Right from the outset, customers and business commentators have been skeptical about the positioning of Amazon Go. Like the concept of driverless cars, this seemed imaginative, even if people were unsure of its viability. Through this concept, Amazon is creating a more shopper- centric offering. This business innovation is helping align Amazon’s long- held digital native strategy, with the concept of physical stores. While the store in Seattle has been quite a success, the company is not disclosing whether it plans to open more of them in the near future. This experiment is also good for Amazon’s data warehousing initiatives, as the company will over a period of time, be able to track a substantial sample of in- store customers to understand their behaviours. Store security is a key concern, so there are cameras attached to all the walls at these stores.

Source:http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/amazon-go-game-changer/

Uploaded Date:07 June 2019

There is a lot of hype around organizations that are following the agile mode of working. But in order to actually salvage its reputation, it is important to divorce the hype from reality. The management consulting community every few years laps on to trends, and agile is the latest of them. A lot of sch trends have emerged as the ‘next big thing’, only to be discarded during the next cycle. The agile framework’s origins can be traced to the software industry, but the term was in use even before under separate nomenclatures such as ambidexterity or organic structures. Agile structures may work well in some kind of organizations where employees have been accorded greater levels of autonomy from the start. Better tools will also be needed in such organizations to empower the employees, otherwise agile will simply remain a fragile concept.

Source:https://knowledge.insead.edu/blog/insead-blog/why-agile-may-be-fragile-10201

Uploaded Date:07 June 2019

When it comes to business planning, each company has to think across the three dimensions of the past, present and future. So, the corporate strategy needs to have a position for Now, Next and Beyond. This is particularly relevant now as companies are grappling with digital transformation. For this to succeed, companies need to adopt a portfolio approach. A ‘scale fast’ system needs to be put in place. Open innovation and design thinking are now widely being adopted by companies to this end. In order to smoothly transform to this new paradigm, companies need to solve their problems now. After this, they must explore the other options. But all this is pointless, without adding some imagination to the mix. Superfluid markets can only come up when companies imagine what can be beyond the established standards. This three- horizon framework has to be adopted at all levels.

Source:https://www.ey.com/en_gl/innovation-realized/now-next-beyond-if-you-dont-plan-in-three-dimensions-will-you-be-left-behind

Uploaded Date:04 June 2019

Some ways have been identified which will help make trust a competitive advantage for one’s company. To start off, trust has to be treated as a service or product feature, no less. Human psychology and talent management methods needs to be understood and applied to design such a path. Next up, the company must engage in a completely transparent work system, to a radical degree. Each transaction or conversation must be traceable, from end- to- end. There needs to be complete integrity across all the processes. The company must be able to assure all stakeholders of this trust factor to be maintained. One way to track the progress could be the company’s score in the Embankment Project for Inclusive Capitalism. The digital economy in particular needs to have trust in- built as a must have. The 2019 Edelman Trust Barometer clearly points to the growing profitability of companies that have a higher conclusive trust factor.

Source:https://www.ey.com/en_gl/innovation-realized/five-ways-to-make-trust-your-competitive-advantage

Uploaded Date:04 June 2019

The transportation and distribution network is witnessing unprecedented growth right now, but this is also fueling new forms of operational complexity. Costs can spiral out of control, unless preemptively struck now. According to a report submitted by business consulting giant Bain, leading companies are on top for a reason. Their distribution and transportation costs are less than a mere six percent of total revenue, where the typical companies clock between a six and an eight percent. While designing the network, one needs to have a clear understanding of the overall costs. An overall bird’s eye view needs to be assessed. The corporate strategy needs to focus on the long- run. Any changes to the network needs to be tracked closely, while also ensuring that there is detailed monitoring.

Source:https://www.bain.com/insights/distribution-costs-infographic/

Uploaded Date:20 May 2019

Some companies are disproportionately bigger than the industry average. This is true across industries, and geographical locations. About four- fifths of the global positive economic profit can be traced down to a mere tenth of the world’s largest companies. Business intelligence provided by McKinsey further confirms that a mere one percent of companies accounts for thirty- six percent of the said profits. While economic profits soar for some, the losses likewise too proportionately go up. Several firms are now turning in to what may be described as ‘zombie companies’. Size and productivity do matter, but capital investment often has a more direct influence. Superstar companies on average spend about two to three times more on business research and development than do the others. Intangible investments are now of top importance due to the ongoing digital disruption.

Source:https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/innovation-and-growth/what-every-ceo-needs-to-know-about-superstar-companies

Uploaded Date:20 May 2019

Most organizations suffer from what is called the Seneca Effect. Under this, companies tend to decline much quicker than their pace of growth. That is where preemptive trans- formation is necessary. Among all industries, the greatest effect of such preemptive transformation has taken place in materials, followed by consumer discretionary and consumer staples. The last effect has been at financial services followed at a distance by health care. This is as per a study by management consulting giant BCG. There are some secondary benefits as well of this style of transformation, much more effective than its reactive variant. Such companies tend to have a long- term clearer outlook towards the corporate strategy. To ensure this style is successful, companies must constantly explore for opportunities. A sense of urgency has to be brought in, while watching out for the early- signals of change. Transformational capabilities too need to be created. This will help control the narrative and select the right approaches for the desired change.

Source:https://www.bcg.com/publications/2018/preemptive-transformation-fix-it-before-it-breaks.aspx

Uploaded Date:16 May 2019

There are certain markers that define superstar sectors, cities and firms in the global economy. Any analysis on the economic profit of firms can be extended to sectors and cities where the economic activity is taking place in. Firms move along in a power curve. Sectors also do not move in any uniform pattern, but continuously evolve. Cities have their own sources to derive power from. As per business intelligence supplied by the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI), fifty most power cities have been identified in terms of economic footprint. Atlanta, Boston, Seattle, Houston, Dallas, Chicago and five more are the leading lights of North America. In India, it is Mumbai and New Delhi. In Europe, Amsterdam, Brussels, London, Madrid, Milan and Paris make up among the nine of the most prominent ones. Questions are finally posed to gauge further business research and the implications these lead to.

Source:https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/innovation-and-growth/superstars-the-dynamics-of-firms-sectors-and-cities-leading-the-global-economy

Uploaded Date:15 May 2019

There is much frustration to be handled by academicians during the corporate strategy classes at business schools. This is because there is a perception difference between what is taught and what students feel would lead them to solve strategic problems. While they do absorb the tools mandatory during the classes, the general feeling is that it is often a moment of intuitive spark that’ll provide the innovation needed to succeed at the strategy level. The traditional tools still do have a place, as they can be used to gauge contrast. To begin one needs to identify the assumptions that underlie conventional thinking at the organization. One needs to then assess which of these could be tweaked to lead to maximum gain. The strategist needs to disturb certain parts of the process to beak up the ingrained assumptions. Traditionally disparate products and services can then be married together. Liabilities or limitations may then be turned into opportunities. Far- flung industries can then even solve pressing concerns. Design solutions are increasingly being tapped into as evidenced by the case of IDEO moving into business consulting.

Source:https://hbr.org/2019/03/strategy-needs-creativity

Uploaded Date:15 May 2019

The idea of corporate strategy is usually wrongly understood by people. Employees during their growth phase are so fascinated by this term, they assume it is about setting team goals, and about creating broad frameworks. They also assume that strategy is about writing long documents and motivating others. Drawing graphs on a whiteboard is just one of those means to achieve this. However, as one grows one understands that this is just a stereotype on what work really constitutes. Instead, strategy is about engaging with high- level business and product decisions. Strategy involves three steps. The first is to streamline all company activities towards the final goal of success. One needs to understand the kind of problems being dealt with, and which one deals with which stakeholder group. Finally one needs to prioritize the most important tasks, and execute them with pace.

Source:https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/how-to-become-a-strategic-leader/

Uploaded Date:13 May 2019

Global brands are market leaders for a reason. They can manage multiple markets across the globe simultaneously. One such is the consumer- packaged goods industry, worth more than a trillion dollars globally. Its key players are Colgate, Olay, Avon and Axe. Among the emerging markets, the most important ones for them have been India, China and Indonesia, followed by Brazil. But this upward trajectory is now getting challenged by several fleet- footed local players. As per marketing research collated by Accenture, the top brands have lost more than five percent in market share in these countries. One way to bridge this falling market share is to include local brands in the product mix to increase acceptability. Another is to adjust the expectations about brand lifecycles. Beyond the marketing alone, it is the ideas and business innovations that must now hold central ground.

Source:https://hbr.org/2019/02/how-global-brands-can-respond-to-local-competitors?utm_campaign=hbr&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social

Uploaded Date:11 May 2019