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The Myth of Case Studies and Best Practices

The Myth of Case Studies and Best Practices An article appeared in The Wall Street Journal about Pfizer’s development of the COVID-19 vaccine. I'm using Pfizer’s good work to contrast how hard it is to know when good work is being done. This article talks about the incredible drive and determination of pharmaceutical companies to roll out a vaccine in less than a year. It focuses on Pfizer, but there will be case studies about many pharmaceutical companies around the world who were successful at producing a vaccine in a short period of time. The article shows how Pfizer’s CEO faced the difficulty of pushing his teams to find faster ways of doing things without breaking any rules or crossing any ethical gray lines. Case studies on solving a problem employees don’t yet know how to solve It’s very laudatory and positive about what Pfizer and other pharmaceutical companies have done. It's amazing to see how they did it, the challenges they faced and how they stepped up to those challenges. But there's a reason why this theme is called the myth of case studies and best practices. The business press has many stories about successful companies, whether it's Tesla, whether it's SpaceX, and companies that…

The Myth of Case Studies and Best Practices An article appeared in The Wall Street Journal about Pfizer’s development of the COVID-19 vaccine. I'm using Pfizer’s good work to contrast how hard it is to know when good work is being done. This article talks about the incredible drive and determination of pharmaceutical companies to roll out a vaccine in less than a year. It focuses on Pfizer, but there will be case studies about many pharmaceutical companies around the world who were successful at producing a vaccine in a short period of time. The article shows how Pfizer’s CEO faced the difficulty of pushing his…

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How to Build an Idea for Your Career

Building Your Career It’s the end of the year, and many of you are looking at building your career. Many of you will be getting performance reviews and feedback from colleagues. You’ll be reevaluating your life, and a lot of it is going to come down to your ability to have a conversation with someone in your company to convince them to support you, give you an access to a new role. You have to think about how to make that happen. Usually, when you get to the point where you want to have this conversation about building your career, you're upset with where you are. You are disappointed, you did not get the bonus you want, you are stuck at home with a virus. Things are not looking good. So you are a little bit agitated. [bctt tweet="It’s often so difficult to stick to a strategy that we know is going to save our career that we back out of it and do something else." username=""] When you're in that state, it's difficult to step back and say, “You know what, this is the critical path to get me there, and I have no choice but to follow the…

Building Your Career It’s the end of the year, and many of you are looking at building your career. Many of you will be getting performance reviews and feedback from colleagues. You’ll be reevaluating your life, and a lot of it is going to come down to your ability to have a conversation with someone in your company to convince them to support you, give you an access to a new role. You have to think about how to make that happen. Usually, when you get to the point where you want to have this conversation about building your career,…

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The Economics of Innovation and Big Bets

The Economics of Innovation and Big Bets "How do you make these big bets and when? When everyone can see that the economics makes sense, it's usually too late." There was a story in The Wall Street Journal about utilities that made a big bet into renewables 15-20 years ago and are starting to see their valuations increase to match that of the traditional oil giants. How do you value and build a business case for R&D and innovation? I have worked with the most senior leaders in oil and gas, 15-20 years ago, when they were making the decision if they should invest in renewables. Some decided to invest in renewables and some didn't. At that time, nobody knew what was going to happen. You have to make a bet on a technology that's unproven, but you're betting that it will improve to the point where you start generating profit. So, how do you make these big bets and when? When everyone can see that the economics makes sense, it's usually too late. [bctt tweet="How do you make these big bets and when? When everyone can see that the economics makes sense, it's usually too late." username=""] Can you fund the transition away…

The Economics of Innovation and Big Bets "How do you make these big bets and when? When everyone can see that the economics makes sense, it's usually too late." There was a story in The Wall Street Journal about utilities that made a big bet into renewables 15-20 years ago and are starting to see their valuations increase to match that of the traditional oil giants. How do you value and build a business case for R&D and innovation? I have worked with the most senior leaders in oil and gas, 15-20 years ago, when they were making the decision if they should invest…

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Are Netflix and Disney+ Really Beating HBO Max and Apple TV?

Are Netflix and Disney+ Really Beating HBO Max and Apple TV? Disney and Netflix have been posting record-breaking numbers in their streaming uptake. They and Amazon Prime are the frontrunners in the streaming wars. The other players—Peacock, HBO Max, Apple TV, CBS, etc.—are not seen as frontrunners, at least not yet. The Financial Times has a couple of articles on this. There’s been a lot of press about how Disney+ and Netflix are winning while HBO Max is losing. But if you think about this carefully, I don't think HBO Max is losing because they aren’t trying to do the same thing Netflix and Disney+ are doing. HBO Max and Apple TV need to be measured separately with separate metrics. [bctt tweet="I don't think HBO Max is losing because they aren’t trying to do the same thing Netflix and Disney+ are doing. HBO Max and Apple TV need to be measured separately with separate metrics." username=""] If someone goes to university, gets average grades, and ends up with an average job, you could call them a failure—but they’re only a failure relative to what they wanted to achieve. If they accomplished more than what they wanted to achieve, are they a failure or a success?…

Are Netflix and Disney+ Really Beating HBO Max and Apple TV? Disney and Netflix have been posting record-breaking numbers in their streaming uptake. They and Amazon Prime are the frontrunners in the streaming wars. The other players—Peacock, HBO Max, Apple TV, CBS, etc.—are not seen as frontrunners, at least not yet. The Financial Times has a couple of articles on this. There’s been a lot of press about how Disney+ and Netflix are winning while HBO Max is losing. But if you think about this carefully, I don't think HBO Max is losing because they aren’t trying to do the same thing Netflix and Disney+…

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Risks and Liabilities: Injuries Are Not the Worst Liabilities in Pro Sports

Risks and Liabilities: Injuries Are Not the Worst Liabilities in Pro Sports In this excerpt from Monday Morning 8 a.m. newsletter, issue #9, we are addressing some liabilities and risks in business. But first, let's define what is a business risk and what is a liability in business.  What Is Business Risk? Business risk is the exposure a company or organization has to elements that may lower its profits, may result in some other negative impact for an organization, or which may even lead to organization's failure and demise. Anything that negatively impacts organization's ability to achieve its financial and other goals is considered a business risk. What Is a Liability? A liability in business is something an organization owes, usually in monetary value. Liabilities are recorded on the right side of the balance sheet. Liabilities include loans, accounts payable, warranties, mortgages, etc. Pro Sports and Liabilities An article from The Financial Times provides a good summary of private equity firms and American billionaires who are trying to buy into pro sports like Formula One, soccer, football, and rugby. Even Ryan Reynolds, the A-list actor, has bought a football team in the United Kingdom. [bctt tweet="Whenever you're doing any acquisition, you have to decide what you’re buying…

Risks and Liabilities: Injuries Are Not the Worst Liabilities in Pro Sports In this excerpt from Monday Morning 8 a.m. newsletter, issue #9, we are addressing some liabilities and risks in business. But first, let's define what is a business risk and what is a liability in business.  What Is Business Risk? Business risk is the exposure a company or organization has to elements that may lower its profits, may result in some other negative impact for an organization, or which may even lead to organization's failure and demise. Anything that negatively impacts organization's ability to achieve its financial and other…

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All Shareholders Are Not Equal

All Shareholders Are Not Equal "In corporate finance, you are taught that a company doesn’t need to diversify because shareholders can always diversify. That's true, but it also implies that if companies that aren’t diversified have core products that fail, the company fails too." A story in The Financial Times talks about a press release from Continental Auto Group—a German parts supplier to the automotive manufacturing sector. They announced a significant amount of employment cuts due to the shift toward electric and mobility in the automotive sector. At the same time, The Wall Street Journal reports that Cadillac, owned by General Motors, is preparing a big shift…

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Who are you listening to?

Who are you listening to? The final story is about how one of the main sovereign wealth funds in Abu Dhabi has gone on a significant investment streak despite uncertainty due to COVID-19. It’s a nice piece about the head of the fund and how he’s built his career from the early days when the leader of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi tapped him to manage a gas line expansion project, and he did such a good job that they asked him to manage the sovereign wealth fund. I want to talk about the position this article takes. The majority of interviews in that article are with people who benefit from the sovereign wealth fund choosing to loosen their purse strings and make investments. The comments are obviously congratulatory. They only have amazing things to say about this leader because he has the vision, boldness and courage to make investments when no one else is. To me, the article is surprisingly one-sided. The article should be interviewing people who wouldn’t benefit from the sovereign wealth fund making investments—and getting their views on whether the sovereign wealth fund is doing the right thing or doing something that might hurt them in the future. Now, we…

Who are you listening to? The final story is about how one of the main sovereign wealth funds in Abu Dhabi has gone on a significant investment streak despite uncertainty due to COVID-19. It’s a nice piece about the head of the fund and how he’s built his career from the early days when the leader of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi tapped him to manage a gas line expansion project, and he did such a good job that they asked him to manage the sovereign wealth fund. I want to talk about the position this article takes. The majority of interviews…

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Turning Around Barnes and Noble 

Turning Around Barnes and Noble  The Wall Street Journal had another great piece about the new CEO who is going to turn around Barnes and Noble. There are two big insights from the article: You have to break with conventional wisdom, and you have to localize. Bookstores are set up a lot like the earlier example about music stores. The publisher has certain high-profile authors they want to promote with certain high-profile deals. A lot of the deals that bookstores and publishers make revolve around massive promotional campaigns. The CEO of Barnes and Noble has said they’re not going to do that anymore. He has decentralized authority so that purchasing will be done centrally, but the decision about what to purchase will be made by the person running that local Barnes and Noble store. Barnes and Noble has made many other changes like displaying books on round tables versus rectangular tables. They've also moved away from pushing electronics and toys and have returned to promoting books. Challenging conventional wisdom is a big thing, and it comes down to confidence. No matter where you are in the world—whether you are an analyst, a manager or a CEO—it's easy to make a recommendation, plan, strategy…

Turning Around Barnes and Noble  The Wall Street Journal had another great piece about the new CEO who is going to turn around Barnes and Noble. There are two big insights from the article: You have to break with conventional wisdom, and you have to localize. Bookstores are set up a lot like the earlier example about music stores. The publisher has certain high-profile authors they want to promote with certain high-profile deals. A lot of the deals that bookstores and publishers make revolve around massive promotional campaigns. The CEO of Barnes and Noble has said they’re not going to do that anymore.…

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How Emerson and it’s CEO, David Farr, are responding to COVID-19

How Emerson and it's CEO, David Farr, are responding to COVID-19 There’s a piece from the Wall Street Journal about how Emerson, a conglomerate, and its CEO, David Farr, has been responding to COVID-19. We often think of strategy as a document we put together. We often think of decision making as the process of putting together a proposal, presenting it to executives, and then letting people make decisions over an eight-week period. But the reality is that as soon as your strategy meets reality, reality always wins. For many critical decisions, you don’t have the luxury of time to appoint a team or hire a consulting firm to give you a recommendation after eight weeks. When you think about strategy, you have a document or you have a plan. As you start rolling out that plan, numerous issues crop up. You have to be an executive who can make decisions on the fly, using instinct and experience. You will rarely have enough of the right data, enough time to analyze that data, and enough time to think about the analyses. Most often, you will have to make a lot of the back-of-the-envelope calculations. In the Corporate Strategy and Transformation program, we emphasize that a lot…

How Emerson and it's CEO, David Farr, are responding to COVID-19 There’s a piece from the Wall Street Journal about how Emerson, a conglomerate, and its CEO, David Farr, has been responding to COVID-19. We often think of strategy as a document we put together. We often think of decision making as the process of putting together a proposal, presenting it to executives, and then letting people make decisions over an eight-week period. But the reality is that as soon as your strategy meets reality, reality always wins. For many critical decisions, you don’t have the luxury of time to appoint a team or hire…

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