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Why America Is Losing Its Entrepreneurial Edge

Harvard Business Review

The rate of business formation in 2011 was almost half of what it was in 1978, with the rate of dissolution somewhat higher than the past couple decades. This paper by the Richmond Fed shows how from 1960 to 2005, the U.S. Also, consider the need for new products and services in a country full of concentrated industries.

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An Insider’s Account of the Yahoo-Alibaba Deal

Harvard Business Review

In May of 2005, Yahoo CEO Terry Semel, cofounder Jerry Yang, corporate development executive Toby Coppel, and I — I was then chief financial officer of the Silicon Valley internet company — went on what would turn out to be a fateful trip to China. Not surprisingly, this didn’t sit well with the local team.

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Fixing the World's Infrastructure Problems

Harvard Business Review

Just a few examples illustrate some of the pressing issues: South Africa''s power distribution network has an estimated maintenance backlog of $4 billion — equivalent to half of the country''s total investment in electric power generation and distribution in 2011. Global business Productivity Transportation PDF'

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Private Equity Can Make Firms More Innovative

Harvard Business Review

If you ask someone who works in finance (as I had to) about PE and innovation, he or she will likely tell you that PE sponsors aren’t looking for the next big thing—they’re looking for companies that are dominant in a market, aren’t risky, and have a predictable and steady stream of cash to pay back debt.

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How to Know If a Spin-Off Will Succeed

Harvard Business Review

These preparatory steps are of particular importance for carve-outs that are not full-fledged business units with profit & loss responsibility, such as R&D centers or production units whose only customer is their parent. The outsiders provide new blood in support functions such as finance, legal, or administration.

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Why We Shouldn’t Worry About the Declining Number of Public Companies

Harvard Business Review

They operate as lean organizations, using cloud and internet-based infrastructure, and launch and distribute products more quickly than did firms that competed with factories, warehouses, inventories, and suppliers. Furthermore, as production shifts to Asia and more and more U.S. retains its leadership in technological progress.

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How Chinese Companies Can Develop Global Brands

Harvard Business Review

Also, while China’s outward-bound foreign direct investment (FDI) has grown from an annual average of below $3 billion before 2005 to more than $60 billion in 2010 and 2011, only one third of Chinese companies have seen international revenue meet expectations, according to Accenture. Rebrand from the inside out.

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