Fluid Concepts & Creative Analogies
Is online retail a business or a distribution channel? First movers often have a market advantage that lasts for a long time: Procter and Gambles’ disposal nappies, Pampers, spring to…
These articles illustrate why leadership matters. Few great businesses are built without inspirational leadership and we can all learn from the people in the news who are doing this well. What can you learn from the people described in the articles below?
Meredith
Few companies adapt so well to the challenges and the opportunities of a changing world. As we see Reader’s Digest Association seek Chapter 11 protection for the second time in…
Time Travellers
Watch out, if more and more of your customers are living in the past. I recently moved to the country. Well, I do at least spend more time there, though…
Which Way?
Sometimes business leaders just get confused. The fundamental “purpose” of any business is to generate a superior economic return for its shareholders; to do that it needs to satisfy many…
Martina Navratilova’s Ham & Eggs
Isn’t it time for some committed leadership at Premier Foods? In 2006 Billie Jean King, who knew a thing or two about tennis, being once the World No. 1 player,…
A Strategy Masterclass
David Cameron has just made the defining strategic decision of his career as Prime Minister. Rarely do politicians do things that impress me but, yesterday, the UK Prime Minister, David…
Chinese CAT
The financial and reputational costs of diversification can be too high. Half of the global demand for construction equipment now comes from China, so it might not be that surprising…
Ardagh
Leadership is always the catalyst of great success. Over the past fifteen years Ardagh, the Irish glass bottle maker, has gone from relative obscurity, with operations in just Ireland and…
What Business Are You In?
This surprisingly simple question can help you think more clearly about your business and how to improve its performance. Do you know that not many UK insurance companies make a…
The Survival Instinct
When cornered, businesses will overpay for assets they really want. Last November Hewlett-Packard wrote down the value of Autonomy by a staggering $8.8Bn, after buying it for $11Bn just over…