John Bruckman: Success Driven by Strategy and Diversification
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On the final day of the APEX/IFSA 2014 EXPO in Anaheim, we caught up with Interact‘s CEO, John Bruckman, to discuss his viewpoints on the nature of growth in the airline industry and how his company is celebrating 18 years of business within the in-flight entertainment and connectivity sector.
One of the most important aspects for any business, says Bruckman, is having a clear strategy. He muses that “you’ll always have growing pains, but we need to adapt to the changes in technology and what airline clients are looking for in IFE.”
Though Interact is categorized as a content service provider, Bruckman insists that within the current market, that’s not an accurate description of what his company offers anymore – that in fact, the “CSP term is kind of obsolete.” The changing demands of the industry have required diversification:
“We don’t just provide content. We’re a media solutions company. Our strategy and identity is based on that. We provide media solutions, whether they be antiquated like Hi8 or contemporary like AVOD, or future-[focused], like streaming or connectivity.”
Bruckman notes that as CEO, it’s his job to steer the ship and make sure the company follows their strategy. “Strategy is knowing who you are. What is your objective? Who do you want to work with? And we have a written strategy that really defines that. A lot of bigger companies that want to grow very quickly don’t have that. Their strategy is obfuscated by growth, and I don’t think that’s a positive thing. The market in general is not a fool…I think that’s why we have such a success.”
And what inspired this commitment to authenticity and strategy? Have a look for yourself – Bruckman was moved by this YouTube video he saw years ago by Professor Richard Rumelt at the London School of Economics and Political Science: