Tag Archives: business strategy

Assumptions That Can End You

Posted on November 19, 2019 by

Last week we posted regarding assumptions and how they can lead to a company’s demise. We got a large example of this right after our post, when Dean Foods filed for bankruptcy. Dean is the largest milk company in the … Continue reading →

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Thank Goodness McDonald’s Wasn’t Like JC Penney

Posted on December 6, 2016 by

I have previously noted how JC Penney hired Ron Johnson to create a growth strategy for the company. He implemented a new strategy, and as anyone would likely realize, sales went down. Why, as I wrote in the prior post, … Continue reading →

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Again With The Power Of Focus

Posted on October 11, 2016 by

“There is no business that cannot improve its performance by narrowing its focus.” Thus stated David Palmer an original member of our team many years ago. And I keep finding examples to prove he was right. Here is another: New … Continue reading →

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Sense And Respond; Or Wonder What Happened

Posted on September 10, 2015 by

I was looking back through some files and found an article from the July/August 2011 issue of The Harvard Business Review: “Adaptability: The New Competitive Advantage.” I’m sure I kept it because its basic premise: the need for flexible, adaptable, … Continue reading →

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A Billion Here, A Billion There, Pretty Soon It’s Real Money … Or Not

Posted on July 9, 2015 by

Yesterday Microsoft announced it was shutting down and writing off its $7.4B investment in Nokia. They just bought them last year. What strategy change was necessary, and unforeseeable just 12 months ago (give or take), that caused this $7.4B investment to … Continue reading →

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A Relook at Marketing Myopia

Posted on December 6, 2013 by

Al Ries recently wrote an outstanding article for Advertising Age where he re-looks at Ted Levitt’s classic article from the Harvard Business Review, “Marketing Myopia.” Just read his article. Mitch

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Now what?

Posted on September 23, 2011 by

The all-knowing, all-seeing Federal Reserve (not Carnac) has advised they expect the U.S. economy to remain essentially flat for several years. Is it ok with you if your company does the same? (Ok, after the downturn of 2009/10, where flat was … Continue reading →

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Rethinking your business model

Posted on October 13, 2010 by

Especially in today’s continuingly chaotic economy it may be time to reconsider your business model. To learn more about how to do that read the article in Chief Executive. Mitch

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Nero fiddled while Rome burned

Posted on August 17, 2010 by

While that story may not be precisely true, the metaphor remains relevant. Back in 2002 we wrote a paper entitled: “Is Your Business Model Right For Tomorrow’s Market?” As the title suggests, this paper asked a critical question, which many … Continue reading →

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Culture vs. Strategy

Posted on August 18, 2009 by

It was reported last Friday that Republic Airways had “won” the right to buy Frontier Airlines despite a lower bid than Southwest Airlines submitted. Both companies have valid strategic reasons to buy Frontier, and Southwest’s larger size allowed them to … Continue reading →

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