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A Survival Guide for Startups in the Era of Tech Giants
Innovation & Leadership Digital ArticleYou have options other than getting swallowed up or stomped out. -
How Competitive Forces Shape Strategy
Competitive strategy Magazine ArticleAwareness of these forces can help a company stake out a position in its industry that is less vulnerable to attack. -
Why the Apple Watch Is a Gift to the Swiss Watch Industry
Competitive strategy Digital ArticleIt’s the new Swatch. -
Creating Breakthroughs at 3M
Innovation Magazine ArticleCompanies say they want breakthrough products, but most are far more adept at making incremental improvements to existing lines. A pioneering division at 3M successfully navigated a process that leads to breakthrough thinking. -
Diversification via Acquisition: Creating Value
Mergers and acquisitions Magazine ArticleDuring the past 25 years an increasing proportion of U.S. companies have seen wisdom in pursuing a strategy of diversification. Between 1950 and 1970, for example, single-business companies comprising the Fortune “500” declined from 30% to 8% of the total. Acquisition has become a standard approach to diversification. In recent years the productivity of capital […] -
Washington Must Help the U.S. Regain the Lead in Manufacturing
Competitive strategy Digital ArticleThe federal government can and should play a much bigger role in helping American companies regain the lead in manufacturing. We need to invest a commensurate amount of federal R&D dollars in advanced manufacturing technologies as we do in other areas of science, technology, and engineering. The last administration created an assistant secretary for manufacturing […] -
The Risky Business of Diversification
Innovation Magazine ArticleOn the basis of a sample from the top 200 of the Fortune “500” and data from the PIMS (Profit Impact of Market Strategies) project, this author gives some guidelines for established companies on what to expect from new ventures. He points out that it takes an average of 10 to 12 years before the […] -
Competitiveness: Self-Help for a Worsening Problem
Government policy and regulation Magazine ArticleA country’s competitiveness, like a company’s, is not primarily a matter of sales: it is a matter of incomes, and incomes earned, not borrowed. To be competitive means to raise incomes as rapidly as competitors do and to make the investments necessary to keep up competitively in the future. From this perspective, U.S. competitiveness is […] -
Why Preventing Disruption in 2017 Is Harder Than It Was When Christensen Coined the Term
Innovation & Entrepreneurship Digital ArticleToday's asset-light disruptors pose an even greater threat. -
Companyism and Do More Better
Competitive strategy Magazine ArticleImagine yourself solving an arithmetic problem with the top managers of a leading Japanese automobile company. As a group, Japanese producers already export 2.3 million passenger vehicles a year to the United States. They are also building capacity for an additional 2.5 million vehicles in North America. You remind your friends across the table that […] -
The Upside of Losing Innovative Employees to Competitors
R&D ResearchA study of pharmaceutical firms finds that it leads to valuable collaborations. -
Marketers, Go Back to Basics
Marketing Digital ArticleInnovation is great, but don’t forget to make the most of the tried-and-true tactics. -
To Get Better Customer Data, Build Feedback Loops into Your Products
Strategy & Execution Digital ArticleHow to generate data that actually improves what you're selling, and in turn attracts more customers. -
Your Competitors Aren't Always Who You Think They Are
Finance & Accounting Digital ArticleTo understand your customers' expectations, look beyond your industry. -
“The Costs of Complexity Are Hard to See”
Competitive strategy SpotlightA conversation with Jim Hackett, CEO of Ford Motor Company -
Reinvent Your Business Before It's Too Late
Organizational Development Magazine ArticleTo survive over the long haul, a company must reinvent itself periodically, jumping from the flattening end of one business performance curve to the rising... -
Growth as a Process
Globalization Magazine ArticleGeneral Electric is bending every waking effort to an audacious aim—to grow organically two to three times faster than world GDP. Pursuing that goal, the company has invented a whole new set of management methods. -
Bringing the Environment Down to Earth
Finance and investing Magazine ArticleManagers should make environmental investments for the same reason they make other investments: because they expect them to deliver positive returns or to reduce risks. -
Strategy is Different in Service Businesses
Strategy Magazine ArticleMany managers of service businesses are aware that the strategic management (by which I mean the total process of selecting and implementing a corporate strategy) of service businesses is different from that of manufacturing businesses. This article discusses how pure service businesses are different from product-oriented businesses and why they require different strategic thinking. A […] -
Can You Win Back Online Shoppers? (HBR Case Study and Commentary)
Sales & Marketing Magazine ArticleBenjy's, an electronics and appliance retailer, is losing business because of "showrooming": Customers come into the chain's stores to see, touch, and...
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BlackRock (B): Acquire MLIM? (with video links)
Strategy & Execution Case Study5.00View Details In early 2006, BlackRock, Inc. is considering acquiring Merrill Lynch's asset management business. The asset management industry was in a state of transition.... -
Wyeth Pharmaceuticals: Spurring Scientific Creativity with Metrics
Technology & Operations Case Study11.95View Details Describes the reorganization of the drug discovery organization at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals and focuses on the decisions to: (1) centralize decision-making... -
Gazprom: The Ebb and Flow of State Patronage
Leadership & Managing People Case Study11.95View Details In 2012, Gazprom was widely believed to be on the verge of a steep decline. It had witnessed meteoric growth from its early days as an experiment in privatization... -
GO Corp.
Finance & Accounting Case Study11.95View Details GO faces a crisis in March 1991 when Microsoft announces the introduction of a competing operating system for pen-based computers. GO's managers must... -
Motorola and Japan (A), Supplement
Global Business Case Study5.00View Details Updates Motorola and Japan (A) for 1982. -
Overview of the Japanese Apparel Market
Sales & Marketing Case Study8.95View Details Provides an overview of the Japanese apparel market, which was a 13.1 trillion yen industry in 2003, reflecting 5.5% year-over-year shrinkage since 1997,... -
Akbank: Options in Digital Banking
Sales & Marketing Case Study11.95View Details This case discusses the digitalization strategies of a leading bank in Turkey, Akbank, and how to position its digital banking products going forward.... -
Epic Games
Strategy & Execution Case Study11.95View Details Epic Games entered a stagnant market with its PC-games digital storefront in 2018, in the context of incumbent competitors such as Steam, its meteoric... -
Redefining Global Strategy, with a New Preface: Crossing Borders in a World Where Differences Still Matter
Global Business Book35.00View Details New Tools for Succeeding Globally. Why do so many global strategies fail--despite companies' powerful brands and other border-crossing advantages? Because... -
GT Advanced Technologies
Strategy & Execution Case Study11.95View Details In October 2013 GT Advanced Technology closed a deal to supply industrial-sapphire material to Apple; the material was to be used to improve the quality... -
Baoshan Iron & Steel Co. Ltd.: Crafting a Three-Way Cross-Border, Cross-Shareholding Alliance
Strategy & Execution Case Study11.95View Details On August 2, 2000, Korea-based Pohang Iron & Steel Co. Ltd. (POSCO) and Japan-based Nippon Steel Corp. (NSC) crafted a cross-border, cross-shareholding... -
SABIS - A Global Educational Venture From Lebanon
Innovation & Entrepreneurship Case Study11.95View Details Carl Bistany is struggling with how the global educational management company, SABIS, can grow 100-fold in the coming twelve years. Founded in 1886 in... -
Extraordinary Journeys: Wild Times in the Safari Industry
Strategy & Execution Case Study11.95View Details In April 2017, an entrepreneur in the tour operator industry faced a potential investment decision. Her company, Extraordinary Journeys (EJ), created... -
Reed Supermarkets: A New Wave of Competitors
Sales & Marketing Case Study8.95View Details Reed Supermarkets is a high-end supermarket chain with operations in several Midwestern states. Meredith Collins, vice president of marketing, visits... -
Atlas Copco (C): The Conflict Episode
Sales & Marketing Case Study5.00View Details Describes the company's response to further problems with a distributor. -
Google Inc. in 2014 (Abridged)
Strategy & Execution Case Study11.95View Details Describes Google's history, business model, governance structure, corporate culture, and processes for managing innovation. Reviews Google's recent strategic... -
Cherkizovsky Group (C)
Organizational Development Case Study5.00View Details Supplements the (A) case. -
Inventec Corp.
Sales & Marketing Case Study11.95View Details Inventec Corp., with $4.5 billion in annual revenues, was one of Taiwan's leading original design manufacturers (ODMs). Inventec designed and manufactured... -
Wal-Mart in 1999
Strategy & Execution Case Study5.00View Details Supplements Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. -
Gillette: Cutting Prices to Regain Share
Strategy & Execution Case Study11.95View Details After losing market share to low-priced competitors such as Harry's and Dollar Shave Club for several years, Gillette decided to fight back by launching...
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A Survival Guide for Startups in the Era of Tech Giants
Innovation & Leadership Digital ArticleYou have options other than getting swallowed up or stomped out. -
BlackRock (B): Acquire MLIM? (with video links)
Strategy & Execution Case Study5.00View Details In early 2006, BlackRock, Inc. is considering acquiring Merrill Lynch's asset management business. The asset management industry was in a state of transition.... -
How Competitive Forces Shape Strategy
Competitive strategy Magazine ArticleAwareness of these forces can help a company stake out a position in its industry that is less vulnerable to attack. -
Why the Apple Watch Is a Gift to the Swiss Watch Industry
Competitive strategy Digital ArticleIt’s the new Swatch. -
Creating Breakthroughs at 3M
Innovation Magazine ArticleCompanies say they want breakthrough products, but most are far more adept at making incremental improvements to existing lines. A pioneering division at 3M successfully navigated a process that leads to breakthrough thinking. -
Wyeth Pharmaceuticals: Spurring Scientific Creativity with Metrics
Technology & Operations Case Study11.95View Details Describes the reorganization of the drug discovery organization at Wyeth Pharmaceuticals and focuses on the decisions to: (1) centralize decision-making... -
Gazprom: The Ebb and Flow of State Patronage
Leadership & Managing People Case Study11.95View Details In 2012, Gazprom was widely believed to be on the verge of a steep decline. It had witnessed meteoric growth from its early days as an experiment in privatization... -
GO Corp.
Finance & Accounting Case Study11.95View Details GO faces a crisis in March 1991 when Microsoft announces the introduction of a competing operating system for pen-based computers. GO's managers must... -
Diversification via Acquisition: Creating Value
Mergers and acquisitions Magazine ArticleDuring the past 25 years an increasing proportion of U.S. companies have seen wisdom in pursuing a strategy of diversification. Between 1950 and 1970, for example, single-business companies comprising the Fortune “500” declined from 30% to 8% of the total. Acquisition has become a standard approach to diversification. In recent years the productivity of capital […] -
Washington Must Help the U.S. Regain the Lead in Manufacturing
Competitive strategy Digital ArticleThe federal government can and should play a much bigger role in helping American companies regain the lead in manufacturing. We need to invest a commensurate amount of federal R&D dollars in advanced manufacturing technologies as we do in other areas of science, technology, and engineering. The last administration created an assistant secretary for manufacturing […]