Strategy | INSEAD Knowledge

worker in a suit sitting next to a robot

Entrepreneurship

AI Is Coming for All Our Jobs... Or Is It?

Rachel Eva Lim

How leaders, employees and organisations can better prepare themselves for the impact of AI.

Career

The World’s Most Talent Competitive Countries, 2023

B. Lanvin, F. Monteiro

The tenth anniversary edition of the Global Talent Competitiveness Index reveals changing attitudes and persistent trends.

Strategy

Shareholder Activism at What Price?

Philipp Meyer-Doyle

Financially driven campaigns waged by institutional investors against companies can lead to more workplace illness and injury.

Strategy

Regrowing Local Roots

Yves Doz

Why and how to reinvent multinational management skills

Career

INSEAD Insights: October 2023 Research Picks

Lily Fang

Recent findings on bias in employee evaluations, shareholder activism, children’s mental health, the meaning of work and knowledge weighting.

Strategy

How Does Self-Serving Attribution Affect Strategic Decisions?

Ji-Yub (Jay) Kim

How a firm evaluates its past alliance performance can influence its choice between future alliances and acquisitions.

Strategy

A Simple Corporate Strategy for a Better Political Game

Xiaowei Rose Luo

Even within the same government, different branches may have divergent goals. Here’s how firms can play this to their advantage.

Designing smart business strategies to serve the poor

Strategy

A Smarter Way to Design Business Strategies to Serve the Poor

I. Popescu, B.S. Uppari, S. Netessine, R. Clarke

With intelligent modelling, a little data can go a long way when it comes to predicting the performance of bottom-of-the-pyramid strategies.

Strategy

How to Destigmatise Repulsive Products

S. Harrison, S. Nurmohamed

Entrepreneurs can leverage “dirty creativity” to pitch unusual products that consumers may find objectionable.

Responsibility

ESG Is Not Impact

Jasjit Singh

ESG efforts are essential for reducing harm, but it is not the same as striving for a net positive impact.

Strategy

Is the Globalisation Recession Here to Stay?

Marcos Troyjo

Potential pathways to a new chapter for globalisation in an increasingly disconnected world.

Strategy

A First Step Towards Resilient Organisations

Ekin Ilseven

Cultivating resilience in the face of organisational crises hinges on the foundation of a clear strategy, heightened awareness and robust reserves.

Marketing

INSEAD Insights: September 2023 Research Picks

Lily Fang

Recent findings on online marketplace dynamics, new market creation, trust in AI, diversity in corporate boards and consumer choices.

Strategy

A Nondisruptive Approach to the Environment

W. C. Kim, R. Mauborgne, M. Ji

Companies can help the transition to a greener economy without sacrificing their financial interests.

Strategy

Mastering the Game: The Advantage of AI Training

Henning Piezunka

In the same way chess computers gave players a competitive edge, AI has the power to elevate skills and enhance performance.

Entrepreneurship

How Founding Conditions Impact Start-Up Success

D. C. Motley, C. E. Eesley, W. W. Koo

Diverse founding teams formed in unpredictable environments tend to perform better in similar subsequent conditions.

Managing the Black Box Crucial to Megaproject Success

Strategy

Inside the Black Box Crucial to Megaproject Success

S. Shekshnia, V. Vyas

Despite their importance to the global economy, most megaprojects fail to be delivered on budget or schedule. Here’s how managers could improve on that dismal record.

Unconventional thinking: man with balloon rises to reach target

Strategy

How LLMs Can Change the Way We Strategise

E. Ilseven, Y. Doz

LLMs have notable limitations when it comes to strategy formulation, but deliberately imperfect prompts can challenge conventional thinking.

Strategy

Democracy, Defence and Conflict in the Age of AI

Rachel Eva Lim

How can we ensure that AI fosters, rather than undermines, democratic values?

Strategy

Must AI Accuracy Come at the Cost of Comprehensibility?

F. Candelon, T. Evgeniou, D. Martens

Companies looking to integrate AI in their operations should think twice before turning their backs on simpler, more explainable AI algorithms in favour of complex ones.

Leadership & Organisations

Stop Going It Alone

Michael Jarrett

Negotiating radical organisational change needs to be a collective effort.

Strategy

The Importance of Strategic Minds

Y. Doz, K. Wilson

Directors and CEOs need to develop specific traits to effectively navigate strategic issues and help shape the future of companies.

Navigating trust and safety in a world of AI

Operations

Navigating Trust and Safety in the World of Generative AI

T. Evgeniou, J. Dunn, A. Hunsberger

The new generation of artificial intelligence can help defend against online harms – if we can effectively manage the risks.

Strategy

How AI Can Improve Human Performance

F. Gaessler, H. Piezunka

AI training enhances strategic skills, especially in lower-skilled individuals. But it isn’t a perfect substitute for human training partners.

understanding depopulation could be good for business

Economics & Finance

Why Demographics Matters More Than Ever for Businesses

C. Zeisberger, D. G. Munro

How understanding expanding and shrinking population subsets could help business and investors identify opportunities to pursue and pitfalls to avoid.

Strategy

ChatGPT and AI Disruption: Is Consulting Next in Line?

Phil Parker

Consultants need to up their game to match algorithms’ ability to provide affordable strategic due diligence.

Strategy

Developing AI With a Growth Mindset

T. Ojanperä, T. Vuori, Q. Huy

Nurture AI like you would a child.

Operations

The Road Ahead for XR Technology in Business Education

INSEAD Knowledge

How business schools can navigate the challenges and maximise the impact of immersive learning using VR.

Strategy

Leveraging Generative AI for Digital Transformation

Chengyi Lin

Opportunities and risks for companies incorporating generative AI as part of their digital transformation strategies.

Leadership & Organisations

Governance in the Age of Technological Innovation

Geraldine Ee

With new technologies redefining the global business ecosystem, how can boards navigate these changes and reinvent their business models?

Responsibility

Thoughtful Consumption for Well-Being and Sustainability

H. Plassmann, S. Rangan, E. Hansmeyer

Understanding consumer behaviour is key to making fashion more sustainable.

Strategy

Five Key Insights for Positive-Sum Innovation

W. C. Kim, R. Mauborgne

With the right tools, businesses can innovate and achieve growth without negatively impacting society.

Strategy

Super Apps in Asia, “Everything App” in the US?

Guoli Chen

All-in-one apps that dominate China and other Asian markets may soon materialise in the United States, albeit with significant variations.

Entrepreneurship

What All Tech Start-Ups Need to Succeed

T. Evgeniou, L. Van der Heyden, Y. Lechelle

Governance exists to help tech entrepreneurs prevent value destruction from day one.

Responsibility

When Shareholders Share, the Business Benefits

Claudia Zeisberger

Offering company ownership to every employee can help reduce inequality.

Strategy

Recognising Possibility in Uncertainty

N. Furr, S. Furr

If we frame uncertainty in a different way, we might embrace the possibility it brings instead of fearing it.

Strategy

An Alternative Path to Innovation and Growth

W. C. Kim, R. Mauborgne

How leaders can innovate and achieve growth without displacing industries, companies or jobs.

Strategy

Intellectual Honesty Is Critical for Innovation

Nathan Furr

Here’s how to balance psychological safety and intellectual honesty for better team performance.

Responsibility

Without Shared Values and Goals, Tech Regulations Won't Work

T. Evgeniou, L. Van der Heyden

The world needs to harmonise goals and values in order to rein in the potential harm technology can cause.

Strategy

ChatGPT vs. Hybrids: The Future Depends on Our Choices

Phil Parker

Imposing the equivalent of a worldwide moratorium on generative artificial intelligence is absurd. But developers might want to pause and reflect on what they hope to achieve before releasing AI applications to the public.

Strategy

How Will ChatGPT Shape Business, Society and Employment?

Geraldine Ee

Will next-generation AI systems such as ChatGPT deliver the productivity boost modern economies need – and are we ready for it?

Strategy

How to Effectively Engage Stakeholders

Lite Nartey

Strategies for identifying key players, managing stakeholder networks and creating joint value.

Two flocks of birds in two different directions

Leadership & Organisations

Joint Strategic Decisions: Do We All Need to Agree?

H. Piezunka, O. Schilke

How organisations’ decision-making rules affect the way individual managers vote.

Strategy

The Social Costs of Not Sharing Fake News

Asher Lawson

Not engaging with fake news online has its social costs; individuals are therefore forced to choose between spreading misinformation and social exclusion.

Operations

How Large Mergers Can Benefit Smaller Players

Xabier Barriola

Joint ventures between dominant incumbents can create opportunities for smaller firms to enter the market and capture market share.

Strategy

For MNCs, Big Decisions About China Are on Ice

Hellmut Schütte

Western multinationals have put important moves on hold amid political and economic uncertainty.

Leadership & Organisations

How to Rapidly Test New Organisation Designs

Phanish Puranam

Instead of blindly adopting industry best practice, companies can use gamified randomised control trials to pilot new organisation designs.

Strategy

How Conspiracy Talk Helps People Make Sense of the World

Henrich Greve

Sharing Covid-19 conspiracy theories on online social networks helped individuals cope with fear and uncertainty during the pandemic.

Responsibility

How Organisation Design Can Rescue the SDGs

Phanish Puranam

We're not on track to meet any SDGs by 2030. Organisation designers can help.

Strategy

Demystifying China’s Internet Giants

Guoli Chen

A behind-the-scenes look at what makes or breaks China’s Big Tech flagbearers and their foreign exploits.

Entrepreneurship

China’s Internet Giants: The Nuts and Bolts of Going Global

G. Chen, J. Li

The lowdown on how ByteDance, Shein and Xiaomi succeeded outside of China while WeChat failed.

Leadership & Organisations

Leading Change in Turbulence: Case of Discovery Inc.

J. Petriglieri, G. Petriglieri, M. Soldi

In this video, Marinella Soldi shares ways to navigate the turbulent waters of digital transformation and why it is important to tackle both the strategic and cultural facets of change.

Strategy

Only Fools Rush In: Pitfalls of Hasty Problem-Solving

Asher Lawson

Research into mindless maths reveals why it’s crucial to take your time when approaching a problem.

Strategy

Three Key Global Strategy Challenges Companies Face

Felipe Monteiro

Multinationals are adapting and redesigning their global strategies in response to mounting pressures.

Strategy

After the Guns Fall Silent, What Then?

Douglas Webber

Would an end of Russia's invasion of Ukraine result in lasting peace for the region?

Strategy

Managing in an Unimaginable World

José Santos

Business leaders can leverage serendipity to help their companies deal with far-reaching market shocks.

Business card exchange. Photo by Getty/PeopleImages

Career

Collaborations That Are Bad for Business but Benefit Employees

H. Piezunka, T. Grohsjean

Sharing a partner with competing companies hinders the success of firms but helps employees’ careers.

Strategy

Creating Your Blue Ocean Through Noncustomer Analysis

W. C. Kim, R. Mauborgne, M. Ji

Adopting a blue ocean perspective can allow you to reach beyond your existing industry’s customers.

Strategy

Can AI Help You Strategise Better?

P. Puranam, P. Sen

Machine learning algorithms can uncover intricate patterns in big data and enable managers to strategise with more confidence.

Creative office by KatarzynaBialasiewicz/Getty Images

Operations

Do Unconventional Offices Promote Creativity?

M. Sosa, S. Lee

It is widely assumed that unconventionally-designed offices stimulate creativity. But that isn’t always the case – sometimes they may even impede innovation.

Motherland Monument by ValuaVitaly/Getty Images

Strategy

A World at War With Putin’s Regime

Ludo Van der Heyden

To defend democracy, the civilised world needs to stand with Ukraine in securing victory and continue to engage and pressure Russia to reform itself.

Responsibility

Rising to the ESG Challenge: Towards Effective Governance

Geraldine Ee

Boards can drive the ESG agenda effectively by identifying what is material to their organisation and being willing to adapt along the way.

Strategy

How to Design for Disruption

A. Chadha, S. Hasija

Why a structured approach can turn a volatile world into a growth opportunity.

Strategy

Speed Kills: Why Some MNCs Fail to Pay Attention to Quality

Quy Huy

When managers are too fixated on quick financial results, ethics and service tend to take a backseat.

Leadership & Organisations

Why Communication Breaks Down

P. Puranam, Ö. Koçak

As workplaces become more diverse and work becomes more distributed, it is more important than ever to converge on a common code for effective communication.

Strategy

Thinkers50: The Upside of Uncertainty

Rachel Eva Lim

In this Thinkers50 webinar, Nathan Furr and Susannah Harmon Furr share practical tools for navigating life’s ambiguities.

Strategy

Will China’s Internet Giants Conquer the World?

G. Chen, J. Li

Dissecting the success and strategies of Chinese internet firms as more of them venture overseas.

Strategy

Four Elements of Successful Stakeholder Communication

Lite Nartey

Firms can enhance cooperation and reduce conflict by understanding the different dimensions of stakeholder dialogue.

Leadership & Organisations

The Special Bond Behind Every Brilliant Idea

M. Lazar, E. Miron-Spektor, J. Mueller

The way we view ourselves shapes the way we develop and connect with our own ideas.

Strategy

In Age of Deglobalisation, MNCs Need Closer Ties to Thrive

Q. Huy, C. Moschieri, D. Ravasi

Cultivating relationships with local communities and other stakeholders will help multinationals counterbalance increasingly powerful governments.

Entrepreneurship

Corporate VC Is Booming, but Is It What Your Start-Up Needs?

N. Sauvage, C. Zeisberger, M. Varadan

A guide to choosing the right corporate investment for entrepreneurs.

Leadership & Organisations

Paradox Mindset: The Source of Remarkable Creativity in Teams

E. Miron-Spektor, K. Emich, L. Argote, W. Smith

Teams are more successful if they embrace internal differences and explore conflicting ideas instead of glossing over them.

Operations

Making Sense of Attribution in Online Advertising

Antoine Desir

While online advertising has grown rapidly, methods to justify marketing spend on digital platforms have yet to catch up.

Strategy

Can We Get Better at Navigating Uncertainty?

Nathan Furr

What innovators have learnt that empowers them to face the uncertainty of new pursuits.

Leadership & Organisations

The X Factor in Crafting New CXO Roles Successfully

J. L. Alvarez, S. Svejenova

CXO roles have proliferated in recent decades, making it difficult for some title holders to find their footing in an ever-changing C-suite landscape.

Marketing

Consumer Streaks Are Motivating – The Key Is Keeping Them Alive

A. Barasch, J. Silverman

People often go out of their way to repeat a behaviour if it is logged and highlighted to them.

Strategy

Why the Customer Isn’t Always Right

Alixandra Barasch

Consumer behaviour on food-logging tools reveals initial expectations don’t match actual experience.

Operations

Mind the Inventory Risk: Price Paradox Under Competition

A. Ovchinnikov, H. Pun, G. Raz

In competitive environments, operational innovation could well be the answer to inventory risk.

Leadership & Organisations

What the World Can Learn From Nordic Boards

S. Shekshnia, S. B. Jensen, L. Engstam

Proactive, engaged and democratic, corporate boards in Nordic countries are well-placed to deal with today’s increasingly complex operating environments.

Marketing

Unlock the Full Value of Your Business Relationships

Christoph Senn

A fruitful relationship starts with asking the right – and sometimes difficult – questions.

Strategy

The Rising Importance of Value Innovation for Creating New Growth

W. C. Kim, R. Mauborgne, M. Ji

With limited resources at hand, companies need to stay smart and efficient when it comes to investing in innovation.

Strategies to Overcome Competitive Pressures: “Making” vs. “Milking”

Strategy

Overcoming Competitive Pressures: “Making” vs. “Milking”

P. B. Zemsky, A. A. Costa

A fresh take on the classic theme of generic business strategies.

Responsibility

Not All Heroes Wear Capes. They May Just Have More Willpower

Amit Bhattacharjee

We instinctively see people with stronger self-control as more virtuous and more capable of realising good intentions.

Career

The Pitfalls of Flaunting Your Social Status

A. Barasch, S. Srna, D. Small

Ditch the luxury logos if you want to be seen as a cooperative team player.

Strategy

Stop Labelling Negotiations as Win-Win or Win-Lose

Horacio Falcão

Too many people have an either naïve or fatalist view of these terms, which have become so misunderstood that we should perhaps even discard them.

Operations

Unfinished Business: Co-Creating Solutions With Beneficiaries

Atalay Atasu

Under severe budget constraints, how can NPOs manage the trade-offs between offering variety versus serving more beneficiaries?

Leadership & Organisations

Creating People-Centric International Organisations With AI

R. McLachlin, K. Tatarinov, T. Ambos, P. Puranam

The United Nations is both a fascinating playground for artificial intelligence applications and a showcase of AI implementation problems and solutions.

Strategy

ENGIE: Powering the Energy Transition With Data

P. Boza, T. Evgeniou, M. Sarkar

What does it take for a utility company to develop a data- and AI-driven software business?

Leadership & Organisations

Rethinking the Role of Leaders in the Creative Process

S. Harrison, E. Rouse

A strong vision and a more disciplined approach can actually equal more creative results.

Entrepreneurship

Venture Capital Crucial to Push for ‘Ethical’ AI and Tech Standards

T. Evgeniou, C. Zeisberger

Venture capitalists’ role as funding source and mentor of tech start-ups makes them uniquely placed to press for more responsible use of technology.

Entrepreneurship

Escaping the Survival Trap

Martin Gargiulo

Why expanding your network is crucial for long-term creative success.

Strategy

Russia’s War on Ukraine: First Lessons and Outlook

Michael A. Witt

Russia loses big, China gains, and win-lose becomes a new normal.

Responsibility

ESG in the Air

L. F. Monteiro, G. Szulanski

How the airline industry is riding a transformation to sustainability.

Strategy

Negotiating With a Team? Skip the Chit-Chat

R. Swaab, R. B. Lount Jr., S. Chung, J. M. Brett

Team negotiators may achieve higher joint gains when they first discuss superordinate goals that either team can’t achieve without the help of the other.

Strategy

A Simple Guide to Charting the Evolution of an Ecosystem

A. Shipilov, F. Burelli

Capture key changes and pivots with a timeline.

Marketing

Why Facebook Is Rebranding Itself as Meta

Klaus Wertenbroch

Is the tech company dodging bad publicity or creating a gatekeeper economy?

Strategy

Could Green Methanol Be What China Needs to Reach Net Zero?

Quy Huy

Methanol produced with solar and wind energy is a clean and cheap alternative fuel that could slash China’s emissions by as much as 80 percent.

Strategy

A Sociological Take on Creativity: Believe in the Unexpected

Frédéric Godart

Amid the relentless pursuit of creativity, it may be time to reconsider how we define it.

Strategy

ESG Strategy in Action

C. Lin, T. Smoor

Lessons from translating a global water conservation strategy into a coherent and impactful action plan.

Strategy

The Power of Collective Intelligence

Nathan Furr

Lessons from an ant colony.

Strategy

Our Best of 2021: Managing Change in Tumultuous Times

INSEAD Knowledge

This year's top articles look at adaptation, resilience and how we all manage change.

Strategy

Why Businesses Should Negotiate Prices With Customers

H. Falcao, A. Komaromi

In most scenarios, B2C companies have more to gain by bargaining than not.

Strategy

Negotiators Should Decrease Concessions Across Rounds

K. S. Tey, R. Swaab, M. Schaerer, N. Madan

Signalling your bottom line reduces your counterparty’s ambitions.

Career

Performance Reviews Need a Brand-New P&L

Chengyi Lin

Is your firm’s performance review process helping or hindering progress for your high potentials?

Career

The World’s Most Talent Competitive Countries, 2021

L. F. Monteiro, B. Lanvin

The pandemic revealed strengths and weaknesses in how nations develop and retain talent.

An Unintended Side-effect of Hedge Fund Activism.jpg

Strategy

An Unintended Side-effect of Hedge Fund Activism? Human Capital Loss

Philipp Meyer-Doyle

When hedge fund activism triggers an exodus of key employees, everyone loses.

Strategy

The Importance of Incorporating Innovation in a Firm

R. Noyes, L. F. Monteiro

In this INSEAD Knowledge podcast, the author describes lessons from his work with innovation and multinationals.

Strategy

If Your Company Were a Political Party, Which Would It Be?

Ayman Jawhar

Four simple questions will tell you where your organisation stands on today’s wide-ranging ideological spectrum.

Strategy

Five Lessons From Xiaomi’s Path to Smartphone Supremacy

Chengyi Lin

Xiaomi’s leadership team idolised Steve Jobs. Now, it seems the student has become the master.

Strategy

How the “Butterfly Effect” Can Harm Firm Performance

I. Stern, G. Chen

Firms need to develop appropriate HR risk management strategies to lessen the impact of unanticipated employee departures.

Strategy

Research Hacks to Help You Negotiate Anything

Alena Komaromi

Even zero-sum negotiations can turn into a win-win.

Strategy

Strategising for Success in Winner-Take-All Industries

Phebo Wibbens

Wild differences in performance within a market are largely shaped by that market’s dependence on resources.

asking the right questions of data team.jpg

Strategy

Are You Asking the Right Questions of Your Data Team?

C. Zimmerman, T. Evgeniou, D. Kelly, J. Weng

Asking great questions is perhaps the most underappreciated skill of great data-driven leaders.

Strategy

Xiaomi’s Road to Internet-of-Things Dominance

A. Chattopdhyay, H. Yang, J. Ma

The key to building the world’s largest IoT company? A novel collaboration-based strategy of “strategic coalescence”.

Strategy

CEOs Who Play to Type Win the Market

Guoli Chen

An important CEO attribute that shapes firm strategies such as mergers and acquisitions is uncovered.

Strategy

A ‘Lab in the Field’ Approach to Evidence-Based Management

P. Puranam, J. Singh, H. Rao

Simplified experimentation in the field may be the best of both worlds, provided its results are viewed with the proper perspective.

Strategy

A Blue Ocean Compass for Your Post-Covid Strategy

W. C. Kim, R. Mauborgne, M. Ji

Four questions to help you rethink industry logic and existing practices to prepare for a powerful comeback.

Strategy

The Relationships That Create Successful Acquisitions

Laurence Capron

A study of start-up acquisitions shows important patterns on both sides lead to a successful integration.

Strategy

Why Do Innovation Outposts Fail?

L. Felipe Monteiro

The steps multinationals can take to create a brokerage environment that fosters innovation.

Strategy

Building and Leading Your Organisation’s Data Capability

C. Zimmerman, T. Evgeniou, G. Lotan, S. Bala

The most impactful data teams can think strategically while delivering technically.

Strategy

The “Frenemy” Effect: When Strategic Alliances Go South

Javier Gimeno

How to fuel – and cool – competitive wars.

Strategy

Simple Rules for the Post-Pandemic World

Nathan Furr

Learning and using rules of thumb makes a difference both during crises and when opportunity knocks.

Strategy

Do CEOs Matter?

S. H. Lee, G. Chen

Conditions that underpin the power and impact of chief executives vary widely, with remarkable results.

Strategy

Three Key Steps to Prepare for Data and AI Leadership

C Zimmerman, K Walsh, J McMillan, T Evgeniou

To harness the potential of new technology, today’s data-driven business leaders must also be politicians and communicators.

Strategy

Testing Google’s Claim of Quality

Hyunjin Kim

Research suggests that, by using a tying strategy, dominant platforms may be able to gain traction in new markets with a lower quality product than what is offered.

Strategy

What Makes Business Ecosystems Succeed?

Andrew Shipilov & Francesco Burelli

Our framework guides you through the forces driving Airbnb and other ecosystem-based businesses.

Strategy

What Yelp Reviews Can Tell Us About the State of the Economy

Hyunjin Kim

Data from online sources like Yelp can help you take the pulse of local business activity in the absence of updated official statistics.

Strategy

The Fundamentals of Transforming from Matrix to Agile

Y. Doz, M. Guadalupe

Nothing less than an evolution of strategy, structure, processes, people and technology will do.

Strategy

How Happiness, Anger and Anxiety Can Help You Negotiate

Don’t suppress your emotions – harness them to negotiate better.

Strategy

Not Everyone Can Be Agile

Y. Doz, M. Guadalupe

An essential checklist for Agile aspirants.

Strategy

The Five Essential Roles of Corporate Ecosystems

Andrew Shipilov & Francesco Burelli

Most firms that try to build an ecosystem would be better off joining an existing one. The first step is for them to know where they would fit.

Strategy

Nokia’s Reinvention Was Emotionally Driven

Q. Huy, T. Vuori

No less than start-ups or SMEs, large organisations can accomplish a radical strategic shift – if they can regulate managers’ raw emotions in the aftermath of failure.

Strategy

Can the Subscription Economy Save Financial Services?

Wolfgang Ulaga & Michael Mansard

The traditional FSI business model is looking threadbare – and not only because of the pandemic. Some players are seeking new territory by transitioning to subscriptions.

Strategy

The Post-Covid Future of “Everything as a Service”

Wolfgang Ulaga

The tough lessons of 2020 will provoke two major developments in B2B, having to do with technology and people.

Strategy

Don’t Confuse Platforms with Ecosystems

A. Shipilov, F. Burelli

A beginners’ guide to high-value business models.

Strategy

Six Tools for Turning Your Ideas Into Reality

Nathan Furr

From finding the right analogy to tapping into FOMO, learn how to sell your ideas to potential supporters.

Strategy

How to Be a Blue Ocean Strategist in the Post-Pandemic World

W. C. Kim, R. Mauborgne, M. Ji

A blue ocean mindset uncovers hidden opportunities amid the Covid-era economic crisis.

Strategy

Hold the Emoji and Other Tips for Successful Email Negotiations

Tactics for increasing B2B sales.

Strategy

Four Steps to Business Model Innovation

Sameer Hasija

Success in this new era of accelerated disruption requires a holistic approach to technology.

Strategy

Scorched-Earth Strategic Thinking for Covid Times

“Disrupt yourself first” is so five years ago. The new motto is “Burn your company to the ground then rebuild it.”

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Strategy

Food Security in a Pandemic: Lessons From India’s Lockdown

W. W. Koo, X. Li

Portable food ration cards allow migrant populations to shelter in place, but implementation across state borders faces hurdles.

Strategy

Innovation Plucked from the Zeitgeist

Michaël Bikard

A method to quantify the phenomenon of simultaneous discoveries sheds insight into how one innovation wins and another is left on the shelf.

Strategy

How Hedge Fund Activists Influence Target Firms

Understanding settlement agreements is important to see the complete picture of the corporate governance landscape.

Strategy

What the War Between Alibaba and Tencent Says About Strategy

Guoli Chen

In emerging markets or nascent industries, plan-as-you-go has proved to be a winner many times over.

Strategy

How to Make the Most of a Chief Sustainability Officer

Guoli Chen

Shift the focus from doing less bad to doing more good.

Strategy

Recession-Proofing the Subscription Economy

W. Ulaga, M. Mansard

Believe it or not, most subscription-based businesses are still seeing modest growth by exploiting four strategic manoeuvres.

Strategy

How to Become a Star in a Strange Land

A. Shipilov, S. X. Li, W. Li

It helps if you’re a generalist with no ego.

Strategy

Global Strategy for a De-globalising World

Benjamin Kessler

The world may not be as flat as it once was, but global business strategy is, if anything, a more urgent priority than before.

social impact brazil covid-19 challenges

Strategy

How Social Impact Start-ups Are Solving Brazil’s Covid-19 Challenges

F. Salum, K. Coleta, F. Monteiro

The persistent problem of inequality in Latin America leaves citizens more vulnerable to the coronavirus. Innovative platforms move towards balancing the scales.

Strategy

Creating, Fast and Slow

Michaël Bikard

Instead of bickering about the superiority of specialists or generalists, why not recognise that creative strategies involve trade-offs?

Strategy

How Data Is Transforming the Energy Sector

Pál Boza & Theos Evgeniou

One German utility company has taken the lead in transitioning to “embedded, scaled and disrupted” AI.

Strategy

Green Shoots for Businesses in China’s New Normal

Guoli Chen

After a historic economic contraction, opportunities beckon nimble-footed companies.

three essentials of b2b digital transformation.jpg

Strategy

The Three Essentials of B2B Digital Transformation

Joerg Niessing & Fred Geyer

The most common question we hear is, “Where do I start?” The answer is, “Where it makes the most sense from a customer’s point of view.”

Strategy

How Covid-19 Raises the Digital Stakes Even Higher

Rachael Noyes

Now is the time for firms to invest in digital transformation.

Strategy

Growing Resilience in Uncertain Times

Nathan Furr

Managing the current crisis is an inside job.

Strategy

Rising to the Challenges of COVID-19 Recovery

M Bikard, C Lin, A Shipilov

Which companies and industries seem to be getting it right, and which are floundering?

Strategy

Four Strategic Priorities for the Post-COVID-19 World

To build resilience going forward, the first question to answer is not, “What’s in it for me?” but “What if?”

Strategy

How the SDGs Can Power Innovation

L. Felipe Monteiro

Risk-averse industries like the energy sector should use the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals as the inspiration for new challenges.

Strategy

How to Handle Video Negotiations

Alena Komaromi

Better get used to virtual negotiations, as they might just be the way of the future.

Strategy

How Virus-Hit China Manages Its Sprawling Gig Economy

Chengyi Lin

When it comes to employee satisfaction in these extraordinary times, Alibaba and other Chinese e-commerce players leave Amazon in their trail.

Strategy

Blending Public and Private Value Creation at Natura

Aline Gatignon & Laurence Capron

One major, home-grown firm in Brazil offers a successful, impactful business model to overcome skill and talent scarcity.

Strategy

Maximising Outcomes in Impact Investing

Jasjit Singh

Debates on whether investing for impact should involve financial compromises are moot. Here’s the more relevant question: How can different kinds of investors optimise their societal impact?

Strategy

TMT: The Unit for Success

How the right mix of experience and innovation generates a great start-up top management team.

Strategy

The Changing Tides of the Global Economy

L. F. Monteiro, M. Troyjo

Political economist and diplomat Marcos Troyjo advises us to buckle up for a possible new round of globalisation.

Strategy

What Companies Tend to Get Wrong About AI

Jenny Watkins

In the stampede to build an AI strategy, executives fall into four main traps.

Strategy

Firms Favour Academic Insights That Come From Hubs

M. Bikard

Innovators can improve their performance by paying attention to academic science.

Strategy

How to Bend the Rules Like Beckham

The risks professional footballers take as they flirt with foul play hold lessons – positive and negative – for high-stakes competitors in every arena.

Strategy

LIVA: How to Truly Measure Long-Term Success

P. Wibbens, N. Siggelkow

Most executives care about creating long-term shareholder value but haven’t had the right tool to track it – until now.

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Strategy

The Secret Ingredients of ‘Superforecasting’

Data from a political predictions tournament are starting to yield insights into the main drivers of forecasting excellence – and how to cultivate it.

Strategy

Big Food Is Ripe for a Revolution

Kevin Parker & Boris Liedtke

The wine industry shows how eco-friendly production can benefit both companies and consumers.

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Strategy

Developing a Toolkit for Strategic Foresight

D Midgley, T Coltman, T Simnadis

Why some companies see disruption coming from a mile away, and respond accordingly.

Strategy

Super Apps: How to Create a Mass Market of One

G. Chen, M. Trocha

By targeting each customer as a single market, super apps build a business model that is transforming lives in emerging markets.

Strategy

Why Foreign Firms Struggle to Break Into China

J. S. Black, A. J. Morrison

Trade wars are not even the biggest problem.

Strategy

Boards Under the Influence

H. Greve, A. Shipilov, T. Rowley

Directors need to carefully manage their reactions to what they read in the business press.

Strategy

How Silence Can Help Win-Win Negotiators

While silence can be uncomfortable, its benefits are too numerous to ignore.

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Strategy

Making the Online World Less Addictive – and More Popular

Paulo Albuquerque & Yulia Nevskaya

How companies can use five levers to regulate online user engagement over time.

Strategy

The Best CEO-CFO Team for M&As

G. Chen, W. Shi

Buyouts engineered by optimistic CEOs and pessimistic CFOs have the best odds of success.

Strategy

Why Negotiators Should Be on Social Networks

Horacio Falcão & Alena Komaromi

The mere presence of a Facebook connection increases trust and forgiveness in negotiations.

Strategy

Can Emotion Be Automated?

Chengyi Lin

The emotional literacy gap between bots and humans is expected to narrow, thanks to a series of technological advances.

Strategy

Responding to the New Cold War

Michael A. Witt

Multinationals have two options for dealing with rapidly rising tensions between China and the United States.

Strategy

Define, Broadcast, Attract and Select: A Framework for Crowdsourcing

H. Piezunka, L. Dahlander & L.B. Jeppesen

Crowds are not inherently wise. They become so under the right set of conditions.

Strategy

Automakers, Don’t Listen to Henry Ford

Car manufacturers would be wise to invest in multiple alternatives to the conventional car in order to succeed in diverse markets.

Strategy

Blockchain Is a Technology for Collaboration

The unique strength of blockchain is authenticating “stuff” to enable trust between partners.

Strategy

Digital Business: Three Core Concepts Exploded

The digital world has pushed old curves off the whiteboard as new trajectories arise.

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Strategy

How Strategic Alliances Can Strengthen Investigative Journalism

M. Hunter, L. Van Wassenhove & M. Besiou

Collaborations between journalists and NGOs forge new avenues for mutual value creation – and social impact.

Strategy

How Airlines Manage Conflicts Between Profits and Safety

Henrich Greve & Vibha Gaba

Warning: Don’t read this just before your next flight.

Strategy

Global Open Innovation in the Silicon Valley of Sport

L. Felipe Monteiro

One of the world’s biggest football clubs has set out a pioneering collaborative strategy of innovation.

Strategy

The Ten Stages of Successful Strategic Alliances

Corporate partnerships resemble marriages in many respects – including an unfortunately high failure rate.

Strategy

The Real Business Case for Quantum Computing

Disregard the alarmist headlines: Quantum computers won’t end privacy online. In fact, their most revolutionary impact may be felt offline.

Career

The World’s Most Talent Competitive Countries, 2019

Felipe Monteiro & Bruno Lanvin

Entrepreneurial talent is a critical component of both competitiveness and innovation.

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Strategy

It’s Time for a Behavioural Revolution in Innovation

Transformative change requires organisations to rethink the way they envision their future.

Strategy

Will Apple Be the Next Nokia?

Amid a stunning slowdown in smartphone sales, what does the future hold for Apple and its global tech rivals?

Strategy

Designing Durable Alliances: Lessons From Renault-Nissan

An alliance should continually enable mutual value creation. Otherwise, it’s just a disguised merger.

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Strategy

Three Principles for Targeted Innovation

Marcel Corstjens & Gregory Carpenter

Leading consumer goods companies can revive their flagging innovation capacities by investing differently.

Strategy

How to Prolong Competitive Advantage

The resources that take a company further.

Strategy

Don’t Let Time Pressure Dictate Your Options

Horacio Falcão & Alena Komaromi

Proactive negotiators are less likely to be tempted by inferior deals.

Strategy

Managing the Paradoxes of Coopetition

A. Shipilov, W. Hoffmann, D. Lavie, J. Reuer

The challenging tensions of coopetition require leaders who can cope with ambivalence and uncertainty.

Strategy

How Speech Recognition Is Set to Disrupt

In the digital age, nothing stays the same for very long.

Strategy

Don't Discount the Competitiveness of State-Owned Multinationals

Dated notions about large state-owned MNCs need to adapt to the 21st century.

Strategy

How Nokia Bounced Back (With the Help of the Board)

Quy Huy & Timo Vuori

To help the former mobile giant find a radically new strategic direction, Nokia’s board assumed a unique role.

Strategy

Does Eating Together Improve Negotiations?

Horacio Falcão & Alena Komaromi

Who you share your table with may add or detract value.

Strategy

Why Successful Companies Usually Fail

Y. Doz, K. Wilson

The dynamics of corporate collapse are caused by three phenomena.

Strategy

How the Platform Economy Is Reshaping Global Trade

Firms and even countries will need a strategy as the world moves from pipelines to platforms.

Strategy

What Happens to Firms That Don’t Adopt Dominant Technologies?

Firms that choose the non-dominant technology in an industry shakeout can innovate in other ways.

Strategy

Is Neo-Feudalism the New Nation-State?

John Hulsman & Boris Liedtke

The simultaneous rise of hyperlocal and transnational politics could fill the power vacuum left by the decline of the nation-state.

Strategy

The Truth About Lies in Negotiations

Horacio Falcão & Alena Komaromi

It’s a complex game of “catch me if you can”.

Strategy

Do Dating Apps Really Want You to Find Love?

Y. Wu, V. Padmanabhan

Matchmaking services charging a monthly fee to fill a personal or professional void are in a somewhat conflicted position.

Strategy

Imagine Alternatives to Negotiate More Ambitiously

M. Schaerer, M. Schweinsberg, R. Swaab

Mentally simulating an attractive alternative can provide some of the advantages that real alternatives typically offer.

Strategy

What if the EU Invited Canada to Join Its Bloc?

John Hulsman & Boris Liedtke

Trump’s trade war opens the door to a move that would change the geopolitical game entirely.

Strategy

Does a Tough Reputation Pay Off in Negotiations?

Horacio Falcão & Alena Komaromi

How to build the type of reputation proven to lead to better deals.

Strategy

Don’t Reinvent the Regulatory Wheel

How internet companies under siege can learn from the finance industry.

Strategy

The Technologies Senior Leaders Plan to Deploy in the Coming Years

Cloud computing is expected to take a back seat to AI, big data analytics and blockchain.

Strategy

Who Benefits From Transparent Pricing?

Horacio Falcão & Alena Komaromi

The American steel industry provides a case study on the effects of price disclosure.

Strategy

Ryanair: A Role Model for Europe’s Banks

The industry sorely needs a low-margin, high-volume business model relentlessly focused on long-term value creation.

Strategy

Three Factors for Happiness at Work

Consider these questions before you embark on a career.

Strategy

Why Negotiators Should Lose Sometimes

Horacio Falcão & Alena Komaromi

Lose a battle to win the war.

Strategy

A Matchmaker for Public-Private Partnerships

Manuel Sosa

Collaborations between dissimilar organisations can benefit from the involvement of neutral third parties.

Strategy

Can Alcohol Help You With Negotiations?

Horacio Falcão & Alena Komaromi

What research tells us about the art of negotiating under the influence.

Strategy

Where Amazon Is Headed With Whole Foods

P. Padmanabhan & D. Lecossois

The search is still on for a viable omni-channel business model in the grocery industry.

Strategy

Governance Needed for Initial Coin Offerings

Traditional board-like governance can provide credibility for companies raising capital via ICOs.

Strategy

Why Tech Innovation Isn’t the Answer Everyone Thinks It Is

W. C. Kim, R. Mauborgne

Value innovation is the cornerstone of new market creation.

Strategy

How Incumbents Are Adapting to Disruption

Incumbents are focusing on people skills, culture and customer centricity when it comes to digitisation.

Strategy

Business as a Force for Good: A Blue Ocean Perspective

W. C. Kim, R. Mauborgne

How to shift from dividing to expanding the economic pie.

Strategy

Leapfrog Into an Innovative Future

How Brazil’s development bank aims to coordinate the nation’s digital transformation.

Strategy

When Winning Means Losing in Negotiations

Horacio Falcão & Alena Komaromi

Be careful about imposing your terms as it may backfire.

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