Winning Moves Blog

Businesses succeed by building on strengths. Those of you who read my material regularly know that I’ve said that many times before. Furthermore, monumental failures are not uncommon when businesses venture far from their strengths, especially in tough times when there is pressure to change and turn things around. Nonetheless, it’s important to remember that a strength in one circumstance can easily be a weakness under Continue reading “It Can Be a Strength, but It Can Also Be a Weakness” »

The evidence keeps accumulating.

Last month the Wall Street Journal reported on additional research confirming the disadvantages of boards with too many independent directors.

This is not surprising. Although directors oversee and don’t manage, a board can do its job more effectively if it has a better grasp of what could work well for the company. Independent directors may have Continue reading “More Evidence for Directors with the Right Background” »

In today’s era of rapid change and potential disruption, business leaders are often prone to exercising their bias for action. When change threatens an industry, such bias for action might be viewed as advantageous. If an industry is hit hard by disruptive threats, doing something—anything, even if it’s risky-is often perceived as Continue reading “Do You Roll the Dice or Do You Want to Win?” »

I am honored that a comment I posted online near the start of this year was published in the ”Interaction” section of Harvard Business Review’s May-June 2017 print edition. The “Interaction” section in Harvard Business Review’s print edition showcases a limited number of comments selected from those posted online on Harvard Business Review articles.

What I commented on was Continue reading “Novelty Is Not the Only Way to Stand Out—Harvard Business Review’s Print Edition Published My Comment” »

Properly managing a company’s shift from the old to the new can markedly improve business success. Online shopping (the new) has been growing and more and more physical stores (the old) are closing. While this unfolds, however, additional benefits of bricks and mortar locations continue to emerge. Based upon my 25+ years researching business success and failure patterns, companies that do a good job integrating Continue reading “As Other Retailers Close More Stores, Kohl’s Values Keeping Them Open, Integrating Old with New” »