Growth strategy

And why your company can’t ignore it.

An education-gaming firm that has relied largely on volunteer developers has to rethink this strategy as it prepares to pitch investors for a new round...

Examples from ING Direct and Southern New Hampshire University.

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 […]

The value of many products and services rises or falls with the number of customers using them; the fewer fax machines in use, the less important it is...

Three elements to focus on.

It's smart to pool resources.

Answering customers’ calls in 42 languages, usually 24 hours a day, creates logistical and talent management challenges. But The Priceline Group’s Booking.com brand finds that the payoff is worth it.

The CEO of a computer peripherals manufacturer considers whether to invest in innovation or focus on the core. This fictional case study by Richard Hamermesh...

The chaotic, sometimes grueling path to high-growth, high-impact entrepreneurship

What could be harder than turning around a seemingly wildly successful company by imposing a centralized framework on a heretofore radically decentralized,...

Health care providers are being paid less to produce better outcomes.

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 […]

There’s strength in numbers.

Yang assumed the reins at Lenovo (formerly known as Legend) in 2001, when the company's founder, Liu Chuanzhi, moved on to become chairman. He served...

How the three Fs-facts, faith, and fortitude-can create a persuasive business case as well as a roadmap for new initiatives.

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? […]

Lessons Western businesses must learn from emerging-market companies to succeed—at home and abroad.

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 […]

There is a pervasive belief that innovation is random and unpredictable. Data would seem to support this belief. Ask a venture capitalist what percent...