A New Leadership for a Newly Converged World

AS TECHNOLOGY, MEDIA AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS companies join forces to better serve consumers and business clients, the leadership needs and challenges of those companies grow ever more complicated

Convergence—the crossover, competition and collaboration among companies within the technology, media and telecommunications industries—is the single most influential force in those businesses today. In the current marketplace, it is nearly impossible to think about news and entertainment without also considering the technology or communications systems that deliver that content. Similarly, constant innovations in technology and communications create an equally constant hunger for new content that will be compatible with the latest delivery device.

And so, technology, media and telecommunications (TMT) businesses are merging, allying, and partnering to respond to and capitalize upon these market shifts. The tremendous growth in consumer and business demand in this field further amplifies and speeds the convergence trend.

What are the leadership needs and management skill sets required by these newly converging businesses? Christian & Timbers Vice Chairman Umesh Ramakrishnan, along with partners Ben Anderson, Robert Forman and Gary Klein, have extensive experience in executive recruitment for the technology, media and telecommunications industries. Together, they are part of Christian & Timbers' global integrated TMT team that conducts leadership searches for C-suite executives, directors and other officers in this expanding and evolving field.

Recently, the team spoke with business journalists Jill Fraser and Laura Walbert about the challenges for companies as they strive to ally and realign their businesses to seize new opportunities in this marketplace.

Q: Let's start by talking about some of these opportunities and challenges being created by convergence.

Umesh Ramakrishnan: The race to win includes utilizing current capacity to its optimal extent, increasing quality to acceptable levels. Then companies must find ways to move beyond this, by increasing capacity and improving quality, to a point that people have not yet seen.

Ben Anderson: Quality can be a challenge. In their initial forms, converged devices are frequently less functional and reliable than their single function counterparts. Further, as converged devices address a wide spectrum of consumer needs, breakdowns may at first become more likely, and more disruptive to the consumer.

Robert Forman: Providing the system capacity is another challenge. What will it cost to build out this broadband service? It's a good problem to have, but a capital intensive one.

Gary Klein: In the media and entertainment sector, we think of convergence as everything that pertains to the distribution of content in its many forms. That distribution can be by telephone, cable, television or mobile communications, and the content can be traditional programming, video games, data, or even home security. Convergence is the bisecting and coming together of these sectors, and in their blending lies the opportunity and the challenges.

Ramakrishnan: But the opportunities are almost boundless. Executives from different industry groups now need to come together to dream and brainstorm innovations, and create a strategic vision. Let me give you an example. It is predicted that by the year 2008, the majority of movie theaters in the U.S. will be digital. Films will no longer be printed, loaded on trucks, and shipped to theaters. Instead, movies will be beamed to theaters. The initial impetus behind digital movies was to save time and money. But now you have the movie director who says, "If you are beaming the movie to the theaters, I can change the ending every week." If a movie is released and everyone says, "It's 30 minutes too long," the shortened version can be released the next weekend. This is a completely different dynamic. When you mix telecommunications with technology, things become possible.