A global expert in strategy.

When the former USA president took a Sharpie marker and redrew a hurricane forecast map to cover up a mistake he’d made, my family were more than amused.  Turns out my distaste for admitting a mistake is a favourite joke in our family.  Rather than forcing me to admit that I may not have been…

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Volume 20 Newsletter 12 Heading into a New Year is always a good time to review your business strategy and re-ask that all important question…..are the resources of our business (or our business unit) aligned with the opportunities in the market.   Given what’s happened in 2020 the answer is likely a resounding NO.   There is…

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I’d like to wish everyone a peaceful and happy Holiday season. Here’s to a better 2021! A Covid Christmas Twas the night before Christmas, Santa at the North PoleScratching his white beard, staring hard at the snowWith Covid on the loose would Christmas still be on?Or would children all wonder where Santa’s sleigh had gone?Should…

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Volume 20 Newsletter 10 Consider these facts: In the last 100 years there have been 17 recessions  Each of those recessions lasted approximately 12 months  Of the firms in the top quartile in their industry 20% drop to the bottom quartile 17% of firms go bankrupt  The most common reaction to a recession is to…

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Volume 20 Newsletter 9 Dear Stephen Thanks for sharing the strategic plan presentation.  Here are my initial impressions and some early suggestions. Focus on outcomes.  The presentation tells me a lot about what you do, but after reading it I’m really struggling to find out what you’re going to do for me?   (Not me, but…

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Volume 20 Newsletter 8 Anyone remember the Mars Orbiter disaster back in 1999?    A 125 million dollar space shot to Mars disintegrated on impact because two project teams didn’t speak the same language even though they both lived in the same country.   As it turned out the Jet Propulsion team based in California were speaking…

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Volume 20 Newsletter 6 The more successful a company becomes the more resistant it becomes to change.  But when change comes that could destroy your business model it’s wise to pay attention early and get ahead of the curve.   Hoping for the best is never a good strategy. In the 1991 three killer whales performing…

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We’re all watching TV these days and it has become a major battle for your eye balls.  Networks like HBO, Disney, Crave, Netflix (‘Net fix’ in our household) Amazon, Hulu and others are trying to outdo the other in creative content.  But where did this craze all start? Television in the 1970’s 80’s and 90’s…

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Volume 20 Newsletter 4 Are the resources of your business aligned with the opportunities in this ‘new’ market?  In times of crisis you have to go back to the basics.  Find a simple path forward and follow it. Coach Vince Lombardi exemplified this strategy when he took over the Green Bay Packers football team on…

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Volume 19 Newsletter 12 After an exhausting 700+ case studies at business school it’s a wonder that anyone would remember one as standing out, but for me it was the FedEx case study.  The case follows Fred Smith’s creation of the iconic company, an idea he formulated as a student at Yale where he wrote…

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