Why Hierarchies in Organisations Aren’t All Bad
Hierarchical structures can be useful even for teams that need to be agile.
Content: Article | Authors: Daniel A. Levinthal, Özgecan Koçak, Phanish Puranam | Source: “INSEAD Knowledge” | Subject: Organizational Behavior
Why Agile May Be Fragile
The hype around Agile organizations needs some debunking, so that Agile’s actual value can be salvaged.
Content: Article | Authors: Julien Clément, Phanish Puranam | Source: “INSEAD Knowledge” | Subject: Management
Phanish Puranam, Julien Clément
We are fans of Agile practices as a solution to a distinct class of problems in certain contexts, such as those involving a search, be it for new designs, product features or even management policies. Agile practices use rapid, parallel and inexpensive iterations to solve search problems. If there are parts of your organization that can benefit from this kind of problem solving, then Agile … [ Read more ]
Content: Quotation | Authors: Julien Clément, Phanish Puranam | Source: “INSEAD Knowledge” | Subject: Management
Phanish Puranam
Every organization, regardless of its scale, faces the same universal problems: how to divide goals into tasks (division of labor) and how to put the results back together again (integration of effort). While these problems are universal, there are many different approaches to solving them, and a set of such solutions is an organization’s design.
Content: Quotation | Author: Phanish Puranam | Source: “INSEAD Knowledge” | Subject: Organizational Behavior
How to Make Corporate Hierarchy More Likable
People clearly prefer flatter organizations, with less power distance between the tip and the base of the pyramid.
Content: Article | Author: Phanish Puranam | Source: “INSEAD Knowledge” | Subject: Organizational Behavior
Phanish Puranam
Traditional theories and frameworks pertaining to strategic resource allocation – such as the famous BCG growth-share matrix, (or the very similar GE/McKinsey matrix) which categorizes businesses according to market share and growth potential –omit consideration of synergies. Paradoxically, these frameworks, which have been synonymous with corporate strategy, give short shrift to its most fundamental issue: corporate advantage. Thinking about investment in standalone terms may mislead … [ Read more ]
Content: Quotation | Author: Phanish Puranam | Source: “INSEAD Knowledge” | Subject: Strategy
Factoring Synergies into Resource Allocation Decisions
Pigeonholing business units into categories like “dogs” and “stars” gives short shrift to the most important elements of corporate strategy.
Content: Article | Author: Phanish Puranam | Source: “INSEAD Knowledge” | Subject: Strategy
What Corporate Strategists Need to Know About Synergies
Understanding the distinctive “footprints” of four different types of synergy can help improve the way you value and implement corporate strategies.
Content: Article | Author: Phanish Puranam | Source: “INSEAD Knowledge” | Subject: Strategy