Leading Blog

JUNE 23, 2020

W HEN David Cote became CEO of Honeywell in February of 2002, the company was a train wreck. He developed three principles of short- and long -term performance that forced them to consider the long- and short-term implication in every decision they made: 1. Grow while keeping fixed costs constant.

Short-term 275

Short-term Long-term Fixed Costs Efficiency 275

The Practical Leader

JUNE 23, 2021

In his book, Lovemarks: The Future Beyond Brands , Kevin Roberts, CEO of the global advertising agency, Saatchi & Saatchi, explains that fads attract, but without love, it’s a passing infatuation. Airline revenues collapsed while fixed costs stayed high. That’s particularly true in the airline industry.

Airlines 64

Airlines Fixed Costs Collins Video 64

Harvard Business Review

MARCH 28, 2011

Most companies focus on minimizing costs rather than maximizing flexibility, which would entail making large investments in supply chains. For instance, many companies feel they don't need to develop alternatives to Japanese suppliers because they buy so little from them nowadays. Variabilizing costs. to RMB 4.5

Supply Chain 15

Supply Chain Fixed Costs Price Crisis 15

Harvard Business Review

MAY 9, 2013

Victors and Spoils (V&S), where John is CEO, for example, wanted to land the Harley Davidson account after the motorcycle maker split with its long-time agency. Harley helped V&S launch Fan Machine by enlisting its fans to develop a new campaign.

Advertising 9

Advertising Brand Innovation Creativity 9

Harvard Business Review

APRIL 6, 2016

The latest nuclear reactor designs, promising higher safety, longer operating life, and lower operating costs, cost up to $25 billion after factoring in the huge budget overruns. This all presents CEOs with a tough dilemma. They also took an equity stake in ASML of 15%, 5%, and 3%, respectively.

Co-Opetition 8

Co-Opetition Operations Cost Technology 8

Harvard Business Review

FEBRUARY 22, 2011

As each of these companies expands its fixed-cost infrastructure, profits grow geometrically because the additional variable cost of adding each new user is near zero. Adding a profile on Facebook has little to no impact on Facebook's operating costs. Greater scale bestows greater competitive advantage.

CPA 15

CPA CPM Advertising Disintermediation 15

Harvard Business Review

SEPTEMBER 9, 2015

During an economic crisis, the exaggerated decline in orders can be especially damaging to upstream suppliers that have high fixed costs tied to production assets. Ford CEO Alan Mulally tried to mitigate the impending bullwhip during the 2008 financial crisis by imploring the U.S.

Supply Chain 8

Supply Chain Retail Crisis Operations 8