Being Efficient at Failing

When Optimization Blinds You to Reality

Your operations have never been more efficient.
Your costs are down, production is optimized, and processes are smoother than ever.
But there’s just one problem…

• Your sales are plummeting.
• Your customers are disappearing.
• Your market doesn’t care how efficient you’ve become.

This is the trap of efficiency-focused thinking.

Real-World Cases of Efficiency Driving Failure

• Meta’s Metaverse – $36 billion spent optimizing a VR experience… but almost nobody showed up.

• Google Glass – Perfectly engineered, sleek, and functional… yet abandoned after selling only 200,000 units.

• Microsoft Kin Phone – Launched ahead of schedule, under budget… but so irrelevant it was killed in just six weeks.

• Boeing 737 MAX – Production streamlined, costs cut… but rushed designs led to fatal crashes.

• Samsung Galaxy Note 7 – Battery production was accelerated… but overheating issues led to a $5.3 billion recall.

The numbers looked amazing—until reality hit.

Historical Cases: When Optimization Couldn’t Save the Business

General Motors optimized manufacturing throughout the early 2000s—yet filed for bankruptcy in 2009 after losing touch with consumer demand.

Sears streamlined its operations, automated inventory, and cut costs—while its customer base moved on to newer retail models.

Kodak led in digital photography innovation but prioritized internal efficiency over strategic adaptation. It went bankrupt in 2012.

These failures were not caused by inefficiency. They were caused by focusing on process while ignoring purpose.

When Efficiency Protects the Status Quo Instead of Driving Progress

• The US Penny – Efficiently produced, yet economically useless. It costs 2.7 cents to make each one. Still, billions are minted every year.

• Wind Power in Germany – Installed capacity looks great on paper, but wind shortages force reliance on fossil imports despite overcapacity.

• Stuttgart 21 – Over €10 billion invested, with endless delays and a frustrated public. The process works; the result doesn’t.

The Efficiency vs. Effectiveness Gap

• You can optimize processes, improve speed, and reduce costs—but if your goals aren’t right, you’re just becoming more efficient at failing.

• Operational excellence doesn’t mean strategic relevance.

• A perfect process delivering an obsolete product is still a failure.

• Efficiency validates comfort zones—even when the world has moved on.

The Hard Truth

Being efficient at making the wrong product is still failure.
Optimizing costs won’t help if customers aren’t buying.
Streamlining production is pointless if market demand is shifting elsewhere.
Operational efficiency can’t fix strategic misalignment.
And in some cases, efficiency ensures nothing changes—even when change is needed.

The Takeaway

Doing it right is not the same as doing the right thing.

Instead of asking:
“How do we produce this faster and cheaper?”
Ask:
“Is this still the right thing to produce?”

Would you like a follow-up exploring how most executive dashboards reinforce this blind spot rather than challenge it?