Eight years ago, Malnight, Buche, and Dhanaraj launched a study of high growth in companies, looking at three strategies known to drive it: creating new markets, serving broader stakeholder needs, and rewriting the rules of the game. To their surprise, they discovered a fourth driver they hadn't considered at all: purpose. Companies have long been building purpose into what they do, but usually it's seen as an add-on--as a way to, say, give back to the community. The high-growth companies in the study, in contrast, had made purpose central to their strategies, using it to redefine playing fields and reshape value propositions. The purpose of Mars Petcare, for instance--a better world for pets--guided its expansion from pet food into the larger ecosystem of pet health. The purpose of Securitas--contributing to a safer society--led the firm to redesign its offering to include not just physical guards but electronic services and predictive solutions. This article explains how executives can develop and implement a purpose at their organizations. It also describes the benefits they're quite likely to see once they do: a more unified organization, more-motivated stakeholders, broader impact, and more profitable growth.
Recruit Holdings, Japan's largest staffing firm and a leading marketing media company started out in the early 1960s as an advertising company publishing magazines for jobseekers. It scaled up over the following decades to add business verticals such as real estate, bridal, travel, beauty salons and restaurants. Spurred by the internet revolution in the early 2000s, Recruit launched job boards and websites for its diverse media businesses while also moving content online by digitizing many of its popular magazines. In the early 2010s, it transitioned into becoming a service provider with the launch of a number of web-based platforms that allowed SMEs to digitize several key activities, such as point-of-sale registers, reservations and payments. By 2015 Recruit's digital platforms had gained significant popularity and the company was generating enormous amounts of online data on types of transactions, end-user behaviors and SME business characteristics. It also held significant deep offline data that resided within the sales team. However, the platforms and the data was specific to individual businesses. Recruit began to push for a unified backbone platform that would cut across all businesses with vertically stacked integrated solutions. It also established an artificial intelligence (AI) research laboratory in Silicon Valley. The mandate was to apply the latest technologies in data analytics, machine learning and AI to achieve breakthrough innovation. At the same time, Recruit harbored global aspirations and embarked on international expansion, mainly through acquisitions. Its goal was to become the world's largest staffing firm by 2020 and the largest media company by 2030. Could Recruit replicate its business model successfully overseas? Could it leverage its people and technological platforms to transform itself into a truly global internet corporation? Could it cannibalize its existing businesses through data-driven innovations to leapfrog into the future?
Recruit Holdings, Japan's largest staffing firm and a leading marketing media company started out in the early 1960s as an advertising company publishing magazines for jobseekers. It scaled up over the following decades to add business verticals such as real estate, bridal, travel, beauty salons and restaurants. Spurred by the internet revolution in the early 2000s, Recruit launched job boards and websites for its diverse media businesses while also moving content online by digitizing many of its popular magazines. In the early 2010s, it transitioned into becoming a service provider with the launch of a number of web-based platforms that allowed SMEs to digitize several key activities, such as point-of-sale registers, reservations and payments. By 2015 Recruit's digital platforms had gained significant popularity and the company was generating enormous amounts of online data on types of transactions, end-user behaviors and SME business characteristics. It also held significant deep offline data that resided within the sales team. However, the platforms and the data was specific to individual businesses. Recruit began to push for a unified backbone platform that would cut across all businesses with vertically stacked integrated solutions. It also established an artificial intelligence (AI) research laboratory in Silicon Valley. The mandate was to apply the latest technologies in data analytics, machine learning and AI to achieve breakthrough innovation. At the same time, Recruit harbored global aspirations and embarked on international expansion, mainly through acquisitions. Its goal was to become the world's largest staffing firm by 2020 and the largest media company by 2030. Could Recruit replicate its business model successfully overseas? Could it leverage its people and technological platforms to transform itself into a truly global internet corporation? Could it cannibalize its existing businesses through data-driven innovations to leapfrog into the future?
Examines major issues faced by Eli Lilly as it evaluates the appropriateness of a focused matrix organization with extensive use of cross-functional teams.
Describes Citibank's worldwide operations, which include activities in developing and developed markets. The bank's structure also varies across markets and regions, varying from autonomous national affiliates to an industry/product-based structure in its domestic U.S. market. While the bank has an existing organization for handling large multinational customers with significant operations (and thus business) in multiple regions, the bank is considering how also to serve local customers who are in the process of expanding to more than one region.
Describes the elevator market and Otis's competitive position in four markets: Hong Kong, Malaysia, India, and Japan. The student is asked to evaluate the strategic and competitive challenges in each market, especially in light of strong Japanese competition across the region. Designed to give students appreciation of operating in the heterogeneous Asian environment in highly competitive markets.
Describes Otis's effort to build a regional organization linking its previously autonomous opportunities across the Pacific Asia region. Describes changes being made in several key functions, including manufacturing, marketing, engineering, and finance. Presents major challenges being faced as the company tries to move toward a coordinated regional organization. Designed to examine issues associated with building an integrated organization in a highly competitive environment.
Examines the changes taking place in Eli Lilly in response to the globalization of the pharmaceuticals industry. Identifies the steps taken by management, problems currently faced, and challenges for the future. Allows examination of the process of implementing a global strategy from the headquarters perspective.
Examines Otis's market entry strategy in China through a joint venture with Tianjin Elevator Works. The teaching objective is a basic evaluation of a joint venture in a developing country. May be used with Otis Elevator Co.: China Joint Venture (B1), (B2), and (D).
Examines the challenges facing the company in light of the changing economic, regulatory, and competitive environment in the European pharmaceutical industry. Examines the steps taken by the company adapting to this changing situation as part of a total globalization strategy and aggressive growth objectives in the region. Allows examination of the changing roles of country, regional, and headquarters management.
Describes the process of establishing an independent operation in Japan in the mid-1980s as a result of a decision to make a major investment in the market. Describes the challenges in setting up such an operation and focuses on the role of the country manager in managing for rapid growth in a complex but key market.
Examines the company's global strategy and potential acquisition of Philips' major domestic appliance operations in Europe in light of increasing trends toward globilization in the major appliance industry. Allows discussions weighing the advantages and risks of entering a major market through a joint venture with an established competitor.