MIT Sloan Management Review

In 1994, U.S. health care expenditures approached $1 trillion, of which private businesses paid a substantial portion. While the debates on regulatory measures to contain these costs have not been resolved, the market has responded decisively to pressures from increased health care spending, evidenced by the broad shift to managed care. This trend has moved [...]

Global competition is a general trend, and new types of organizations are emerging to service international markets.1 Companies are coordinating manufacturing, distribution, and marketing strategies on a global scale. Information systems are a key part of these globalization strategies because computer networks move large volumes of data across great distances almost instantaneously, thereby negating the [...]

Internal financial considerations and external market considerations are, at most companies, antagonistic forces in pricing decisions. Financial people allocate costs to determine how high prices must be to cover costs and achieve their profit objectives. Marketing and salespeople analyze buyers to determine how low prices must be to achieve their sales objectives. The pricing decisions [...]

Among recent innovations in financial management, the concept of the corporate bank ranks high for a number of prominent companies that have changed their attitude toward finance from basically reactive to decidedly proactive. The corporate bank has altered the status of their finance teams from largely staff to nearly line and has facilitated a new [...]

Two very different ways of thinking about investment and risk are headed for a showdown. One emphasizes the financial risk of investing; the other concerns the competitive risk of not investing. In normal times, the bearishness of the former tends to (or is supposed to) complement the bullishness of the latter. But the balance between [...]

GENERALS PLANNING military action and CEOs plotting corporate strategy often start from the same point: they identify the key strengths and weaknesses of their position vis-à-vis their rivals and develop a strategy to exploit the strengths and protect the weaknesses. In the corporate world many factors come into play, including quality of product, service, and [...]

IN 1981 THE PORTABLES DIVISION of Tektronix faced a problem that is familiar to many U.S. companies; the Japanese had entered Portables’ market for electronic meaurement instruments, creating intense competitive pressures. The Japanese priced their products substantially below the prevailing market. They were able to capture market share despite limited quality and performance.
The Japanese appearance [...]

THE RISKINESS OF acquisitions as a vehicle for corporate renewal is reflected in both empirical studies of acquisition results and managers’ comments about their experiences. Although many factors contribute to acquisition performance, a variety of recurring patterns in the acquisition process offers clues to the disappointing results. By considering how this process affects the results, [...]