Spotting an opportunity is a different skill from capitalising on it, as many athletes who have won silver medals may attest.
Angus MacSween and his team at Iomart are proving they can see the potential in segments of the rapidly changing online world and consistently turn that into profit.
It is easy to forget the business has been around since 1998 but since then it has evolved from a telecoms provider into a managed hosting and cloud computing firm.
A decision to pour energy and resource into cloud computing could have been taken by any number of companies but Iomart took the plunge and it is paying off.
Three years of profit growth is coupled with an 80% rise in the share price across the past 12 months.
The future also looks bright with growing demand for online access through mobile devices.
Iomart's data centre and network allows it to provide the secure and reliable connections demanded.
Businesses are also generally reluctant to move IT provider and contracts which run for between one year and three years give strong forward visibility.
The fractured nature of the cloud computing industry means more consolidation is inevitable.
Iomart remains acquisitive – and has been well backed by Lloyds Banking Group – and there are likely to be more deals in the pipeline.
From a Scottish perspective we have to hope Iomart remains a predator and does not become the prey.
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