1160 Posts found for Source: McKinsey Quarterly

Most companies put too little energy into adapting core businesses to changing markets. Indeed, they often unintentionally harvest their core businesses by pushing for short-term performance while neglecting the investments needed to stay ahead of the game. Often, companies move only when competitors start investing aggressively. When these companies do act, they usually make insufficient small-bet investments in diagnosis and design and skip the medium-bet … [ Read more ]

Content: Quotation | Author: Lowell Bryan | Source: McKinsey Quarterly | Subject: Strategy

There are two types of complexity. Understanding where to intervene is the key to managing them to create value.

Content: Article | Authors: David Turnbull, Jessica Spungin, Suzanne Heywood | Source: McKinsey Quarterly | Subject: Management

Much sociological research suggests that the desire to avoid embarrassment, to maintain an acceptable public image, might be an even more powerful motive for human behavior than financial incentives. Organizations seeking to galvanize people to action—getting them to embrace new ideas or stimulating the personal initiative that often fuels innovation—should take this research…to heart.

Content: Quotation | Authors: Hayagreeva Rao, Robert I. Sutton | Source: McKinsey Quarterly | Subjects: Change Management, Organizational Behavior

Despite years of conversation, I don’t think the HR function has done a good job of attracting enough business-minded professionals into HR. And until we do that, until we make HR a desirable career, or at least a valuable segment in the journey of one’s career—one that has real business impact—we won’t raise the caliber of talent in the function. And until we do that, … [ Read more ]

Content: Quotation | Author: Beth Axelrod | Source: McKinsey Quarterly | Subject: Human Resources

Fear of making a fool of oneself is a very strong driver of behavior, and it has occurred to me more than once that this is a rare fear among successful men and more common—usually without foundation—among successful women.

Content: Quotation | Author: Sandra Dawson | Source: McKinsey Quarterly | Subject: Women in Business

We talk a lot today about the importance of mentoring and coaching, and they can be vital in helping novices learn the rules of the game. But it is very important that men should not always be mentored by men and women by women. Mentoring based on interests, not gender, can help to change the culture because it can lead to greater understanding of the … [ Read more ]

Content: Quotation | Author: Sandra Dawson | Source: McKinsey Quarterly | Subjects: Career, Coaching, Women in Business

The frames people use to view the world and process experiences can make a critical difference to professional outcomes. Many studies suggest that optimists see life more realistically than pessimists do, a frame of mind that can be crucial to making the right business decisions. …Optimists, research shows, are not afraid to frame the world as it actually is—they are confident that they can manage … [ Read more ]

Content: Quotation | Authors: Joanna Barsh, Rebecca A. Craske, Susie Cranston | Source: McKinsey Quarterly | Subjects: Organizational Behavior, Personality / Behavior

A number of studies have shown that women who promote their own interests vigorously are seen as aggressive, uncooperative, and selfish. An equal number of studies show that the failure of women to promote their own interests results in a lack of female leaders. Until one of these conditions changes, sponsors, we believe, are the key to helping women gain access to opportunities they merit … [ Read more ]

Content: Quotation | Authors: Joanna Barsh, Rebecca A. Craske, Susie Cranston | Source: McKinsey Quarterly | Subject: Women in Business

A strategy as risky as vertical integration can only succeed when it is chosen for the right reasons.

Editor’s Note: includes an excellent look at how markets fail…

Content: Article | Authors: David White, John Stuckey | Source: McKinsey Quarterly | Subject: Economics

Executives understand that it’s important to monitor and improve the long-term health of their companies, but rarely do. Here’s how they can practice what they preach.

Content: Article | Authors: Aaron De Smet, Bill Schaninger, Mark Loch | Source: McKinsey Quarterly | Subjects: Best Practices, Management

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Value-based management provides a clear metric – discounted future cash flow – to guide decisions at all levels of an organization: a business unit leader using this approach may pursue value in financial terms; a functional manager could concentrate on customer service, market share, product quality, or productivity; and a manufacturing manager might focus on costs per unit, cycle times, or defect rates.

But this … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Author: Tim Koller | Source: McKinsey Quarterly | Subjects: Finance, Management

Loss aversion wouldn’t have such a large effect on decisions made in times of uncertainty if people viewed each gamble not in isolation but as one of many taken during their own lives or the life of an organization. But executives, like all of us, tend to evaluate every option as a change from a reference point – usually the status quo – not as … [ Read more ]

Content: Quotation | Authors: Dan P. Lovallo, Olivier Sibony | Source: McKinsey Quarterly | Subject: Risk Management

When companies evaluate strategic decisions, three conditions frequently create agency problems. One is the misalignment of time horizons between individuals and corporations. …Another problem that can generate harmful deceptions is the differing risk profiles of individuals and organizations. …The final agency issue arises from the likelihood that a subordinate knows much more than a superior does about a given issue. Higher-ranking executives must therefore make … [ Read more ]

Content: Quotation | Authors: Dan P. Lovallo, Olivier Sibony | Source: McKinsey Quarterly | Subject: Organizational Behavior

Executives say their companies could be a lot more effective at developing a strategy and implementing strategic plans, and they suggest some areas for improvement.

Content: Article | Source: McKinsey Quarterly | Subjects: Best Practices, Strategy

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Few large global companies outperform their competitors on both revenue growth and profitability over a decade. Do those that do have anything else in common?

Editor’s Note: article available via BetterManagement.com, but requires free account…

Content: Article | Authors: Janamitra Devan, Matthew B. Klusas, Timothy W. Ruefli | Sources: BetterManagement.com, McKinsey Quarterly | Subjects: Best Practices, Management, Strategy

Defecting customers are far less of a problem than customers who change their buying patterns. New ways of understanding these changes can unlock the power of loyalty.

Content: Article | Authors: Stephanie Coyles, Timothy C. Gokey | Source: McKinsey Quarterly | Subjects: Management, Marketing / Sales

A founding father of public-opinion research explains why shareholder value isn’t enough.

Content: Article | Authors: Daniel Yankelovich, Lenny T. Mendonca, Matt Miller | Source: McKinsey Quarterly | Subjects: Management, People, Strategy

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