Monthly Archives: November 2011

It’s well established market research fact that customers lie. Business history offers innumerable stories of companies that launch whizz-bang new products on the basis of extensive quantitative customer research only to find that the customers didn’t end up doing what … Continue reading →

Yelp’s IPO filing comes hot on the heels of successful IPOs and high valuations for Angie’s List and Groupon. Yelp’s timing reflects both a tech-friendly market and the company’s current position as the dominant consumer-review web site. Yelp has 22 … Continue reading →

At a recent dinner party, I was speaking with a friend who had just been promoted to vice president at a well-known New York hedge fund. The promotion was unexpected, involved an immediate 50% pay raise, and came with broad … Continue reading →

With Cyber Monday, the tablet wars kicked into full swing. Which one is the best? Is it the iPad? The Kindle? Who has the best technology? The best distribution? Who’s the best overall? For most people, “being the best” is … Continue reading →

This blog post is part of the HBR Online Forum The Future of Retail. Retailers periodically update their product assortments, deleting slow sellers and adding new products in response to shifts in consumer demand or to accommodate new offerings from … Continue reading →

Employers are dealing with more job applicants than ever. With thousands of submissions for a single vacancy, companies must be more diligent when sorting the wheat from the chaff. Many rely on HR managers to screen out applicants who aren’t … Continue reading →

The CEO of Coca-Cola recently stated that China is a better place to do business than the United States. Muhtar Kent’s remarks were prompted by the complexities of America’s tax code, its bureaucratic red tape, and its polarized political process. … Continue reading →

Some fifteen years ago, in a period that seemed full of change and uncertainty in marketing, I asked my colleague Ted Levitt where he saw our field heading. Levitt, who had a marvelous talent for speaking in epigrams, responded, “The … Continue reading →

One of the most perplexing features of these troubled times is that so many capable people in so many fields look so lost and ineffective. Whether it’s the stubborn inefficiencies of the health-care system, the ever-rising costs of the higher-education … Continue reading →

My recent post on why people micromanage triggered over 100 comments, stories, and suggestions — many of them relating experiences on the receiving end of micromanagement. What was striking was that only two readers actually admitted to being micromanagers themselves. … Continue reading →