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An HBR Refresher on Breakeven Quantity

Harvard Business Review

Can you justify the price tag of the ad you want to buy or the marketing campaign you’re hoping to launch next quarter? If the company doesn’t sell the equivalent of the BEQ as a result of the investment, then it’s losing money and it won’t recoup its costs. First, look at fixed costs.

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Hospital Budget Systems Are Holding Back Innovation

Harvard Business Review

Each of the new companies offers the hope of transforming the performance of the U.S. Despite a one-year payback period and a highly positive net present value (NPV) from this investment, the department will often reject the attractive opportunity. Gillian Blease/Getty Images. health care system.

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Walmart Broadens ROI for Green Power

Harvard Business Review

When addressing the company's aspirational goal of using 100% renewable energy, Bedore said two noteworthy things. Renewables are still providing only a tiny percentage of the company's total electricity demand, but it's definite progress. The company can also reap the immediate variable cost benefits of free power.

ROI 13
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An Inside View of How LVMH Makes Luxury More Sustainable

Harvard Business Review

The companies that are most vocal about environmental and social issues tend to be big, mass-market brands — well-known retailers , consumer products giants , and tech firms that are telling a new story to consumers who increasingly care about sustainability. These companies can’t ignore sustainability.

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Obama Gave a Monumental Climate Change Speech, But It's Still Not Enough

Harvard Business Review

The largest, glaring gap in the speech was any mention of a price on carbon, by far the most effective action we can take to tackle climate change. But costs per kilowatt-hour don''t mean spending more if you''re getting efficient quickly enough and buying your own renewables (which many companies, for their part, are also already doing).

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How to Better Manage Your Company’s Utility Bills

Harvard Business Review

For all but a few process-focused companies or those with energy-intensive facilities such as data centers, the utility bill is generally filed under the list of uncontrollable, take-it-or-leave-it costs of doing business. Four energy strategies can improve a bottom line and company image. More or less every major company in the U.S.