MIT Sloan Management Review

Faced with the need to educate themselves quickly about a foreign market, companies employ a variety of approaches to learning. New research offers insights into choosing the best approach for your circumstances.

At too many large companies, corporate functions like HR and IT don’t get enough strategic direction from the CEO. Four basic steps can help.

New research finds that investments companies make in information technology increase profitability and sales more than investments in advertising or R&D do.

A desire to be close to its major global customers led Halliburton Co., an international oil services group, to relocate the company’s CEO from its headquarters in Houston, Texas, to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.
Image courtesy of Flickr user utpal.

New research sheds light on several important dynamics that affect the opinions that customers post about products.

Senior executives weighing strategies appropriate for today’s global economy will hear contradictory advice. Some say you need to move quickly, before competitors, to establish a worldwide presence; others cite data showing that this approach is often less profitable. The reality is that neither approach is appropriate for every circumstance. Therefore, executives need to understand when to pursue one route and when to pursue the other.

Why are investors so bullish on companies like Apple and Disney? Is it metrics, management, industry prowess, good investor relations or good timing? Probably all of these. But something else may be at work, too. According to research conducted at the MIT Sloan School of Management, the stock market consistently values certain types of business models more highly than others. In recent years, investors have favored models focused on intellectual property and highly innovative manufacturing.

Traditional marketing practices are increasingly viewed with skepticism. In many organizations, marketers struggle to document the return on investment for expenditures; as a result, marketing has less influence in the boardroom — and marketing is viewed as a questionable cost rather than a worthy investment. This article is based on a study that found that certain marketing techniques can influence a company’s stock market valuation — if the techniques increase customer lifetime value.

The conventional wisdom is that products that have a strong established base of users can often trump higher-quality alternatives. But recent research suggests otherwise.

Want to increase sales of a bundle of goods or services that includes both pleasurable and utilitarian items? Research suggests that a discount will increase sales more effectively if it’s offered on the pleasurable item.

From time to time a company’s project truly stands out, creating exceptional value and having an impact on the industry. IBM’s AS/400 development effort in the 80s was a game changer and gave IBM a competitive edge. Apple Inc.’s success in creating the iPod portable media player and iTunes online store is another more recent example of a great project — one that changed the way people listen to and buy music. Why are such projects so rare — and why can’t more projects be like them?

Virtual worlds have been slow to catch on in businesses — but employees familiar with the technology may help.

When consumers encounter negative information about a company, its reputation for corporate social responsibility can help — but only sometimes.

Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick (left) and Massachusetts Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Ian Bowles (right) at advanced battery maker A123 Systems.
Image courtesy of Flickr user Office of Governor Patrick.

People with optimistic dispositions get jobs more easily and get promoted more, new research suggests.

Too little — or too much — attention from head office executives can cause problems in a company’s global operations.

Are your customers in a concrete or abstract mindset as they think about purchasing your product? The answer can affect how much they buy.

How do you win with data? SMR surveyed global executives about turning the data deluge and analytics into competitive advantage. Here’s an early snapshot of how managers are answering the most important question organizations face.

Complex supply chains with many agents are more prone to problems, and on occasion, to spectacular collapse. Examples from the last few years include the subprime mortgage crisis; the failure of the Peanut Corporation of America; and dioxin-contaminated Irish pork. Without a doubt, today’s complex supply chains are vulnerable to opportunistic behavior leading to sometimes catastrophic failure. But there are five steps managers can take to protect their companies.

These days, most executives recognize the importance of information technology innovation — but that doesn’t mean their companies’ IT budgets reflect that emphasis. In a 2009 study conducted by our firm, A.T.