Without big data, you are blind and deaf and in the middle of a freeway.

Sustaining innovation is the lifeblood of any enterprise. It is the time when we capitalize upon, and recover from, all the disruptive change prior. Most of the operating profits in the world come from sustaining innovation. Much of the market capitalization gains, on the other hand, come from disruptive innovations.

Sustaining innovations are the key to consistent performance, whereas disruptive innovations are the key to dramatic changes in power.

Without big data, you are blind and deaf and in the middle of a freeway.

Without big data analytics, companies are blind and deaf, wandering out onto the Web like deer on a freeway.

The first mistake is believing that transformational initiatives can be accomplished through normal channels and means. This cannot be done because there are too many conflicting interests that are competing to impede. The second is mistaking incubation for transformation and concluding that failure to achieve escape velocity is due to lack of innovation. It never is. It is always do to lack of leadership focus and, especially, fortitude.

The most common misunderstanding of disruptive innovations is to overestimate their impact in the short term and underestimate it in the long term. Another common misunderstanding is to associate disruptive with good.