Showing papers in "Strategy & Leadership in 2013"
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors describe how to strategically analyze and stage manage the customer journey, the sequence of events that customers go through to learn about, purchase and interact with company offerings.
Abstract: Purpose – The article describes how to strategically analyze and stage manage the customer journey – the sequence of events that customers go through to learn about, purchase and interact with company offeringsDesign/methodology/approach – The article explains how to develop a customer journey that implements a coherent strategic plan One that follows a scripted sequence of events companies produce to deliver value to the customer, profitability to the company and differentiation from the competitionFindings – The customer journey, when approached as a strategic design process, can provide all the elements of a business with a unifying organizational mapResearch limitations/implications – The examples reported on in this article are drawn from the authors' consulting experiencePractical implications – Too often companies map a customer journey without any real participation from customers themselves It's best to start by identifying jobs customers need to get done so that companies clarify what aspe
76 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors propose that platforms of stakeholder engagement can become the new basis of enterprise value creation, and they report on how new co-creation engagement models can be designed all across the value chain of enterprise activities.
Abstract: Purpose – The authors propose that platforms of stakeholder engagement can become the new basis of enterprise value creation. Design/methodology/approach – The authors report on how new co-creation engagement models can be designed all across the value chain of enterprise activities. Findings – According to the authors' studies of leading firms, strategy making has become a joint process of co-creative discovery, as enterprises devise and develop new opportunities together with customers, partners and other stakeholders. Research limitations/implications – Case examples of implementation at leading companies are offered. Practical implications – Leaders will have to manage a process of value creation from a stakeholding-individual and experience-based perspective. Originality/value – The article challenges leaders to question why companies should be limited by the internal competencies of the firm when co-creation platforms could provide access to greater competencies through a well-developed global resou...
65 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a masterclass aims to consider a number of recent business articles and books that can help practitioners clarify the distinction between the strategy development and business model approaches and decide which is appropriate for their situation.
Abstract: Purpose – This masterclass aims to consider a number of recent business articles and books that can help practitioners clarify the distinction between the strategy development and business model approaches and decide which is appropriate for their situation.Design/methodology/approach – The article defines the difference between the two approaches this way: business models explain who your customers are and how you plan to make money by providing them with value; strategy identifies how you will beat competitors by being different.Findings – The paper reveals that a business model approach has limitations. It will not help an organization develop a competitive advantage, outperform its competition, acquire or merge with another organization, or diversify. However, corporate strategy does not identify how to deliver unique value to meet customers' needs.Practical implications – The main reason why organizations fail at business‐model innovation is too much “tweaking” – incremental attempts at improvement i...
55 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, ten prevalent myths about Agile are addressed along with a description of how the approach really works in practice, revealing that the Agile outside-in orientation that maximizes customer value requires a reinvention of management roles, practices, values and communications to implement it.
Abstract: Purpose – Veteran managers trained to respect hierarchical systems are daunted by the fundamental changes in thinking and culture that are required to implement the Agile continuous innovation approach to manufacturing. Though widely hailed by software developers it has been slow to catch on in manufacturing. This paper aims to address this issue.Design/methodology/approach – To assuage managers concerns, ten prevalent myths about Agile are addressed along with a description of how the approach really works in practice.Findings – The paper reveals that the Agile outside‐in orientation that maximizes customer value requires a reinvention of management roles, practices, values and communications to implement it.Research limitations/implications – If research is reported on in the paper this section must be completed and should include suggestions for future research and any identified limitations in the research process.Practical implications – Agile is a way of forcing either high performance or change bec...
55 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors look at the way the company managed the risks of innovation and how outsourcing added to this risk, and reveal that the 787 involved major technological innovations unproven in any airplane.
Abstract: Purpose – At the beginning of 2013, Boing's revolutionary 787 airliner suffered a host of problems and then the fleet was grounded because of a fires caused when lithium‐ion batteries overheated. This paper aims to look at the way the company managed the risks of innovation and how outsourcing added to this risk.Design/methodology/approach – According to his research, which includes news reports and published internal reports, the author believes that Boeing problems with the 787 Dreamliner that led to its grounding can be blamed on how it went about outsourcing, both in the USA and beyond.Findings – The paper reveals that the 787 involved not merely the outsourcing of a known technology. It involved major technological innovations unproven in any airplane.Practical implications – Some degree of offshoring is an inevitable aspect of manufacturing a complex product like an airplane, but the cultural and language differences and the physical distances involved in a lengthy supply chain create additional ris...
53 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors report on the authors' in-depth investigations of six successful turnarounds, which found that renewal was accomplished by a new management team that stepped outside the boundaries and constraints of the company and looked at its market through the eyes of customers and competitors.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to report on the authors' in‐depth investigations of six successful turnarounds, which found that renewal was accomplished by a new management team that stepped outside the boundaries and constraints of the company and looked at its market through the eyes of customers and competitors.Design/methodology/approach – The authors describe how to perform an outside‐in turnaround that refocuses the company on the needs and expectations of the customer. This customer focus energizes and focuses the entire organization toward a shared sense of purpose.Findings – The forces moving a company to an inside‐out view are persistent and powerful. They must be countered with a tough resolve to ensure a company meets its customers' test for relevance.Practical implications – The challenge of beginning a successful outside‐in turnaround is to find the right balance between realism and optimism.Originality/value – The authors show how leading and sustaining an outside‐in turnaround mea...
26 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors look at how companies focused on optimizing their supply chain through global sourcing and just-in-time (JIT) delivery systems, now must learn to reduce their exposure to a variety of complex risks.
Abstract: Purpose – This purpose of this article is to look at how companies focused on optimizing their supply chain through global sourcing and just‐in‐time (JIT) delivery systems to dramatically cut the cost of production, now must learn to reduce their exposure to a variety of complex risks.Design/methodology/approach – The article traces how in the aftermath of the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan, many manufacturers around the world suddenly discovered how exposed their operations were to unanticipated interruption in their supply chain.Findings – The author suggests steps companies can take to analyze risk, to prevent supply chain disruption and to manage its consequences when it happens.Practical implications – For identifiable individual risks, a company can choose a variety of mitigation approaches: avoid; transfer; mitigate; minimize; respond; monitor; accept.Originality/value – The paper presents at a five‐level approach where improved risk management can be tackled at five levels of increasin...
24 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors define seven lessons about the risks of outsourcing that executives need to learn from observing the problems Boeing is having with the 787 plane and find that in analyzing offshoring, firms must get beyond rudimentary cost calculations focused on short-term profit and consider the total cost and risk of extended international supply chains.
Abstract: Purpose – The author's research using published internal reports and news reports suggests that some of Boeing problems with its innovative 787 Dreamliner aircraft are symptoms of a deeper calamity that has been causing US industry to waste away for decades: flawed offshoring decisions by the C‐suite. This paper aims to address this issue.Design/methodology/approach – The paper defines seven lessons about the risks of outsourcing that executives need to learn from observing the problems Boeing is having with the 787 plane.Findings – The paper finds that in analyzing offshoring, firms must get beyond rudimentary cost calculations focused on short‐term profit and consider the total cost and risk of extended international supply chains.Practical implications – In contrast to Boeing's practices, what Apple has done has worked amazingly well, because they have the capability to do the perfect prototype in the USA, before it gets offshored to Foxconn.Originality/value – In addition to highlighting the risk of a...
23 citations
TL;DR: Venkat Ramaswamy as discussed by the authors discusses the guiding principle underlying the transformation of enterprises towards co-creation: how to engage people to create valuable experiences together while enhancing network economics.
Abstract: Purpose – In this interview with Prof. Venkat Ramaswamy, Strategy & Leadership reviews the way the concept of co-creation of value with customers is being implemented on its tenth anniversary. Prof. Ramaswamy explains the basic elements of the co-creation playbook. Design/methodology/approach – Based on his research with companies pioneering innovation co-creation with customers, Prof. Ramaswamy offers insights for executives into what makes this perspective different and powerful. Findings – Prof. Ramaswamy discusses the guiding principle underlying the transformation of enterprises towards co-creation: how to engage people to create valuable experiences together while enhancing network economics. Practical implications – In designing and managing a co-creation platform, ask, how accessible is it to consumers or any other key stakeholders; how well does it facilitate dialogue among them; how transparent is this interaction to all, which helps to build trust and attract even more participants; and how wel...
18 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors identified a set of companies that have figured out how to cope, even to thrive, within the new transient advantage economy and explains how they did it.
Abstract: Purpose – The author identified a set of companies that have figured out how to cope, even to thrive, within the new transient advantage economy and explains how they did it Design/methodology/approach – Her research team analyzed nearly 5,000 companies Of that whole population, only ten companies were able to grow their net income by at least 5 percent a year for ten years in a row These ten “outliers” have out-performed competitors while adapting to rapidly changing market forces Findings – Organizations that have mastered transient-advantage environments have learned to continually free up resources from old advantages in order to fund the development of new ones Additionally, innovation is continuous, mainstream and part of everyone's job Research limitations/implications – The 5,000 companies analyzed included every publicly traded firm on any stock exchange with a market capitalization of over $1 billion The article studies the practices of the ten most successful over ten years Practical im
14 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a disguised case aims to describe a scenario planning project to improve decision making for a manufacturer operating in Brazil's confusing, unpredictable politico-economic environment, using a combination of scenario planning and quantitative analysis to answer the company's two key questions: where is the country headed and how many vehicles can we expect to sell, looking across a range of business environments.
Abstract: Purpose – This disguised case aims to describe a scenario planning project to improve decision making for a manufacturer operating in Brazil's confusing, unpredictable politico‐economic environment. “BrasilAuto's” management team faced a range of complex choices related to capacity, vehicle mix, pricing, distribution, dealer relationships, exports, labor and government relations.Design/methodology/approach – The consultants used a combination of scenario planning and quantitative analysis to answer the company's two key questions: where is the country headed and how many vehicles can we expect to sell, looking across a range of business environments?Findings – As a result of the scenario exercise, company execs had a better idea of what to watch for in the political sphere and how to anticipate the actual market impact of changing economic policy options. Having looked at the range of plausible business environments hard and carefully, their uncertainty was significantly less unsettling or paralyzing than...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors propose a nonstop customer experience model, which groups loyalty behaviors into four general archetypes: emotional loyalty, inertia-based loyalty, conditional loyalty and true deal-chasing.
Abstract: Purpose – With a burgeoning stream of online choices, fostering customer loyalty is a constant challenge. Companies must become masters of the new “nonstop customer” experience. They will at times have to analyze the data on their customers' behavior for new opportunities, and at other times directly influence their customers' choices. Design/methodology/approach – Customers continue to escape from traditional marketing channels into digital realms where they can become more knowledgeable and empowered than they have been in the past. So the nonstop-customer experience model uniquely places evaluation, not purchase, at its center. Findings – The article offers a new rule number one of marketing is: know your customer's behavior on their path to purchase. Practical implications – To understand what customer journeys are being taken by customers, the model groups loyalty behaviors into four general archetypes: emotional loyalty, inertia-based loyalty, conditional loyalty and true deal chasing. Originality/v...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors posit that leading companies are achieving competitive advantage by designing their information system and operations to protect and promote each customer's interest proactively, and they propose a re-assessment of value produced by the systems that produce the customer journey experience.
Abstract: Purpose – The authors posit that leading companies are achieving competitive advantage by designing their information system and operations to protect and promote each customer's interest proactively. Design/methodology/approach – Called “extreme trust,” this approach requires a re-assessment of value produced by the systems that produce the customer journey experience. Findings – Companies need to revisit customer relationship management in the light of three principles: Seeing opportunities to create value from the perspective of the customer; taking extra steps when necessary to ensure that a customer does not make a mistake, or overlook some benefit or service; and not failing to do something that would have significant benefit for the customer. Research limitations/implications – Case examples are offered. Practical implications – Trustability is in fact financially attractive for a business, even though in many situations it may cost money up front in the form of forgone profits or newly incurred ex...
TL;DR: The IBM Institute for Business Value study as discussed by the authors found that leading firms are using social approaches not only to communicate better with their customers, but also to share knowledge with their suppliers, business partners and, perhaps most important, their employees.
Abstract: Purpose – This is a report on an IBM Institute for Business Value study, based on responses from more than 1,100 individuals and interviews with more than two dozen executives from leading organizations, that aims to suggest ways organizations can use social approaches to create meaningful business value.Design/methodology/approach – IBM conducted interviews of key executives of companies learning to embed their external social tools into core business processes and capabilities.Findings – The paper reveals that leading firms are using social approaches not only to communicate better with their customers, but also to share knowledge with their suppliers, business partners and, perhaps most important, their employees.Practical implications – Social business tools facilitate engagement in extensive discussions with employees, customers, business partners and other stakeholders and allow sharing of resources, skills and knowledge to drive business outcomes. Executives are concerned because social business re...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present a case study of Cisco's corporate development approach which shows how the company built a powerful new business capability: the discipline of selecting the best pathways (build, borrow or buy) to follow when pursuing growth opportunities.
Abstract: Purpose – This paper aims to present a case study of Cisco's corporate development approach which shows how the company built a powerful new business capability: the discipline of selecting the best pathways – build, borrow or buy – to follow when pursuing growth opportunities.Design/methodology/approach – In order for companies to achieve viable growth, business leaders must evaluate all three alternative pathways, which this paper looks into.Findings – The paper revelas that Cisco provides an excellent example of a company that has, over the years, learned how to develop the capability to use the full range of development modes.Research limitations/implications – This case is based on research for Build, Borrow or Buy: Solving the Growth Dilemma by Laurence Capron and Will Mitchell.Practical implications – In the way it blends all of the growth modes, Cisco demonstrates the value of top‐level leadership for what should be seen as an enterprise discipline: strategically coordinated building, borrowing an...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe how, during the period after the scenarios have been sketched out but before the company leadership reaches the strategy-development or investment-decision stage, a continuous learning process can help planners and senior decision-makers identify and track the unfolding events that are most relevant to the challenges and big issues facing their organization.
Abstract: Purpose – This paper aims to describe how, during the period after the scenarios have been sketched out but before the company leadership reaches the strategy‐development or investment‐decision stage, a continuous learning process can help planners and senior decision‐makers identify and track the unfolding events that are most relevant to the challenges and big issues facing their organization.Design/methodology/approach – In the case example, a web‐connected Event, Pattern, Structure (EPS) tool allows all members of a multi‐stakeholder Scenario Planning Steering Group, as well as invited experts, to submit news articles, conference reports, research, scholarly articles and other published information into a database that is organized with links to four scenarios and their driving forces.Findings – As the case demonstrates, an ongoing EPS process related to the scenarios and key drivers can support strategic monitoring of the business environment with the scenarios serving an organizing structure.Practic...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors identify seven managerial follies dealing with purview, diagnosis, presumptions, direction, implementation, one-way communication and willful blindness, and argue that these follies can be ameliorated by habits of thought and institution of organizational routines, both levers that can be employed by executives.
Abstract: Purpose – The objective of the paper is to summarize major faults in the process that later lead to strategy failures. These faults, or follies as the authors term them, infect all stages of the strategy process and can be ameliorated through careful managerial attention and action.Design/methodology/approach – These follies are interconnected, one building on another, but for the sake of exposition the authors treat them separately. They identify seven managerial follies dealing with purview, diagnosis, presumptions, direction, implementation, one‐way communication and willful blindness.Findings – The authors describe and illustrate the follies with real life examples and argue that these follies can be ameliorated by habits of thought and institution of organizational routines, both levers that can be employed by executives.Practical implications – Based on the authors' extensive experience, strategic failures are preventable if one avoids the seven follies. To kick start recognition and treatment of th...
TL;DR: McGrath as mentioned in this paper provides an interview with innovation guru Rita Gunther McGrath, who offers her own perspective on the new competitive landscape, which she refers to as the "transient advantage economy", and she sets out to help strategists more fully understand its implications and better navigate its major challenges.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this article is to provide an interview with innovation guru Rita Gunther McGrath. In this interview, McGrath offers her own perspective on the new competitive landscape, which she refers to as the “transient advantage economy,” and she sets out to help strategists more fully understand its implications and better navigate its major challenges.Design/methodology/approach – In a world where strategy development itself needs to become more and more a process of innovation and discovery, few are better qualified to offer deep insight and practical help. McGrath is a Professor at Columbia Business School and a globally renowned expert on strategy in uncertain environments.Findings – The “transient‐advantage economy,” that promises to leave few if any businesses unaffected, calls for an entirely new strategy playbook.Practical implications – Deeply ingrained structures and systems designed to extract maximum value from a competitive advantage become a liability when the environment req...
IBM1
TL;DR: The 2012 IBM CEO Study as mentioned in this paper found that CEOs are focusing on how recent advances in technology allow companies to re-imagine connections among people, customers, employees, partners, and investors.
Abstract: Purpose – This article seeks to highlight some of the findings of the 2012 IBM CEO Study, Leading through Connection, based on interviews with CEOs and public sector leaders in every part of the world.Design/methodology/approach – The study was designed to determine how technology is fundamentally changing how stakeholders engage.Findings – A major finding was that CEOs are focusing on how recent advances in technology allow companies to re‐imagine connections among people – customers, employees, partners and investors.Research limitations/implications – Between September 2011 and January 2012, IBM met face to face with 1,709 CEOs and senior public sector leaders in 64 countries and 18 industries.Practical implications – CEOs are reevaluating how they engage partners. Boundaries between organizations are becoming more porous. Interactions span more functions and are more continuous.Originality/value – The study points to two conclusions. These are, first, empowering employees through values. For CEOs, org...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe what innovation looks like and how it works in Fidelity Investments, a financial services organization that is large and decentralized, and show that internal consultants made progress by demonstrating that different ways of thinking through business problems could lead to better solutions without making a huge investment of resources.
Abstract: Purpose – This case aims to describe what innovation looks like and how it works in Fidelity Investments, a financial services organization that is large and decentralized.Design/methodology/approach – The case looks at how the firm's internal consultants introduced idea‐management systems, idea‐management contests, design thinking, open innovation, innovation tools, coaching and mentoring and new innovation processesFindings – The study show that internal consultants made progress by demonstrating that different ways of thinking through business problems could lead to better solutions without making a huge investment of resources – people, time, and budget.Research limitations/implications – The implementation results findings are based on first‐hand reporting by the author.Practical implications – The combination of internal consultants and business unit champions learned to create a home for innovation that focuses and leverages impact.Originality/value – This case explains how the internal consulting ...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine what is different about top leadership and what is required beyond proven professional competence to be highly effective at this level and conclude that the top job is different, not just a step up, and has its own unique tasks that top leaders need to keep their focus on.
Abstract: Purpose – This article sets out to examine what is different about top leadership and what is required beyond proven professional competence to be highly effective at this level.Design/methodology/approach – The article is a masterclass – essentially a thematic review and synthesis of some of the most influential ideas on the topic from research and practice over the last two decades.Findings – The main conclusions are that: the top job is different, not just a step up, and has its own unique tasks that top leaders need to keep their focus on; effectiveness at this level requires more than generic professional competencies, it also requires finding an individual leadership voice and sense of higher ambition; and effectiveness at the top also requires the development of contextual awareness and sensitivity to find and rise to the right leadership challenge in the right institution at the right time.Originality/value – The practical implications flow directly from the findings above.
IBM1
TL;DR: In this article, the authors analyzed IBM surveys on evolving C-suite technology priorities over several years to find fresh opportunities for Chief Executive Officers (CEOs), CMOs and CIOs to work closely together.
Abstract: Purpose – The authors have analyzed IBM surveys on evolving C-suite technology priorities over several years to find fresh opportunities for Chief Executive Officers (CEOs), Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs) and Chief Information Officers (CIOs) to work closely together. Design/methodology/approach – This new study of evolving technology priorities is based on conversations with thousands of private and public sector C-suite executives participating in a series of IBM surveys over the past decade. Findings – The authors found that the major technology challenges facing corporations are how to manage openness across the organization, individualize customer relationships and invest in the partnership ecosystem for innovation. Research limitations/implications – This is a meta analysis based on a series of reports on IBM interviews with top executives starting in 2004. Practical implications – To achieve significant innovation, outperforming organizations are pursuing external partnerships. Increasingly partne...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors identify the mismatch between modern business' need to achieve continuous innovation in product development and service delivery and traditional, hierarchical management and define the principles authors need to follow to successfully prescribe radical management.
Abstract: Purpose – The author adds six books to a cannon of books that together delineate the emerging practice and theory of radical management. Design/methodology/approach – The author identifies the mismatch between modern business' need to achieve continuous innovation in product development and service delivery and traditional, hierarchical management. Findings – The paradigm shift to radical management involves not merely the application of new technology or a simple set of fixes or adjustments to hierarchical bureaucracy. It means basic change in the way people think, talk and act in the workplace–including changes in attitudes, values, habits and beliefs. Practical implications – This masterclass shows how the paradigm shift in leadership and management can generate dramatic reductions in cost, size, and time, and improvements in convenience, reliability and personalization, of products and services. Originality/value – This masterclass defines the principles authors need to follow to successfully prescrib...
TL;DR: Watkin's approach is designed to speed up the rate at which executive are able to accurately diagnose situations, make good decisions, and add value to their firms as mentioned in this paper. But it is not suitable for all situations.
Abstract: Purpose – This interview with Michael Watkins is on the occasion of the tenth anniversary edition of his best-selling book The First 90 Days (Harvard Business Press, 2013). The book has helped a generation of executives identify and strategically analyze the opportunities and risks posed by a career move. Design/methodology/approach – The book offers a set of tools and techniques executives can use to accelerate learning and then methodically diagnose the situation to develop the right strategy. Findings – Watkin's approach is designed to speed up the rate at which executive are able to accurately diagnose situations, make good decisions and add value to their firms. Practical implications – Executives considering taking on a new job should learn to think like a historian. It's critical to understand how the organization got to the state that it is in. If serious problems were not addressed early enough to avoid a crisis, why did that happen? What does this say about the culture and politics of the compan...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present a leaders' guide to managing relations with shapeholders, the political, regulatory, media and activist actors in the firm's operating environment that shape, constrain, or expand a firm's opportunities and raise certain risks.
Abstract: Purpose – The author offers a leaders' guide to managing relations with “shapeholders” the political, regulatory, media and activist actors in the firm's operating environment that shape, constrain, or expand a firm's opportunities and raise certain risks. Design/methodology/approach – The author, a former US congressman, shows how companies can adopt a program of analysis, foresight and preparation, and successfully engage shapeholders to advance mutual goals and preempt open conflict. Findings – The author warns that seeking unjustified advantage for your company or industry often trades transient benefits for long-term risks and reduced standing in seeking a level playing field in international markets. Practical implications – The author suggests several practical preparation techniques, citing the need to train for a rapid response to shapeholder pressures in today's hyper-connected world. When a controversy goes viral on social media, it's too late to debate options, policy and tactics. Originality/...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors conducted in-depth interviews with ten successful company founders around Bangkok, Thailand and found that entrepreneurs embraced risk and emphasized learning by doing, leveraging current strengths and preparedness to fail before succeeding.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this study was to document the problem‐solving styles of SME entrepreneurs operating in an emerging market.Design/methodology/approach – The authors conducted in‐depth interviews with ten successful company founders around Bangkok, Thailand. The discussion focused on the entrepreneurs' experiences during the early days of their businesses.Findings – Entrepreneurs embraced risk. They emphasized learning‐by‐doing, leveraging current strengths and preparedness to fail before succeeding.Originality/value – The authors describe some useful problem‐solving approaches that may be useful to leaders of big companies.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors have found that some companies are learning to thrive by adopting a customer-centric model of continuous innovation, and they describe their practices as follows: design/methodology/approach, purpose, and purpose.
Abstract: Purpose – The author has found that some companies are learning to thrive by adopting a customer-centric model of continuous innovation. He describes their practices. Design/methodology/approach – These masters of the new creative economy have abandoned many of the major pillars of twentieth century management thinking. The author describes the new principles of the radical management agenda. Findings – Ten dramatic shifts in management thinking have occurred. The author offers a blueprint for transition from the old to the new perspective. Practical implications – Leaders must give more attention to competing on the basis of value they are adding to customers, not simply how efficient they are. Originality/value – In the emerging creative economy, competitive advantage is increasingly transient. Today organizations can only survive by continuously satisfying the changing needs of the customer. The author provides a blueprint for action.
TL;DR: Procter & Gamble's new strategy review meeting structure and new inquiry culture established a new norm for communication between leaders and their teams throughout the organization as discussed by the authors, and the authors, one a former P&G CEO and the other a long-time consultant to the firm, describe how the firm instituted a robust process for creating, reviewing and communicating about strategy.
Abstract: Purpose – The paper aims to explain how Procter & Gamble's new strategy review meeting structure and new inquiry culture established a new norm for communication between leaders and their teams throughout the organization.Design/methodology/approach – The authors, one a former P&G CEO and the other a long‐time consultant to the firm, describe how the firm instituted a robust process for creating, reviewing and communicating about strategy.Findings – The P&G process was designed to open a dialog between top management and the leaders of each business to discuss five strategic choices. What is your winning aspiration? Where will you play? How will you win? What capabilities must be in place? What management systems are required?Practical implications – At P&G the Objectives, Goals, Strategy, Measures (OGSM) statement for a brand, category, or company was the framework for articulating a clear and explicit expression of where to play and how to win, choices that connected with the aspirations of the business...
TL;DR: In this paper, the author has distilled the experience of many leaders facing a diverse range of onboarding situations into a learning framework and showed the potential benefits to the organization from systematically accelerating everyone's learning during major transitions.
Abstract: Purpose
– The author believes that it is crucial to follow a comprehensive framework for making transitions, one that distills the experience of many leaders facing a diverse range of situations when taking on a new job or a promotion.
Design/methodology/approach
– The author, an internationally known consultant, has distilled the experience of many leaders facing a diverse range of onboarding situations into a learning framework.
Findings
– New leaders must be systematic and focused about deciding what they need to learn and how they will learn it most efficiently.
Practical implications
– A leader's successful transition into a new position depends on the ability to influence people outside direct line of control. Supportive alliances, both internal and external, are necessary if leaders are to achieve their goals.
Originality/value
– The author shows the potential benefits to the organization from systematically accelerating everyone's learning during major transitions.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors identified a population of 377 exceptional companies in two categories: 199 Miracle Workers or the best of the best, and 178 Long Runners, still exceptional, but at a lower level.
Abstract: Purpose – After many years of researching data for thousands of companies the authors identified a population of 377 exceptional companies in two categories: 199 Miracle Workers, or the best of the best, and 178 Long Runners – still exceptional, but at a lower level. This paper aims to examine these two categories.Design/methodology/approach – With the flaws of previous searches for the secret to exceptional corporate performance in mind, the authors began theirs with a radical premise: that what constitutes stand‐out performance is not obvious. It is not enough simply to set up a performance benchmark, no matter how demanding it might seem, and see who clears it.Findings – By studying how exceptional companies thought about decisions they made the authors derived three rules that were key to outstanding performance.Research limitations/implications – The methodology behind the research is complex and deserves careful study. It is discussed in several chapters of the authors' new book Three Rules: How Exc...