170 Posts found for Source: Bain & Company

Research shows that many more employees would opt for flexible work models if the offerings better met their needs and if they saw visible success stories. For employers, the rewards can be huge: increased employee satisfaction, loyalty and retention. This Bain study investigates how to get this virtuous flywheel going.

Content: Article | Authors: Julie Coffman, Russ Hagey | Source: Bain & Company | Subjects: Human Resources, Management, Organizational Behavior

Some decisions clearly stand out as important. But many organizations overlook a second category that can be equally significant: operating decisions that seem small but that are made and remade frequently and generate a lot of value over time. Most companies have a similar set of decisions made day in and day out by people close to the frontlines of the business.

These two short quizzes … [ Read more ]

Content: Online Resource | Source: Bain & Company | Subject: Management

Too many executives treat diligence as an audit to confirm what they think they know, rather than a solution to the problem of “I don’t know what I don’t know.”

Content: Quotation | Authors: David Harding, Hugh MacArthur | Source: Bain & Company | Subject: Mergers & Acquisitions

[In M&A] it’s essential to formulate a strong, well-articulated deal thesis in advance and to concentrate analysis on proving it from the bottom up. All deal theses should answer the question: “How will buying this business make my existing business more valuable?” If a potential transaction has strategic value, the assertion needs to be backed up with customer input, competitor insight, new industry data and … [ Read more ]

Content: Quotation | Authors: David Harding, Hugh MacArthur | Source: Bain & Company | Subject: Mergers & Acquisitions

Originally devised to analyze the individual needs of a company’s most-profitable customers, Net Promoter® Score (NPS®) is equally powerful in understanding the work-life requirements of a company’s employees. As opposed to standard “satisfaction inquiries,” NPS reveals people’s willingness to stake their personal reputation on the product, service or organization in question.

Here’s how NPS works: Participants rate the “would recommend” question on a zero-to- 10 … [ Read more ]

Content: Quotation | Authors: Julie Coffman, Russ Hagey | Source: Bain & Company | Subjects: Human Resources, Management, Organizational Behavior

Top-down Net Promoter Score (NPS) provides a clear understanding of a company’s competitive position in key markets with an emphasis on its target customers. It gives the leadership team a roadmap to improve that position and focus the organization on the customer.

Content: Article | Source: Bain & Company | Subject: Customer Related

A series of more than 25 interviews with CEOs showed that many men and women are able to assert control over the job rather than let themselves be dominated by it. They are able to meet the challenges, pursue their agendas and accomplish great things.

Content: Article | Authors: James Allen, Julian Critchlow | Source: Bain & Company | Subject: Management

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When companies are hit with declining sales and shrinking margins, the options can start to look bleak. Attacking one challenge–by raising or lowering prices, for example–can make the other worse. But one powerful way to shore up both sales and margins in a downturn is to make your salesforce more effective.

Content: Article | Authors: Darrell K. Rigby, Dianne Ledingham | Source: Bain & Company | Subject: Marketing / Sales

Most companies need to lower prices in a downturn. But the range of outcomes can vary widely. And pricing decisions made now are likely to affect customers’ perceptions for a long time to come. What matters most is how effectively companies manage pricing.

Content: Article | Authors: Darrell K. Rigby, Ouriel Lancry | Source: Bain & Company | Subject: Pricing

Loyal customers cost less to serve. They concentrate spending with companies they trust. And they help stretch marketing dollars through word-of-mouth referrals. The powerful advantages of customer loyalty help explain why the biggest changes in market share occur during downturns.

Content: Article | Authors: Darrell K. Rigby, Rob Markey | Source: Bain & Company | Subjects: Customer Related, Management, Marketing / Sales

Leadership becomes more urgent than ever in a downturn, and ensuring an adequate supply of leaders in the roles where they can make the most difference remains a vital priority. Closing leadership gaps and building a talent-rich organization requires careful planning.

Content: Article | Authors: Alan Bird, Lori Flees, Paul DiPaola | Source: Bain & Company | Subjects: Human Resources, Leadership, Management

“Good revenue,” is the kind that’s predictable and profitable, and holds possibilities for further expansion. Bad revenue, in contrast, comes from customers that don’t value your core business proposition, requiring excessive customization, complexity or discounting, and causing the sales management team to lose strategic focus. Tempting though it may be, no company can afford bad revenue with its explicit and hidden costs.

Content: Quotation | Authors: Darrell K. Rigby, Dianne Ledingham | Source: Bain & Company | Subjects: Business Plans, Management, Marketing / Sales

Downturns reveal a company’s weaknesses. An organization that seemed nimble and focused during a period of expansion may be sluggish and ineffectual when faced with declining demand. Its very survival may depend on determining which products are making money, what customers really value, and which organizational bottlenecks are getting in the way of effective action.

Content: Article | Authors: Darrell K. Rigby, Mark Gottfredson | Source: Bain & Company | Subject: Management

Over the next year or two, companies will face substantial challenges. As the recession deepens, the battlefield will shift from great ideas and strategies to strongest execution. The companies that will prove to be successful will be equipped with action plans grounded in practical targets and tools to overcome key obstacles and inefficiencies.

Content: Article | Author: Miles Cook | Source: Bain & Company | Subject: Change Management

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In the Management feature of this edition, “Winning in emerging markets,” Bain’s Nicholas Bloch and Robert Schaus elaborate on six common practices that give consumer companies the edge over domestic competitors. Also in this issue: An editorial by Partner Jean-Charles van den Branden titled “Learning from the lucky 13” a guest interview with Robert Franssen, CEO, Allianz Belgium; and a look at a Bain toolkit … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Source: Bain & Company | Subject: International

The pressure to perform is familiar to most CEOs these days. Nobody gets much time to show what he or she can do, and achieving performance targets becomes even harder when economic turbulence hits. Despite the intensity of these pressures, the high expectations and the shorter time frames, a number of CEOs turn in truly exceptional results. Leaders of performance breakthroughs start by systematically determining … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Authors: Ashish Singh, Mark Gottfredson | Source: Bain & Company | Subjects: Management, Strategy

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