In the long run, higher quality captures a larger market share and results in higher profits. But with technology constantly changing, today's quality products may not be tomorrow's. By assessing how customers perceive quality, one can formulate sound strategies and commit to long‐term...

One hundred and ninety of the world's largest and most diversified companies have added a new capability to their arsenal of planning tools. They have tapped into a new and unique collection of strategic experiences of product‐line businesses now maintained by The Strategic Planning Institute...

Cross‐Sectional vs. Time‐Series Analysis. The strategic position of a business is not immutable. It can be altered by external changes in the market it serves, the technology it uses or by a conscious strategic choice. When such changes do occur, a business's own historical experience may be...

Crushing productivity problems are causing U.S. industries great discomfort. Newspapers and magazines allude to these problems every day. In many industries, hoping to quickly improve lagging productivity, management has taken rapid strides towards re‐industrialization.

Over the past 20 years it has become increasingly clear that sound business strategy is the key to good financial performance. Senior managers in diversified companies have long known from experience that top‐notch business resources — modern equipment, state‐of‐the‐art technology, a...

An ancient management axiom holds that, “If it ain't measured, it ain't managed.” A more topical management axiom says, “The mission of business is to manage for increased shareholder value.” Putting ancient and topical together, we deduce that, “Unless wealth is measured, business is...

Most managers equate “quality” just with conformance to technical standards. The more powerful strategic weapon is market perceived quality. Here's how to measure it and why it's such a potent weapon.