Harvard Business Review

JULY 24, 2017

So four years ago, when I was CEO of GE Capital Retail Finance and tapped to lead a mega change initiative — splitting off our unit into a new, publicly traded company, Synchrony Financial — I’ll admit I viewed it as a huge challenge. Change management certainly tested us. I just didn’t know in what ways.

Management 11

Management IPO Diversity Long-term 11

Harvard Business Review

AUGUST 6, 2014

In each iteration, we spent a lot of time thinking about what might make the best use of our existing product. In hindsight, this thinking turned out to be far less important than what we learned about leadership, control, and trust, which ultimately were reflected in how each of the businesses was created, capitalized, and staffed.

Chief Financial Officer 10

Chief Financial Officer Operations Learning-by-Doing IPO 10

Harvard Business Review

MARCH 27, 2014

I still remember when Steve Jobs was featured in business school case studies as an example of bad leadership style. The consummate loner, Harano would likely have stayed off our radar screen, except that one day his unpredictable behavior led to a fantastically successful product.

Entrepreneur 8

Entrepreneur Venture Capitalist Business Incubator IPO 8

Harvard Business Review

AUGUST 27, 2018

The number of listed firms can decline because of three developments: 1) bankruptcy, failure, or closure of listed firms, 2) delisting of firms going private or acquired, and 3) decrease in number of initial public offerings (IPOs). Furthermore, as production shifts to Asia and more and more U.S.

IPO 11

IPO Company First-mover Advantage Intangible Assets 11

Harvard Business Review

SEPTEMBER 13, 2013

Between now and the IPO, every bit of information about the company’s finances and other metrics will be closely scrutinized. You can expect to see endless discussions in the press about revenue, valuation, user growth, and product. Research shows that firms’ management teams influence the success of their IPOs.

IPO 8

IPO Execution Incentives Finance 8

Harvard Business Review

SEPTEMBER 4, 2015

However, CEOs often don’t have the career background and education that would equip them to personally lead the process of new product development. This would mean, for example, working in R&D to lead pharma innovation, new product development for high tech, and product design or merchandising for fashion retail.

CEO 8

CEO Innovation Pharmaceuticals Merchandising 8

Harvard Business Review

NOVEMBER 20, 2013

Since positioning is vital in new markets, today’s boards must include Chief Marketing Officers, not just directors with operations or finance backgrounds. Government measures intended to cool an overheating economy, such as tightening loans and freezing IPOs, are holding back companies that need capital to grow. An HBR Insight Center.

Brand 8

Brand Globalization Company Development 8