Transformer Map: A Strategic Tool for Business Transformation

Transformer Map is a strategic tool that enables organizations to proactively plan for changes driven by disruptors — new market entrants who are not traditional competitors within the same industry but come from startups, technology companies, or cross-industry players leveraging digital technologies to challenge incumbents.

Transformer Map: Four Transformation Pathways

Box 1: Current [Core Business] + Current [Market]

Transforming the existing core business within the current market.

Organizations typically adopt strategies such as Refocus — protecting niche customer segments where they maintain strong competitive advantage — and Lean — enhancing operational efficiency, reducing costs, and eliminating non-value-adding activities (e.g., optimizing workforce size and branch footprint). Digital technologies are leveraged to strengthen competitiveness and streamline operations.

Box 2 : Current [Core Business] + New [Market]

Expanding the existing core business into new markets.

Organizations may counter disruptors by entering new markets themselves, investing in digital technologies to build new capabilities and prevent disruptors from dominating emerging high-potential markets.

Box 3 : New [Core Business] + Current [Market]

Developing a new core business within the existing market.

Sometimes, past success does not guarantee future competitiveness. Organizations may need to pivot to new core businesses better suited to the current competitive context shaped by digital disruption. After securing a new foothold in the current market, organizations can extend into new markets as envisioned in Box 4.

Box 4 : New [Core Business] + New [Market]

Building a new core business to enter new markets.

Leading companies today are highly capable of repositioning their core — either transforming existing business models or creating entirely new models — to drive New Growth by exploring new industries and customer segments.

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Recommendations for Designing Your Transformer Map

• You do not need to think sequentially through Box 1 to 4.

• Begin by assessing your current core business and exploring ways to improve, enhance, or extend it within your current market.

• Then, consider potential expansions into new markets (Box 2).

• Next, explore building new core business capabilities to provide new value propositions within your current market (Box 3).

• Finally, strategize on entering entirely new markets with new business models (Box 4).

Tips for Building Effective Transformation Options

• When reviewing your current core business (Box 1), also consider how you can upsell and cross-sell to your existing customers by developing new business capabilities (Box 3).

• Ideate multiple transformation pathways across the four quadrants — aim to create at least 3–5 different transformation options (or more) before selecting the most viable ones for execution.

• Leverage insights from the New Growth Engine analysis — covering Disruption, Disruptive Innovation, Disruptive Technology, and Platform Business — to uncover broader strategic opportunities and reshape your business transformation roadmap.