Harvard Business Review

MAY 19, 2016

The heart of differentiation therefore is your company’s ability to develop and promote distinctive products, services, and branded experiences on a consistent basis. It became easier and easier for small enterprises to gain customer reach and awareness (along with working capital).

IAM 11

IAM Productivity Products Company 11

Harvard Business Review

AUGUST 28, 2018

Even when companies do want to expand their product offerings, internal preparation and sequencing can matter more than the innovation itself. Each was set loose to develop or acquire products to satisfy those markets. Once they have a strategy to fit the context, they can sequence out the various steps to implement it.

Productivity 8

Productivity Products Decentralization Resistance 8

Harvard Business Review

JANUARY 22, 2013

Like any small business, they need working capital to balance out the peaks and troughs of their business cycle. Sometimes they need bridging capital to pay for projects that are being grant-funded upon completion. This model is an innovative way for donors to achieve greater impact. But it is not the one you might think.

Banking 8

Banking Finance Due Diligence Short-term 8

Harvard Business Review

MAY 27, 2015

We see ourselves as risk-takers and innovators. In the past, economic development has prioritized big businesses. But these economic development strategies focused on big businesses, sometimes known as “elephant hunting,” may overstate the importance of large firms. Shift the focus to include small companies.

Entrepreneur 8

Entrepreneur Policies Banking Innovation 8

Harvard Business Review

JANUARY 10, 2013

The opportunity may entail: 1) pioneering a truly innovative product; 2) devising a new business model; 3) creating a better or cheaper version of an existing product; or 4) targeting an existing product to new sets of customers. For example, a new venture might employ a new business model for an innovative product.

Definition 10

Definition Entrepreneur Tactics Business Model 10

Harvard Business Review

FEBRUARY 17, 2012

What do you think causes millions of people to miss work and school in developing economies? Beyond the humiliating difficulties for millions of impoverished individual women trying to improve themselves and support their families, this is a global issue with significant consequences for the economies of developing countries.

Franchising 13

Franchising CEO GDP Entrepreneur 13

Harvard Business Review

DECEMBER 10, 2012

In this month's HBR, Professor Clayton Christensen and I have an article that describes how to develop core business strategy in the face of disruption. That 5% margin might come not from scale, but from the absence of stores, retail employees, and reduced working capital requirements.

Price 9

Price Retail Business Model Christensen 9

Harvard Business Review

JANUARY 17, 2013

Donations and grants don't allow them to innovate and grow. They have virtually no access to capital markets and little flexibility to experiment at various stages of growth. Compare that to the world of venture capital. Soon venture capital became a core part of many economies and those bold moves changed everything.

Venture Capitalist 12

Venture Capitalist Entrepreneur Bond Finance 12