Harvard Business Review

NOVEMBER 30, 2016

Activists’ interventions are often described, favorably or not depending on your point of view, as slashing and burning, taking out cost, and engaging in financial engineering. Now, you will have to translate your strategic thinking into a value creation plan that your management team and board will embrace.

Management 8

Management Short-term Constraint Apparel 8

Harvard Business Review

MAY 26, 2016

Producers in less-developed countries compete by keeping costs low. Conventional wisdom holds that improving working conditions (which typically costs money) would undermine the competitive advantage these firms enjoy. Managers hold virtually all decision-making authority. Insight Center. Operations in a Connected World.

Lean Manufacturing 9

Lean Manufacturing Supply Chain Apparel Compliance 9

Harvard Business Review

JUNE 24, 2015

We are on the verge of a major upheaval in the way inventory is managed. In order to make effective use of this new data and to stay competitive, managers will need to redesign their supply-chain processes. For example, does use of these data-driven tools lower cost and/or enhance customer service? Why does this matter?

Supply Chain 8

Supply Chain Management Constraint Apparel 8

Harvard Business Review

JULY 8, 2016

The American textile and apparel industries, for example, will tell you that the evidence can be found in the blood on the floor — their blood, on what used to be their floor. The first will be continued displacement by ever-more-competitive Chinese companies who compete on cost. Drucker Forum 2016: The Entrepreneurial Society.

Business Model 10

Business Model Innovation Company Apparel 10

Harvard Business Review

JUNE 3, 2015

But it’s less well known that efficiency is a problem for startups too, whose processes also become less flexible as they focus on efficiencies in their quest to move up market. Today, still under the marvelous management of Tony Hsieh, Zappos sales are well over $2 billion. The size of the apparel market only in the U.S.

Apparel 8

Apparel Strategy Insourcing Efficiency 8

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 21, 2011

Seven American solar-equipment manufacturers have claimed that their Chinese counterparts enjoy an unfair cost advantage in the form of subsidies. China is America's third-largest export market, behind Canada and Mexico, accounting for 7% of US exports as of August 2011. Most of these imports went to American multinational giants.

Apparel 14

Apparel Real Estate Automotive Globalization 14

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 20, 2011

Malthus strikes back: Coca-Cola takes an $800 million hit on commodity costs. Coca-Cola was not alone in facing increasing costs in 2011; one of my clients, Kimberly-Clark, took an earnings hit from record pulp prices. The best analysis of the resource scarcity mega-trend came from asset manager Jeremy Grantham.

Supply Chain 15

Supply Chain Apparel P&L Long-term 15

Harvard Business Review

JANUARY 3, 2017

Retailers such as ALDI and Walmart have used price to position themselves against traditional competitors in their markets, pinching margins all around. Financial asset managers have been out-price-cutting one another in exchange-traded funds in a bid to gain market share. and Europe. All too often they don’t.

Price 14

Price Retail Discount Tactics 14

Harvard Business Review

SEPTEMBER 4, 2015

The last few weeks have brought news of turmoil in China, including currency devaluations, an economic slowdown, and a stock market plunge. Another indication that near-shoring is accelerating is the Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI). The move to low-cost manufacturing in the 1990s was driven in part by cheap oil prices.

Supply Chain 8

Supply Chain Survey Price Apparel 8

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 15, 2010

They make a deliberate choice about their "way to play" in the market, guided primarily by what those companies do uniquely well: their distinctive capabilities. Most important, they avoid markets, products or services that require new or disparate capabilities, and thus threaten the company's focus.

Succession 15

Succession Retail Merchandising Supply Chain 15

Harvard Business Review

NOVEMBER 22, 2017

An “operating model” — how a company organizes and manages its resources to achieve its strategic ambitions — is the bridge between strategy and execution. If your company’s promise to its customer is lowest costs, is everyone focused on cost control?

Strategy 8

Strategy Company Banking Apparel 8

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 7, 2017

It is tough to beat the market and over long periods of time indexing has been shown to outperform most active managers. On the other side, fans of active management see it as a trend that can damage market efficiency and lead to distortions in market prices. But what’s the role of investors?

Supply Chain 8

Supply Chain Asset Management Chemicals Long-term 8

Harvard Business Review

JUNE 21, 2013

Given the forecasts of uncertain global economic growth, we might expect companies to hold off from hiring new employees and to limit whatever international hiring they do to emerging markets. If, in addition, companies are managing their underperformers out poorly, the costs rise even further. Asia into North America).

Telecommunications 9

Telecommunications Health Care Talent Management Biotechnology 9

Harvard Business Review

MAY 8, 2012

The offsets become a tool, a last resort to be avoided, and both energy efficiency and using renewable energy (onsite or directly purchased) become the paths of least resistance and cost. And this charge will, in theory, move managers to make greener choices. Sales/Becoming the Vendor of Choice.

Price 13

Price P&L White Paper Energy 13

Harvard Business Review

APRIL 25, 2011

costofweddings.com estimates that the average couple spends $24,000 per wedding, probably an underestimate once one adds up a year's worth of planning for apparel, beauty treatments (including weight loss), officiants and music, venues and catering, and numerous other services. Brilliant brand management is multi-media and cause-related.

CEO 16

CEO Apparel GDP Audience 16

Harvard Business Review

NOVEMBER 19, 2015

For every Apple, there is an Atari, for every Fuji a Polaroid, and for every Zara an American Apparel. ” Only few firms manage to be ambidextrous—most struggle to maintain a healthy balance between exploration and exploitation. Some firms manage to maintain this dual discipline as they grow. points p.a.,

Company 8

Company Succession Maturity Long-term 8

Harvard Business Review

JUNE 22, 2012

But CEOs can't rely on cost-cutting to keep their profit momentum going — it's gone about as far as it can at most companies. Many chase market share they'll never get. A lot of companies throw money at the problem — more R&D, more marketing, more sales people. Nor can they rely on macroeconomic growth. Celebrate it.

Retail 11

Retail Long-term Short-term Apparel 11

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 22, 2015

Instead, leaders of these companies excel at five unconventional acts — management practices that contradict conventional wisdom. They avoid getting trapped on a growth treadmill, chasing multiple market opportunities where they have no right to win. But the companies we studied cut costs to grow stronger.

Execution 8

Execution Strategy Fashion Apparel 8

Harvard Business Review

MARCH 6, 2012

These factors include China's rapidly rising labor costs, which we discussed in an earlier HBR blog ; the increased value of the yuan; the challenge of managing long-distance supply chains; the quality control concerns that continue to haunt many manufacturers that have offshored production; and the significantly higher productivity of U.S.

Insourcing 9

Insourcing Supply Chain Offshoring Apparel 9

Harvard Business Review

FEBRUARY 13, 2017

So you look at past projects, gather and analyze relevant market data, make predictions about how much revenue you’ll be able to generate, decide what resources you’ll need, and set milestones to reach your targets. In short, too many firms used conventional planning to manage their new ventures. Not so fast.

Planning 9

Planning Benchmarking Project Competitive Advantage 9

Harvard Business Review

APRIL 23, 2014

Brands in categories from apparel to automotive to sporting goods to spirits are licensed. It can boost brand exposure and expansion without significant investment, helping companies enter international markets or play in new product categories without having to incur the usual product development costs and risks.

Brand 8

Brand Licensing Apparel Merchandising 8

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 23, 2015

Besides possibly saving humanity, the deal has another big upside — it signals to financial markets and businesses that the low carbon economy is worth investing in. Multi-trillion-dollar markets are in play and there will be many more winners than losers. Companies line up like never before for climate action.

Supply Chain 8

Supply Chain Apparel Energy Price 8

Harvard Business Review

OCTOBER 3, 2012

Among its intimate apparel store peers — who are in the business of helping women find the perfect undergarments through a sometimes thrilling and at other times exasperating process — Journelle stands out. Companies that made savvy business decisions were aware of, and responded to, their market and competitors' actions.

TSR 15

TSR Apparel Consultative Uncertainty 15

Harvard Business Review

SEPTEMBER 25, 2012

In the case of solar, vast investments in production capacity in China have quickly brought down the cost of panels — a jaw-dropping 65 percent slide in just 18 months. solar market). Upfront costs are falling, which makes the ongoing variable cost of renewables — that is, zero — even more attractive.

Energy 8

Energy Apparel Cost Entrepreneur 8

Harvard Business Review

APRIL 15, 2016

The cost of SMS in the country was as much as 55 times more than in North America and far too expensive for most residents. So when the messaging service WhatsApp entered the market, in 2009 , allowing users to send messages to anyone for free and regardless of their mobile carrier, people gravitated toward the platform.

Brand 8

Brand Real Estate Apparel Content 8

Harvard Business Review

MAY 24, 2013

In particular, many studies agree that a critical mass of women on boards — variously defined, but often somewhere around three women or 30% of the board — is positively correlated with performance measures like return on equity, Tobin''s Q, lower cost of debt, or quality of earnings.

Diversity 8

Diversity Proposal Apparel Benchmarking 8

Harvard Business Review

JANUARY 25, 2013

She started an eponymous foundation focused on understanding a better way for the economy to manage its resources. We have three billion new middle class consumers coming into the world and there's more and more pressure to find out how to manage these resources. The marketing model changes. I had no experience here.

Company 10

Company Apparel Engineering Welch 10

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 17, 2014

Identifying this so-called “growth gap” is critical, because the bigger the gap, the more a company needs to look beyond its current offerings, markets, and business models to find growth opportunities. By reaching new customers in current markets? Can you improve profits by streamlining costs?

Innovation 9

Innovation Company Venture Capitalist Business Model 9

Harvard Business Review

MARCH 12, 2014

By leveraging connected mobile devices such as smartphones, existing in-venue Wi-Fi networks, low cost Bluetooth-enabled beacons, and a handful of other technologies, location analytics vendors have made it possible to get location analytics solutions up and running fast at a minimal cost. Marketing.

Retail 8

Retail Customer Intimacy Apparel Wireless 8

Harvard Business Review

JANUARY 28, 2014

As The New York Times reports , Coca-Cola and Nike have come to see climate change as a threat to their ability to source the materials they need cost-effectively and reliably. Meanwhile, the world’s largest companies have begun to understand that their viability depends on a healthy world. They can …. Take Ownership. Take an Interest.

Golden Parachute 11

Golden Parachute Apparel Trends Short-term 11

Harvard Business Review

JUNE 2, 2015

But managers should think twice before making this leap: Instead of accepting the conventional wisdom, they should seriously consider following those companies that are taking a different path and moving down the value chain. Fashion apparel is an excellent example. Let’s look at each of these reasons. Increasing efficiency.

Supply Chain 8

Supply Chain Contract Manufacturing Outsourcing Operations 8

Harvard Business Review

FEBRUARY 27, 2017

In emerging markets, billions of people have moved out of extreme poverty. While the last wave of globalization centered on accessing foreign markets and creating low-cost global supply chains, the next wave could follow a very different pattern. “Strategies for Two-Sided Markets” 3. Essential background.

Globalization 8

Globalization Supply Chain Human Capital Long-term 8

Harvard Business Review

AUGUST 2, 2013

One company had three simultaneous mobile marketing initiatives, conducted by different groups, using different tools and vendors. If your company has wildly different digital marketing activities for each brand or region, you know what I mean. Are IT costs and agility what you want them to be? Is IT clearly running well?

CIO 8

CIO Technology Apparel Information Technology 8

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 20, 2016

I’ve found that managers who fully embrace a superconsumer strategy learn more from their consumers through increased empathy. These managers are more persuasive at getting buy-in from the leaders in their organization, make better strategic decisions, and achieve more stable, more predictable, and longer-term growth.

Airlines 8

Airlines Energy Self-aware Learning Curve 8

Harvard Business Review

OCTOBER 3, 2012

Among its intimate apparel store peers — who are in the business of helping women find the perfect undergarments through a sometimes thrilling and at other times exasperating process — Journelle stands out. Companies that made savvy business decisions were aware of, and responded to, their market and competitors' actions.

TSR 8

TSR Apparel Consultative Uncertainty 8

Harvard Business Review

OCTOBER 28, 2014

What distinguishes it from lower cost Walmart or more convenient Amazon? As the two markets homogenized into a general mass American market, focused mail-order retailers like Sears and Montgomery Ward saw sales and profits drop. Why buy clothes at its Kmart stores rather than at trendier Target? Apparently, it was big data.

Retail 9

Retail Quinn Real Estate Apparel 9

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 20, 2016

It’s not yet clear what Trump’s election means for issues that impact companies’ efforts to manage environmental and social issues. the Obama administration started to incorporate the “social cost of carbon” in decision-making and the Pentagon made climate change a military priority. In the U.S.,

Energy 8

Energy Banking Chemicals Globalization 8