Growth strategy

And why your company can’t ignore it.

High-definition televisions (HDTVs) should, by now, be a huge success. Philips, Sony, and Thompson invested billions of dollars to develop TV sets with...

Visits to the toy store were a lot different for Jim Clayton since he took the job as president of Playto Industries. Long lines at the checkout counter used to infuriate him. Now they delighted him because they signaled a boom in sales for Playto. Trips up and down the aisles used to be part […]

Stacey Barr, performance measure specialist at Stacey Barr Pty Ltd, recommends using sensory words to make your goals stick.

In a global survey, 45% of CEOs said they don’t think their companies would survive more than a decade on their current path.

Targeting the middle market can be lucrative—but companies won’t be able to deliver unless they start from scratch.

And why your company should do it too.

To accelerate your search for a viable new growth model, start with the two-pizza rule.

Tell us what you think the protagonist should do.

Deep, lasting culture change requires an integrated approach that remodels a company’s social systems. The leadership team of Home Depot employed a remarkable set of tools to do that.

Companies have gotten very good at getting customers to do free work—pumping their own gas, conducting their own checkouts, filling out online forms. In each case, the mutual benefit is clear, and customers tacitly agree to an exchange of value: “I’ll pump my gas if you give me a price break.” But some organizations are […]

Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz on the challenges of leading a turnaround at the company he made a household name.

Asked to define strategy, most executives would probably come up with something like this: Strategy involves discovering and targeting attractive markets...

Firms with a lot of stuff are starting to look old-fashioned.

Small and midsize companies that want to expand abroad often face a daunting task: finding the sweet spot between multinationals, with their extensive...

Three elements to focus on.

Since the rise in the use of discounted cash flow techniques, most managers face an increasingly difficult choice in evaluating complex investment decisions. Should they pursue risky projects that offer a below-target rate of return but could create valuable strategic opportunities later? Or should they stick with a less risky and more immediately profitable bet? […]

A major U.S. rent-to-own company continues to grow in the recession, opening its 1000th store. The CEO, the son of the chain's founder, is wondering whether...

But the whole C-suite has to be involved.

For most of the 20th century, a symbiotic link existed between value creation and job creation. When businesses prospered, employment expanded and communities thrived. This virtuous circle was good for business and good for society. But now the relationship between value creation and job creation is more tenuous. In the United States, for example, the […]