One of today’s biggest cultural dynamics is so ever-present that it is hiding in plain sight. It is the culture of Both-ism, or lifestyles populated by opposites. It’s a phenomenon of two minds about everything, with no merging or resolution. Rather, it is both at once.
A company with a truly great product – the InstaPot – is bankrupt.
Enterprises struggle with disruption. Their records of dealing with major disruptive technologies – such as the advent of the web, smartphone, and cloud – are generally not encouraging. Responses are often too narrow, reactive, and late. In our team’s close collaborations with the late Harvard Business School Professor Clayton Christensen and since we’ve seen a relatively small number of enterprises rise to the challenge and capture the upside of upheaval. It isn’t easy, but a...
Two functions within the firm, research and development and marketing, should be natural allies in facilitating the growth of the firm. Indeed, Peter Drucker stated that: “Because the purpose of business is to create a customer, the business enterprise has two–and only two–basic functions: marketing and innovation. Marketing and innovation produce results; all the rest are costs.” It is the role of Research and Development (R&D) to create long-term sources of cash flow by developing innovative,...
Leading a start-up is all-consuming. Company leadership is doing everything at once, never has enough time, and is making quick decisions that can make or break their personal wealth. It’s not surprising that keeping the company paperwork tidy is not a priority.
