Critical Insights Vol.1 Issue 8

ECONOMICS & MACRO MARKET
CEO confidence decreased slightly in the first quarter of 2010. The measure declined to 62, down from 64 last quarter (a reading of more than 50 points reflects more positive than negative responses).

Consumer confidence index arrived at 57.9 (1985=100), up from 52.3 in March and 46.4 in February. Economists watch the number closely because consumer spending accounts for about 70 percent of U.S. economic activity. However, April's reading is still far from what's considered healthy. A reading above 90 indicates the economy is on solid footing; above 100 signals strong growth.

If consumer spending continues its uptrend, business executives will likely to have greater confidence in economic growth and increase capital spending and hiring more employees, which will in turn boost consumer confidence.

The recovery of the Dow Jones Industry Average seems to lose its steam and the price target is now adjusted to 11,286.

STRATEGY & MARKETING

Peering Clearly at the Future

Venture capitalists and entrepreneurs are in the business of predicting the future. In order for young companies to grow and thrive, they must develop the products and services that meet the needs of future customers in markets that change over time. While some entrepreneurs are enormously successful based on luck, starting the perfect product at the right time based on a hunch, others are more scientific about how they predict market dynamics and plan new product offerings. For venture capitalists, whose objective is to regularly finance successful emerging businesses and to minimize business failures, a thorough and replicable forecasting methodology is a powerful tool…

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Developing a Social Media Strategy: 6 Lessons from Kodak

Consumers are talking about your brand in social media channels, and you need a strategy to engage in these conversations. Ignoring them – or jumping in without a plan – is a missed opportunity. Kodak, whose direct sales and online share-of-voice are on an upward trend, learnt 6 lessons: 1) listen before you speak; 2) add value when joining the conversations; 3) don’t be intrusive; 4) use real people behind the brand; 5) treat consumer and business customers differently; 6) transparency is paramount…

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Apple Unveils Ad Platform and Phone Software

To better cultivate its apps ecosystem, Apple demonstrated its iAd which places ads on applications so that the third-party apps developers do not have to worry about building advertising components in their applications and placing ads themselves. Mr. Jobs says. “We have figured out how to do interactive video content without ever taking you out of the app… We think people are going to be a lot more interested in clicking on these things.” Apple will host the ads and give developers 60 percent of the ad revenues, keeping 40 percent…

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INNOVATION IN BUSINESS & TECHNOLOGY

Facebook Makes It Easier for Users to Share Interests across Web

Recently, Facebook unveiled a platform that will make it easier for users to share their interests with friends on other sites across the internet. Once signed in to Facebook, users visiting other websites can view modules displaying their friends' likes and comments about that site's content. For example, a user on Pandora, the music site, will see which artists and songs their Facebook friends like – without having to return to Facebook…

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The Tea Thieves: How a Drink Shaped an Empire

By the mid-19th century, Britain was an almost unchallenged empire. It controlled about a fifth of the world's surface, and yet its weakness had everything to do with tiny leaves soaked in hot water. By 1800, tea was easily the most popular drink in the country. The problem? All the tea in the world came from China, and Britain couldn't control the quality or the price. So around 1850, a group of British businessmen set out to steal tea seeds and trade secrets from China and create a tea industry in a place they did control: India…

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Why Businesses Don’t Experiment

Several years ago, I was involved in developing a video on demand business in hospitality industry in China. After months of research, simulation and deliberation, we came up with the business strategy and a set of business models. While we were excited about the future of the business based upon the business plan that we had developed, we wanted to validate our ideas and tested in three hotels. Only after the ideas proved to be effective, we set out to raise investment fund and spin the unit off from its parent company. Many companies, however, don’t experiment. The article published at Harvard Business Review describes an failed case of experiment and discusses about the reasons that some companies avoid experiment…

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LEADERSHIP & ORGANIZATION

When You Think the Strategy Is Wrong

Development of corporate strategy is not merely a process of logical thinking; it is full of emotional attachment. When people come to realize that the strategy of the organization is wrong and certain changes are necessary, one needs to know how to take the initiative in an artful way. This article published on Harvard Business Review provides the basic principles to remember. The dos: 1) understand the root cause of your concerns; 2) research the inputs and assumptions underlying the strategy; 3) express your concerns to your immediate boss first. The don’ts: 1) insist that your concerns be heeded; 2) assume you know the assumptions or reasoning behind the strategy; 3) question the strategy in a public setting…

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Why Asking “Any Questions?” Doesn’t Generate Any Questions?

Why do you often hear silence during the question-and-answer session of a meeting? The author at Harvard Business Review blog listed two possible reasons: 1) nobody wants to risk asking a "dumb" question and 2) nobody wants to look like a troublemaker. Speakers and managers: you really should ask questions of yourself and rephrasing questions so that you can increase the likelihood of having a real discussion…

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Why Marine Corps General Said “PowerPoint Makes Us Stupid?”

PowerPoint is a very useful tool for communication. When it is used rigidly and consumes a great deal of time for preparation, however, utilization of the tool stifles discussion, critical thinking and thoughtful decision-making, according to generals in battlefields…

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Book Available at Harvard Business Review for Download

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