Today all US states have reopened partially after two months of lockdown. This has left many of our readers worldwide wondering why America is reopening when Coronavirus infections and deaths keep increasing ? Here are some thoughts on this question:
Category Archives: Change Strategy
How work-life will change after coronavirus
With the experience of coronavirus COVID 19 lockdowns work-life will change forever. . With 91% US kids at home parents are spending more time than ever with children. Some parents have jobs that allow digital work and these folks are so lucky. Then there are the struggling 25 million unemployed in the travel, tourism, retail and any type of jobs that require a physical presence. At the other end of essential workers are the beleaguered medical worker, true heros, who show up every day to work. No less valiant are factory workers, grocery retail workers, law enforcement folks who are keeping essential services working. For everyone in each of these situations the pandemic has been trying as the USA tries to reopen. Going forward here is how work life will change:
Resolve to change your web content fast in 2020’s
Why is it so hard to change your web content?
Note: Tis blog post was updated for formatting on February 10, 2021. In COVID times updating your website quickly, is even more important]
Forever 21 : What is your strength – that customers value?
It is sad to see that Forever 21 filed for bankruptcy. Their backstory is fascinating and the 5 minute video backstory of Korean immigrants achieving the “American Dream” by Business Insider is worth watching.
Unlike the typical sad “decline of US malls” story and rise of “online retail” the Forever 21 story has important lessons for all businesses. It is also an eerie reminder of the the New Coke fiasco, To recap, Coca Cola did not realize in the eighties that customers did not drink Coke for taste but it was all about being American – a much deeper meaning.
Purpose of a Corporation : What every American needs to know
The most exciting thing for business over the 2019 summer was when the Business Roundtable put out a Statement on the “Purpose of the Corporation.” Signed by 181 American CEO’s all of whose brands are well known to consumers or businesses, the statement reflects the changing times. Download the Roundtable Statement here and check out the 181 signatures from many CEO’s of companies you are already familiar with.American politicians have been telling us what we know to be true – the “American Dream” eludes most folks today due to rapid changes in globalization and technology. Thankfully, leaders of American businesses have taken notice and have decided to move their focus from the “next quarter” to “long term shareholder value” on the shareholder element and have included all stakeholders in the “Purpose of the Corporation”. The times have truly changed in the last decade with all stakeholders having a voice on social media and the old dictum of “just focus on shareholder (short-term) value” can no longer work. See Eric Posner’s article “Milton Friedman was wrong” in the Atlantic.
Github acquisition by Microsoft: Managing in the Knowledge Age
Enter big, bad, old world, clunky Microsoft who acquires Github last year and the Internet exploded with jokes. Both Bill Gates and Steve Balmer were tough industrial age managers and Satya Nadella realized that the world had changed- see “How Microsoft got its groove back.”Command and Control” and top down strategy days are over in the knowledge age.
Unlocking Innovation: What does our Customer Success Tomorrow look like?
It’s hard to explain to everyone in an organization – that their role includes “marketing”. And focussing on constant innovation. Hence the term “Customer Success.”
[Note: Thanks to the interest of our dear readers this post from September 18, 2018 is updated April 7, 2021. During COVID everyone was forced to become more tech friendly. We hope that this revised post will help our dear readers prepare better for a post COVID world}
The Customer Success term is particularly popular in the SaaS (Software as a Service ) industry. SaaS companies need customer renewals. To do so, SaaS companies try to align the organization including programmers, sales , finance to working towards customer success. SaaS companies also have a separate Customer Success function that faces the customer and helps in getting the most out of the SaaS product.
Do you donate to charity to get a tax break? – of Donors,Charities and Governments
The recent US Tax changes, increasing the standard deduction has caused alarm in the non-profit community. Some experts believe that donations will decline from $ 309 Billion in 2016 by upto $20 Billion. This as people will stop donating since cannot itemize their taxes from 2018. Thus, during year end 2017 there was aContinue reading “Do you donate to charity to get a tax break? – of Donors,Charities and Governments”
Blockchain will make supply chains stronger but challenge brands
Blockchain technology will start shaking up supply chains and brands. But first, what is blockchain? Here's our take: Blockchain is a distributed accounting ledger . A mechanism to share how much was paid and received by whom, where each transaction is verified on a peer-to-peer basis. Sort of like verified reviews on Amazon. The personContinue reading “Blockchain will make supply chains stronger but challenge brands”
Educating the customer is a central task for marketers
The days of information asymmetry are over. Information is no longer power. And Google and other search engines are just getting started. The notion of the used car salesman trying to sell a “lemon” is a relic of the pre-internet era. Today, the entire history of a used car is available to consumers through servicesContinue reading “Educating the customer is a central task for marketers”