BLOG OF ADAM HARTUNG
Sitting Duck
Motorola's (see chart here) idea to spin off its mobile phone business is probably a very good thing for investors. Because that part of Motorola is a sitting duck. Motorola undertook a number of Disruptions the last 4 years, and many of its businesses...
… to the Death…
We like to think that businesses succeed on the strengths of perseverence, tenacity and hard work. Yet, we know that many leaders, and their teams, follow these principles and still do not succeed. Unfortunately, too many businesses stake their claim on...
Pollyanna
One striking characteristic of Defend & Extend Management is that leadership, and often everyone else, becomes very willing to expect everything to work out eventually. Regardless of the signals. D&E leaders tend to be just like the characters in...
Does the source of growth matter?
On Friday Microsoft (see chart here) announced an offer to buy Yahoo! (see chart here) - [read articles on acquisition offer at Chicago Tribune here and Marketwatch here]. The world's largest software company admitted it fears Google, and to play catch-up in...
The Siren of D&E Management
Welcome back to my BLOG! I had to take a few weeks away to finalize the book with my publisher (Wharton Press/Prentice Hall) and am now looking forward to its release in May or June! Of course a lot has happened since I last blogged, and I'm looking...
No Resting on Your Laurels
I've had a lot of discussion this week about Motorola. Readers of this blog know I've been a big fan of Motorola, yet here we are today with the company's value barely higher than it was 4 years ago (see chart here) - and the savior CEO is being replaced. ...
White Space has to Produce Results
Motorola's on the bubble. Today we learned the CEO is being replaced (read article here). It's easy to forget how bad things were at Motorola (see chart here) when Ed Zander took the helm. The company had been laying off thousands, and most analysts...
Merciless Growth
There is no doubt that it's more fun running a business in the Rapids than one stuck in the Swamp. But it's surely no walk in the park! Even in high growth markets, competition is fierce and the demands for growth are merciless. Recently Starbucks...
Now You’re Talking!
Five newspaper giants are banding together to sell internet ads (see article here). Now that's creating some White Space to help their businesses grow. Good luck to Tribune, Gannett, Hearst, Media News Group and Cox. Readers of this blog know I've been...
Surely you aren’t surprised
Today GM (see chart here) announced one of the biggest losses in corporate history. Believe it or not, GM announced a third quarter loss of $68.85 per share - double the value of the stock (read article here). Surely you aren't surprised. GM has sworn to...
White Space benefits the smallest businesses
I talk frequently with small businesses. Many with revenues under $1million. And for many of these owner/operators they wonder how it can make sense to maintain White Space. After all, they say, as a small business isn't even more important to focus...
The “Mature” word
The greatest euphemism in business is "mature." Frequently executives and analysts will describe low growth as "maturing", as if this is OK. Just today CBSMarketwatch (read article here) reported an analyst from Fifth Third Bank said...
Sometimes it’s just too easy
So readers of this blog know I am no fan of Wal-Mart. The company has yielded no benefits to its investors, employees or major suppliers for almost a dedace (see equity chart here.) Management loves being Locked-in to the outdated Success Formula, even...
Would you believe?
When I was a kid - way too long ago - a comedic television show named Get Smart featured a mock spy who was terrible at lying. When he would get caught telling a fib he would immediately try to change his story, and his first line was always "Would you...
The Cost of Lock-in
Defend & Extend managers love to believe that by sticking to the Success Formula they produce the best results at lowest risk. But, Lock-in is not free. It has costs related to lost opportunities, as well as direct costs. Take for example...
Migrate, don’t Milk
Lots of people have the idea that you can "milk" a business of cash. The notion goes that you can take a viable, but slow (or no) growth business and stop investing. Then "milk" the cash out of it. What a great idea. Too bad...
Goals are not enough
Kraft, the venerable American producer of cheese and other branded foodstuffs, has performed terribly for several years (see chart here.) It's operating margin is lowest in its peer group, its revenue growth has been nonexistent, and it has sold off valuable,...
Giving Competitors Their White Space
A few weeks ago this blog talked about the mistake Ford (see chart here) was making by selling off its most profitable group (Jaguar and Land Rover) in order to generate cash to Defend & Extend the broken Success Formula in traditional Ford business. Ford is...
Stuck in the Swamp
Thursday of last week Dell (see chart here) announced that it would be restating four YEARS of previous accounts because the numbers had been manipulated at the request of senior executives. The company admitted that account balances were reviewed by senior...
Making Excuses
So, has the American consumer quitting its spending, or are some retailers running weak Success Formulas? That's really an important question to answer when assessing management at Wal-Mart [see chart here]. Today Wal-Mart missed its earnings forecast (again)...
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