who loves grooming but unlike metrosexual doesn’t
leave a doubt as to his sexual orientation, an image so flaunt worthy for young
men in those days!
Fast forward a couple of decades and we have a new buzz.
Thanks to the disruptive nature of the mobile app that have changed the taxi
industry forever. Uberization evolved as the act or process of changing the
market for a service by introducing a different way especially using mobile
technology.
Uber in the business world must be one of the striking
examples of “Disruptive Innovation”, a term coined by Clayton Christensen. It describes
a process by which a product or service takes root initially in simple applications
at the bottom of a market and then relentlessly moves up market, eventually
displacing established competitors.
As we read this researchers are carrying out studies on the uberization
phenomenon, while entrepreneurs are looking how even their restaurant
reservations could be uberized.
We don’t have to worry about that the conversion of existing
jobs and services into discrete tasks that can be requested on-demand via a
mobile App.
We need to be prepared for it, because the ball has already started to roll!
