Business structures

The short answer: maybe.

More than 5,000 joint ventures, and many more contractual alliances, have been launched worldwide in the past five years. Companies are realizing that...

They keep things fresh and fair.

Collaboration between competitors is in fashion. General Motors and Toyota assemble automobiles, Siemens and Philips develop semiconductors, Canon supplies photocopiers to Kodak, France’s Thomson and Japan’s JVC manufacture videocassette recorders. But the spread of what we call “competitive collaboration”—joint ventures, outsourcing agreements, product licensings, cooperative research—has triggered unease about the long-term consequences. A strategic alliance […]

The right model for social impact is both.

Spanish clothier Zara turns the rules of supply chain management on their head. The result? A superresponsive network and profit margins that are the envy of the industry.

Contract manufacturers cut OEMs’ costs and free up capital. But the hungry ones are starting to bite the hand that feeds them. Smart OEMs know how to keep such hazards under control.

Academic–industry alliances have been around long enough to sprout their own ivy, yet these staples of technology innovation have undergone little innovation themselves. Now a few companies are pioneering ways to get more out of university research. One particularly successful model comes from Porsche, which has brought academic brainpower inside. A few years ago, Porsche, […]

Promote a culture of caring, trust, and loyalty.

Boards, not managers, must make the big decisions.

Increasingly, senior executives who wish to expand their company's product, geographic, or customer reach consider alliances to be the strategic vehicle...

You can’t expect to just step into mom or dad’s shoes.

Succession, compensation, and underperformers.

Beware the hard-charging alpha leader who undermines talent and maintains control over the next generation.

Traditionally, business viewed the social sector as a dumping ground for spare cash, obsolete equipment, and tired executives. But today smart companies are approaching it as a learning laboratory.

In the West, we believe that privatizing an Eastern European enterprise will invariably improve governance, management, and performance. But the positive...

Too many focus on the former.

It can be done.

This form of ownership may be new in the U.S., but it’s relatively common in Europe.

A close-knit culture can attract top talent - but managers must deliver on this promise in order to keep them.