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From Transaction World Magazine. May 2009

   Though Harold Montgomery's regular column is always a must-read for his terrific insights, his May 2009 "R.I.P. Residuals" sets the bar even higher.
   I've worked exclusively in b2b services for a quarter of a century, across a wide-range of industry segments, the most recent 2 years being in the merchant services industry. Mr. Montgomery raises business principles that have already been successfully applied to other b2b sectors; those with qualities and characteristics similar to this industry. Though "R.I.P. Residuals" might not be the most comfortable read, it's an important one.
   In volatile economies, leadership, disruption and business transformation fuel the success engine. Particularly because this has been a sales-driven industry, it is reasonable to expect the leadership, disruption and transformation will come in the form Mr. Montgomery lays out. In fact, I've had many discussions on this topic with dozens of respected and veteran industry professionals during my time in this field and must admit that most of the responses I've gotten are unprintable. But my favorite remains a senior executive from a "Super ISO" who said, "Mike you don't understand this business."
   That's a fact, I don't know the operating nuances of this field the way those who have spent their entire careers in it do. But having participated in several successful business transformations in closely related fields, I am rather certain I fully understand where this business is ultimately headed and the fundamental reasons why the direction is inevitable. In fact, the prevailing industry model has lasted longer than most and it has proven to be an excellent one. But no industry model lasts forever, and the most successful companies are those who master change by leading it.
    Harold Montgomery has it right, and I'd like to add a piece of advice on top of his: it's been a long and beautiful ride on the merchant services highway. But if you keep driving by looking in the rearview mirror youÕre going to have a catastrophic accident. Fix your eyes on the road ahead.

Mike Berman