article thumbnail

Winning the Elusive Marquee-Brand Customer Advocate

Harvard Business Review

The marketing head of an ambitious technology firm recently shared with me a vexing problem: Apple was one of their customers. As Michael Stephenson , a key leader in global customer programs at Oracle puts it, his firm has various business units that focus on specific industries. But it is not insoluble.

Brand 8
article thumbnail

People Suffer at Work When They Can’t Discuss the Racial Bias They Face Outside of It

Harvard Business Review

To drive home the urgency, the coalition’s website, CEOAction.com , directs visitors to research showing that diverse teams and inclusive leaders unleash innovation, eradicate groupthink, and spur market growth. But as Tim Ryan, U.S.

Ryan 8
Insiders

Sign Up for our Newsletter

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

article thumbnail

The 3 Things CEOs Worry About the Most

Harvard Business Review

Please note that titles used here reflect the positions the individuals held in 2013, when we conducted the interviews for a separate article ). Randall Stephenson of AT&T explained, “We had 270,000 people we employed around the globe. So the challenge was to have the broad marketing strategies with local adaptations.”

CEO 8
article thumbnail

How to Conduct an Effective Job Interview

Harvard Business Review

As the employment market improves and candidates have more options , hiring the right person for the job has become increasingly difficult. Begin this process by “compiling a list of required attributes” for the position, suggests Fernández-Aráoz. Chris Smith and Chris Stephenson. Further Reading.

How To 8
article thumbnail

Why Mergers Like the At&T-Time Warner Deal Should Go Through

Harvard Business Review

But CEO Randall Stephenson immediately denied both versions, and reiterated that the company will not let go of either CNN or the deal itself, pledging to fight the government if necessary. Later stories reported it was AT&T that had offered to sell CNN. Posner, who introduced microeconomics to antitrust analysis during the 1970s.

article thumbnail

The Rise, Fall, and Rebirth of the U.S. Antitrust Movement

Harvard Business Review

Adopting the Chicago School’s assumptions of self-correcting markets, composed of rational, self-interested market participants, some courts and enforcers sacrificed important political, social, and moral values to promote certain economic beliefs. Competition, for them, was innately effective.