Worldwide, managers are setting SMART (Specific, Measureable, Achievable, Relevant and Timely) goals, expecting these to make this "the year" to revitalize or transform their businesses. Instead, most of these professionals should retire SMART, or at least rescind its status of standard operating procedure.
The manufacturing world is being shaped by technological, demographic, and market megatrends and how companies respond will define their future performance.
Managers are increasingly nervous about the lack of progress in their digital initiatives. Too often, organizations merely add digital "pixie dust" to traditional processes or engage in a frenzy of digital experiments and ventures. Rather than drive competitive advantage, these efforts leave companies more vulnerable.
McKinsey's proprietary benchmarking survey conducted annually with a dozen regional and super-regional banks in the United States supports the axiom that investing more in IT is not as important as investing smartly.
All of us aspire to work for leaders who truly value our input. We're looking for a "speak-up culture" - the kind of workplace where we feel welcome and included, free to express our views and opinions, and confident that our ideas will be heard and recognized. But it's not just employees who benefit from this kind of workplace culture. So do employers and shareholders.
You have an earache and decide it's time to see the doctor. You call the office, sit on hold with a receptionist, and finally schedule an appointment – but not until five days later. As if waiting around for your appointment doesn't waste enough of your time, it's only the beginning of a tedious process – driving 20 minutes to the doctor's office, sitting in a crowded waiting room and filling out paperwork.
Companies could create new, revenue-generating services from the "data streams" they produce, but it requires a data-savvy culture and new skills, according to research supported by the Society for Information Management's Advanced Practices Council.
By now, it's conventional wisdom: culture can ultimately break even the most seemingly harmonious corporate match. The list of mergers that have faltered or failed because of culture clash is long. Yet despite the many high-profile cautionary tales, very few companies involved in a post-merger integration deal with the culture question as fully and aggressively as they do with, say, capturing value from cost synergies.
Organizations are faced with many critical challenges - including rapidly changing technology, environmental risks, regulatory and legal requirements, major shifts in markets, ethical breaches, and big data and cybersecurity issues - that threaten their long-term success and sustainability.
Even though world merchandise trade growth is expected to rise just one percent through the end of this year, U.S. businesses are optimistic about trade over the next six months, buoyed by the prospect of changes to government trade regulations, and momentum in the current U.S. domestic economy, according to the latest findings from the U.S. HSBC Global Connections Trade Forecast.