How does a market for a new product emerge in the face of cultural barriers? Marketing life insurance in China has never been easy, as the topic of early death is a deeply ingrained taboo subject. Transnational and domestic life insurance firms, however, have pursued different strategies when dealing with local cultural resistance. While transnational firms have upheld a profit-oriented model and attempted to remove the local cultural obstacles, domestic firms have adopted a market-share approach as they try to accommodate local preferences. Interestingly, the rapid growth of the Chinese life insurance market can be largely attributed to the novice domestic players’ unconventional business strategies. The market that has emerged is one with a trajectory and characteristics distinct from those in Euro-American contexts. These characteristics highlight the strong influence of local cultures on market formation.
India’s Luxury – A Tale of Paradoxes
By Glyn Atwal & Soumya Jain
As the Indian luxury market enters the next phases of development, the rewards of this potentially massive market will continue to attract investment. However, India is not just another emerging market. The dynamics of the Indian luxury market challenge international luxury players to develop an Indian-driven strategy. The ability and willingness to connect with the Indian luxury consumer can make a difference between wining and losing a share of the luxury rupee. A new era beckons international luxury brands to plan strategically for the future and seize the market.
Between Heaven and the Deep Blue Sea: Kitimat’s strategic placement facilitates a growing economy
By Rose Klukas
“At Kitimat the setting for a good life must be hewn out of the unknown wilderness. Pioneers must become old-timers, bound to Kitimat by enthusiastic love of their town and its qualities. They must be given the utmost freedom to develop their lives. And so the plans of Kitimat, both operational and physical, have been developed to serve as a flexible setting for good living that is open to continuous growth and expansion.”
Logistics Clusters: The Feedback Loop Leading to Economic Growth and Jobs
By Yossi Sheffi
Governments around the world are investing in logistics clusters to encourage economic growth and create jobs. While the advantages of high-technology, knowledge-based clusters have been analyzed extensively, logistics cluster have not. A new book: Logistics Clusters: Delivering Value and Driving Growth (MIT Press, Cambridge MA, September 2012) fills the gap. This article looks at some of the factors motivating public sector investments in logistics clusters. It explains the mechanisms leading to their growth and some of the types of jobs created around such clusters.
Why Transfer Pricing is Key to Decision Making and Strategic Reviews
By Les Secular
This article looks at how Transfer Pricing can impact the bottom line on financial statements, particularly in the current global economic climate, and why management should consider transfer pricing when setting their strategy for the future and their need to adapt rapidly to change.
Dividends – Everything you know is wrong!
The world is constantly changing. We see it all the time. Yesterday’s league leaders become today’s relegation battlers. Alternative misfits become mainstream celebrity icons. What were once rich mines of natural resources dry up, while new sources of supply emerge in unexpected or newly explored places.
Asset Price Bubbles: Lessons From The Recent Financial Crisis
By Douglas Evanoff, George Kaufman & Anastasios G. Malliaris
The successful performance of the U.S. economy during the ‘Great Moderation’ period of 1984 to 2006 appeared to have offered both the economics profession and policymakers the assurance that asset bubbles could be effectively managed with little or no real adverse economic impact. But the recent global financial crisis had a serious adverse impact on the U.S. and global economies, and has triggered a renewal of the debate about the impact of bubbles and the role of public policy in addressing them.
Writing a Manifesto for Better Management
By Rafael Andreu & Josep M. Rosanas
The current world economy crisis creates difficulties for many. Beyond “mechanical” causes, we posit that bad management in the institutions affected is a crucial one. An exaggerated emphasis on immediate financial results (always short-term) as the sole purpose of management, betrays a pessimistic conception of human beings that react only to economic stimuli, paradoxically neglecting other fundamental management dimensions. We point out some starting points for better management. After analyzing concepts and practices that contributed to the crisis, we propose the foundations of a better conception of management.
Staying Power: Managing Innovation in an Uncertain World
In December 2005, I was invited by Oxford University to deliver the 2009 Clarendon Lectures in Management Studies and then to produce a book based on those lectures. We decided that I should try to synthesize my research, consulting, and other experiences going back to 1985 with companies ranging from Toyota, Intel, and Microsoft to Google and Apple, described in nine books and nearly one hundred articles. The result is my latest book, Staying Power: Six Enduring Principles for Managing Strategy and Innovation in an Uncertain World (Oxford University Press, 2010, and 2012 paperback). This article is a summary of the key ideas.1
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