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How CMOs Can Get CFOs on Their Side

Harvard Business Review

Just 36 percent of CMOs, for example, have quantitatively proven the short-term impact of marketing spend, according to the 2013 CMO Survey (and for demonstrating long-term impact, that figure drops to 32 percent). To date, however, the reality of marketing analytics has fallen short of the promise. Why is this so challenging?

CFO 8
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Will You Be Writing Off Your Investment in Egypt?

Harvard Business Review

In both places, we know the instability will worsen macroeconomic performance in the short term. If that is the case, and the faster growth generates higher profits for them over the long term, that might well compensate for any short-term losses from the disruption. Tunisia and Egypt are cases in point.

NPV 12
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How to Improve Your Finance Skills (Even If You Hate Numbers)

Harvard Business Review

But having a grasp of terms like EBITDA and net present value are important no matter where you sit on the org chart. The most important concepts to grasp are “how to measure profitability, EBITDA, operating income, revenue, and operating expenses,” he says. The Refresher: Net Present Value.

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Warren Buffett's 2010 Shareholder Letter: What to Expect

Harvard Business Review

But why compare apples (book value) to oranges (share price and dividends)? Buffett explains that book value is the best proxy for "intrinsic value," the net present value of all estimated future cash flows. Consider that since 1965, Berkshire's book value grew 434,057% and the S&P index grew only 5,430%.

Letter 15
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Shape Strategy With Simple Rules, Not Complex Frameworks

Harvard Business Review

Rail accounted for only 20% of long-haul shipments in Brazil, compared with 80% in most countries. Any proposal, the rules said, should: remove obstacles to growing revenues, minimize up-front expenditure, provide benefits immediately (rather than paying off in the long term), and. reuse existing resources.

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Stop Focusing on Profitability and Go for Growth

Harvard Business Review

Today, the average cost of equity capital sits at close to half that: just 8% for the roughly 1600 companies comprising the Value Line Index. So, in real terms, debt financing is essentially free. In these circumstances, strategies that generate faster growth create more value for most companies than those that improve profit margins.

ROE 14
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Is Your Business Biased Against Innovation?

Strategy Driven

Many conventional metrics we use to estimate value are based on faulty assumptions. Net present value [NPV] is a case in point. Companies have long struggled to generate sustained profitable growth – and few have succeeded. If it is positive, it’s thumbs up, if it’s negative, it’s thumbs down.