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Assess Your CEO’s Strategic Fit Over Time

Harvard Business Review

However, by the middle of the decade, Google was growing, YouTube was forming, and “operational excellence” wasn’t a differentiating strategy in technology. Ballmer had done his job, but the strategic needs of the organization had shifted. Ballmer effectively led this shift and saw strong revenue growth from it.

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Why Innovators Should Study the Rise and Fall of the Venetian Empire

Harvard Business Review

From 697 to 1797 AD, Venice’s technological acumen, geographic position, and unconventionality were interlocking advantages that allowed the Most Serene Republic to flourish. Moreover, its Arsenal was no longer at the cutting edge of naval technology. This age of exploration triggered the beginning of Venice’s decline.

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How Merck Is Trying to Keep Disrupters at Bay

Harvard Business Review

Pharmaceutical companies, buffeted by regulatory changes, new drug technologies that alter entry barriers and competition, price pressures, and an estimated 300,000 job cuts since 2000, seem to fit the popular narrative of large organizations unable to deal with disruptive forces. It’s not just products.

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Corporate Writing Doesn’t Have to Sound Like It’s Written by Committee

Harvard Business Review

” – Marketing staff, technology/telecom company. ” – Marketing manager, technology/telecom company. ” – Marketing manager, technology/telecom company. Trying to make every player happy results in an end product… that is watered down and less effective.” Business Writing.

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You Can’t Engage Employees by Copying How Other Companies Do It

Harvard Business Review

Becton Dickinson , a global medical technology company, has made its purpose helping all people live healthier lives. Lacking a product or service that inspires, Essendant , a distributer of office and industrial supplies, made its selfless purpose to help their partners succeed.

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Deciding to Fix or Kill a Problem Product

Harvard Business Review

How can you tell if the product you are working on is likely to succeed or fail? Situation One: It’s a Technology in Search of a Need. The result was multiple product launches and more than 10 years of limited or no success in the connected home space. But products often fall short of these high expectations.