BLOG OF ADAM HARTUNG
Why McDonald’s Isn’t Apple – and It Matters
Summary: McDonald's relies on operational improvements to raise profits, these are short-lived and give no growth McDonald's growth cycles, and investors forget long-term it isn't growing much at all You can't depend on recurring recessions to make...
Are you Enchanting? Guy Kawasaki tells how to be like Apple
Why do some businesses (or products) seem to launch onto the scene with incredible success? According to a new book, "Enchantment" releasing March 8, 2011 (available on Amazon.com at about 50% off the list price), it is the ability to go beyond normal marketing,...
Throw away that slide rule! Use Facebook, iPhones, iPads and Groupon
My high school physics teacher spent a week teaching students how to use a slide rule. I asked him, "why can't we just use calculators?" At the time a slide rule was about $2, and a calculator was $300. The minimum wage was...
Winners shift, Losers don’t – Buy Amazon Sell Sears and Walmart
What separates business winners from the losers? A lot of pundits would say you need to be efficient, cost conscious and manage margins. Others would say you need to be really good (excellent) at something - much better than anyone else. Unfortunately,...
Paid to fire! Why CEO compensation is all wrong
Since Craig Dubow took over as Gannett's CEO in 2005, Gannettblog reports that employment at the company has dropped from 52,600 to 32, 600. So 20,000 employees, or nearly 1 in 3, have disappeared. 2006 - 49,675 down 6% 2007 - 46,100 down 7% 2008 - 41,500...
Why Steve Jobs Couldn’t Find a Job
Business people keep piling onto the innovation and growth bandwagon. PWC just released the results of its 14th annual CEO survey entitled "Growth Reimagined." Seems like most CEOs are as tired of cost cutting as everyone else, and would really like to...
Nokia’s Microsoft Blunder is Apple’s Win
Summary: Nokia agreed to develop smartphones with Microsoft software But Microsoft's product is without users, developers or apps Apple and Google Android dominate developers, app base and users Apple and Google Android have extensive distribution, and customer...
Can AOL Resurrect Itself with HuffPo Acquisition?
Summary: Start-ups that flourish give themselves permission to do whatever is necessary to succeed Most acquisitions kill that kind of permssion, forcing the acquired company to adopt the acquirers legacy AOL's legacy business has been dying for several years AOL's...
Think Young! Be like Cisco, Netflix and Amazon.com!
Summary: Company size is irrelevant to job creation New jobs are created by starting new businesses that create new demand Most leaders behave defensively, trying to preserve the old business But success comes from acting like a start-up and creating new opportunities...
Pick the Right Battle – NBC Universal/Comcast’s future
Summary: There is dramatic change in the television/media industry NBC Universal/Comcast is changing ownership, and leaders The company's future success will have more to do with which battles the new President invests in than the history, or style of the past and...
Why Innovation Ain’t So Easy Mr. President – Look to Google, not GE
Summary: The President has called for more innovation in America But American business management doesn't know how to be innovative Business leaders focus on efficiency, not innovation America has no inherent advantage in innovation To increase innovation we need a...
Killing Me Softly – Sara Lee
Summary: It sounds good to refocus a business on its core It sounds good to centralize for cost reductions and belt tightening as part of refocusing It sounds good to sell "non-essential" businesses to raise cash It sounds good to have a company buy back shares But...
Buy Apple, Sell Microsoft
The Wall Street Journal headlined Monday, "Apple Chief to Take Leave." Forbes.com Leadership editor Fred Allen quickly asked what most folks were asking "Where does Steve Jobs Leave Apple Now?" as he led multiple bloggers covering the speculation about how...
Why Facebook beat MySpace – and What You Should Learn
Before there was Facebook, the social media juggernaut which is changing how we communicate - and might change the face of media - there was MySpace. MySpace was targeted at the same audience, had robust capability, and was to market long before Facebook. ...
Disrupt to Thrive in 2011 – Model Facebook, Groupon, Twitter
Summary: Communication is now global, instantaneous and free As a result people, and businesses, now adopt innovation more quickly than ever Competitors adapt much quicker, and react much stronger than ever in history Profits are squeezed by competitors rapidly...
Give Speeches that Change the World – Nick Morgan, Public Words
My guest blogger today is Nick Morgan, Founder and CEO of America's leading firm for developing and coaching great speeches. Leaders, especially those who promote innovation, need to be great communicators. You are never good enough when market shifts make the...
To Grow in 2011 plan like Virgin, Apple and Google
Summary: Business planning systems are designed to defend historical markets Rapidly shifting markets makes it impossible to grow by defense alone Growth requires understanding what customers want, and creating new solutions that most likely aren't part of the current...
CIOs – You can drive GROWTH
"Too Add Value Through IT, Pick Up the Ball" headlines my latest article published by IDG group. For years IT leaders thought their job was to "keep the joint running." Today, that's insufficient. Nobody can avoid being part of the...
Will you grow in 2011? Create wealth like Apple, Amazon, Priceline, DeVry, Colgate
"Goodbye 2010, the Year of Austerity" is the headline from Mediapost.com's Marketing Daily. And that could be the mantra for many, many companies. Nobody is winning today by trying to save their way to prosperity! As we move into this decade,...
Size isn’t relevant – GM, Circuit City, Dell, Microsoft, GE
Summary: Many people think it is OK for large companies to grow slowly Many people admire caretaker CEOs In dynamic markets, low-growth companies fail It is harder to generate $1B of new revenue, than grow a $100B company by $10B Large companies have vastly more...
Trackbacks/Pingbacks