In the CEO Afterlife

DECEMBER 7, 2014

Risk-averse CEOs find comfort in the ‘ doing more of the same’ strategic mode. The essence of sacrifice in her mind was giving up something of value for another consideration; when people are together they are more collaborative and innovative. There are plenty of generic strategic choices to drive a business forward.

Human Resources 183

Human Resources Restructuring Competitive Advantage Marketing Strategy 183

In the CEO Afterlife

AUGUST 1, 2011

In the CEO Afterlife. by John • August 1, 2011 • Branding , Marketing • 0 Comments. To its credit, GSK still owns Macleans and although it is no longer the #3 brand, chomping at the tails of Colgate and Crest, Macleans has benefitted from contemporary marketing and dental care innovation in a few geographies.

Brand 170

Brand CEO Stage-Gate Marketing 170

Chart Your Course

APRIL 29, 2013

s fledgling CEO Marissa Mayer made her first misstep. Innovation has always been what makes good businesses great. And innovation does not happen without change and risk. Armed with ready ideas, the lead team can decide who will post what and when, creating a consistent, time-efficient social marketing strategy.

White Paper 231

White Paper Human Resources Consensus Case Study 231

In the CEO Afterlife

MAY 23, 2011

In the CEO Afterlife. by John • May 23, 2011 • Branding , Marketing • 3 Comments. In my day, I started with strategy. Jack Welch’s replacement wanted ‘Innovation at Work’ — not bad for culture and corporate morale, but in my view, short on consumer relativity. Human Resources.

Brand 196

Brand CEO Marketing Proposal 196

In the CEO Afterlife

MARCH 19, 2012

Last week I identified the successful 21 st century CEO as someone who is constantly thinking about the future. I also made the point that the 21 st century CEOs will not allow the changing business, social, economic or technological environments to negatively impact the performance of their enterprise. CEOs will be time-starved.

CEO 204

CEO Competitive Advantage Teamwork Marketing 204

In the CEO Afterlife

AUGUST 1, 2011

In the CEO Afterlife. by John • August 1, 2011 • Branding , Marketing • 0 Comments. To its credit, GSK still owns Macleans and although it is no longer the #3 brand, chomping at the tails of Colgate and Crest, Macleans has benefitted from contemporary marketing and dental care innovation in a few geographies.

Brand 131

Brand CEO Stage-Gate Marketing 131

In the CEO Afterlife

JULY 24, 2011

In the CEO Afterlife. by John • July 24, 2011 • Branding , Marketing • 3 Comments. Here’s a clue to the French liquor-maker’s culture, from their annual report: “We will continue to raise our game so that creativity and innovation are the heart of our model. Human Resources. Main menu Home.

CEO 100

CEO Advertising Brand Creativity 100

In the CEO Afterlife

NOVEMBER 13, 2011

In the CEO Afterlife. by John • November 13, 2011 • Branding , Life , Marketing • 5 Comments. I’ve never thought of the homeless as innovative or entrepreneurial. Formerlife: CEO of Jacobs Suchard (Nabob, Kraft), Strategy/Branding Consultant. Human Resources. Main menu Home. Leadership.

Brand 245

Brand Merchandising Entrepreneur Audience 245

In the CEO Afterlife

MAY 6, 2012

So much has been written about business innovation this past year. Those walking the talk are on Fast Company’s list of the World’s 50 Most Innovative Companies. Are we to deduce that innovation is the domain of new economy and early-stage life cycle businesses? These innovators love playing rocket man. Last year, J.C.

Chief Operating Officer 202

Chief Operating Officer Chief Technology Officer CEO Innovation 202

In the CEO Afterlife

MAY 1, 2012

No doubt, many CEOs will try to replicate the principles that catapulted Apple to the most valuable company on the face of the earth. Magic can’t happen in cultures that don’t worship innovation. Innovation starts with leadership. Most big company cultures are not innovative. Every innovation is applauded.

Mission Statement 222

Mission Statement Innovation Committee CEO 222

In the CEO Afterlife

MARCH 1, 2016

Thirty-five years ago at a ceremony in Vancouver, BC, I accepted AMA’s Marketer-of-the-Year Award on behalf of Nabob Foods. This company earned that honor by re-staging a tired coffee brand with innovative packing technology and breakthrough advertising. In the CEO Afterlife. Complexity Cripples.

Brand 100

Brand Competitive Advantage Marketing Strategy CEO 100

In the CEO Afterlife

FEBRUARY 4, 2015

A good CEO costs no more than a bad one – sometimes far less when you consider costly mistakes and lucrative severance packages. The same argument can be made for strategies. The very best strategies aren’t generated by outside strategic planning consultants who bill thousands of dollars a day. There are far more than you think.

Competitive Advantage 100

Competitive Advantage How To Human Resources Strategy 100

Marshall Goldsmith

FEBRUARY 8, 2018

Frances Hesselbein – Former CEO, Girl Scouts of America and Peter Drucker Foundation. Alan Mulally – Former CEO, Ford and Boeing Commercial Aircraft. CEO Magazine – CEO of the Year. Co-founder of Rose Park Advisors—Disruptive Innovation Fund. A leading thinker on strategy and breakthrough innovation.

Executive Coaching 70

Executive Coaching CEO Magazine Banking 70

In the CEO Afterlife

FEBRUARY 5, 2011

In the CEO Afterlife. Brand Surgery – excerpts from my Marketing Magazine article. by John • February 5, 2011 • Branding , Leadership , Marketing , Strategy • 1 Comment. The role has been relegated to middle managers who are brand custodians, not leaders in innovation. Human Resources.

Magazine 100

Magazine Brand Article Marketing 100

In the CEO Afterlife

JULY 2, 2012

However, now that I look back from the CEO afterlife, I realize that this view need not be pervasive. But in my final years as CEO of a growing, profitable consumer packaged goods enterprise, it was senseless to engage in bitter wars that challenged margins. A competitor doesn’t have to fail; they too, can make a profit.

Sports 228

Sports Tactics Competitive Advantage Short-term 228

In the CEO Afterlife

FEBRUARY 26, 2012

You be obsessed with innovation. They leverage their financial resources. Achieving the right culture is possible, but it seldom happens unless the organization is blessed with a strong and tenacious CEO who passionately practices the tenets of entrepreneurial leadership. You grow by doing less, better.

Creativity 240

Creativity Brand Management Marketing Resistance 240

In the CEO Afterlife

MARCH 28, 2012

During my tenure as a CEO, my Board of Directors never challenged me with questions pertaining to the corporate culture. Imagine Apple without innovators or Zappos neglecting service or Whole Foods selling a slew of processed foods loaded with saturated fat. And when they are long gone, the culture is left to the CEO to nurture.

Competitive Advantage 131

Competitive Advantage Long-term CEO Ethics 131

In the CEO Afterlife

FEBRUARY 20, 2015

During my tenure as a CEO, my Board of Directors never posed questions pertaining to corporate culture. Envision Google without innovators, or Zappos cutting corners on customer service. They determine that next line of CEOs and they keep an eye on corporate performance. That’s a big mistake. . Some do it well. Others do not.

Long-term 100

Long-term Download CEO Objective 100

In the CEO Afterlife

APRIL 5, 2016

Companies say they want to be customer-centric, to be innovative, to produce outstanding products and services, to be environmentally responsible, to be socially responsible, and so on. We read about these factors in the quintessential mission statements that occupy real estate in annual reports and gather dust in reception lobbies.

Teamwork 100

Teamwork Real Estate Mission Statement Merchandising 100

In the CEO Afterlife

SEPTEMBER 8, 2015

When I was a CMO and CEO, I operated with an entrepreneurial mindset that required taking decisions as early as possible. Competitive advantage, not information, is power. Entrepreneurial Mindset Power. Now, I don’t want anyone to think that I don’t value information technology. But, I’m a disciple of point #4.

Power 100

Power Competitive Advantage Airlines Information 100

In the CEO Afterlife

OCTOBER 17, 2011

In the CEO Afterlife. The CEO as Chief Brand Custodian. by John • October 17, 2011 • Branding , Human Resources , Leadership , Marketing , Strategy • 3 Comments. Never in the history of marketing has there been so much talk about branding. Wouldn’t you expect more innovation?

Brand 168

Brand CEO Stage-Gate SWOT 168

In the CEO Afterlife

AUGUST 6, 2013

Wouldn’t you expect more innovation? I am making the case for CMOs and CEOs to recognize the necessity of their own direct and passionate involvement as chief brand custodians. With the exception of niche, specialty, and some consumer technology markets, I see less and less of this in big business. That’s an understatement.

Brand 260

Brand P&L Human Resources Brand Management 260

In the CEO Afterlife

DECEMBER 29, 2013

For the sake of brevity, I’ll list just five similarities between HR and brand marketing. HR’s product is the corporation’s human resource , the people required to build the product, produce it, sell it, ship it, invoice it and service it. Marketers determine how to bring the brand promise to life. Everything.

Marketing 173

Marketing Human Capital Human Resources Brand 173

In the CEO Afterlife

APRIL 13, 2015

Or could it be something more, something about the human spirit that has us looking ahead to a better future for ourselves, our families, and every living thing on the planet. To every one of us, the future is important. Maybe it’s because the future is where we are going to spend the rest of our lives.

Sports 100

Sports Ethics Travel Follow-up 100

Harvard Business Review

JULY 10, 2012

These are the executives who run discrete businesses and control all of the resources associated with them. But in many large companies, the only true general manager is the CEO. In fact, for many chief executives I've recently worked with, the first real GM job that they had was CEO! But today no one gets that experience.

Management 13

Management P&L Incubator Finance 13

In the CEO Afterlife

APRIL 22, 2015

New Coke lasted 79 days before the original formula returned to the market. Kudos to CEO Roberto Goizueta for having the good sense, (and the courage) to “kill his darling” and reinstate Coke Classic. I consider Google a tier-one innovator. Twenty years ago, Nestlé could see that the instant coffee market was broken.

Brand 100

Brand Core Competence Retail Advertising 100

In the CEO Afterlife

MARCH 18, 2015

CEOs talk focus all the time and nod to its importance, but few take the necessary measures to cut through complexity and clear a path to clarity and coherence. The outcome of ‘doing less better’ in market scope has been stellar; past five years sales have doubled and earnings have tripled. In-N-Out Burger.

Apparel 100

Apparel Brand Franchising Competitive Advantage 100

In the CEO Afterlife

NOVEMBER 4, 2012

But even artists have to eat, and the fuel of commerce and industry is innovation and novelty. This hybridization of the arts and business is nothing new of course – it’s been going on for centuries – but they have always been uncomfortable bed-fellows. Let’s trade. Will work for food!” as the street-beggars sign says.

Advertising 265

Advertising Creativity Industry Bottom-up 265

In the CEO Afterlife

APRIL 10, 2011

In the CEO Afterlife. by John • April 11, 2011 • Human Resources , Strategy • 0 Comments. Sixty-five innovative operations - four in the state of California alone. EA says that would stifle innovation. Know the reputation of the CEO. The style of the company will be that of the CEO.

CEO 170

CEO Advice Company Competitive Advantage 170

In the CEO Afterlife

MARCH 3, 2014

By contrast, Schultz, Starbucks CEO, is strategically bold, entrepreneurially bold, and imaginatively bold. Bold Innovation. The bolder you are in the search for innovation, the more likely you are to unearth the big idea. I’ll compare this to the “fire, ready, aim” approach of innovation. Donald Trump is bold.

Human Resources 214

Human Resources Airlines Marketing Strategy Discount 214

In the CEO Afterlife

JUNE 10, 2015

For example, we know that a great strategy without great execution isn’t worth the paper it’s written on. Culture, strategy, leadership, branding, innovation, customer orientation and employee centricity must co-exist. So why then, has strategy been singled out as the whipping boy? Most leaders and managers know this.

Strategy 100

Strategy Critical Success Factor McKinsey Retail 100