Superstition has always had a big impact on human behavior, sometimes yielding macroeconomic effects for even the most industrialized societies. An example of the effects of superstition is the rate of Japanese births from 1960 to 1990 (see Figure 1). A general, steady decline is evident in recent decades.
The pricing of services in the United States is a mess. Consider these examples:In 1992, Congress enacted the Cable Act to rein in prices in the cable television industry.
A revolution is now underway. Most innovation occurs first in software.1 And software is the primary element in all aspects of innovation from basic research through product introduction:Software provides the critical mechanism through which managers can lower the costs, compress the time cycles, and increase the value of innovations.
IBM is making a comeback. Although many observers had counted the company out — “It’s a dinosaur, an implosion, a wreck,” various commentators said — its revival was probable, even predictable, because cycles of decline and revitalization have been the company’s pattern through many decades.P
A firm decided to redesign its research and development process. Because the effort was critical to its success, the firm applied two parallel approaches to the process. One was a classical reengineering effort in which a small group of managers and consultants designed a radically different way to do research.
Although most managers recognize the critical role a companywide vision can play today, many are intimidated by the challenge of developing one. The author offers guidance by first explaining how and why a vision works. He then presents a template tested in the corporate, nonprofit, and public sectors for creating an effective vision. Finally, his analysis of why some great visions fail can help executives avoid potential pitfalls.
Information technology implementation in organizations has gone from automating back-office clerks to supporting the complex tasks of autonomous knowledge workers.