Safety is regarded as an indispensable right for customers and employees. Government agencies exist to enforce standards, and firms spend millions testing their products and creating safe workplace environments. And yet products are frequently recalled, and workplace accidents continue to happen. Why aren't companies doing better on safety? Most executives frame safety as a compliance issue. They see it as a cost and, consequently, they underinvest in it. They tend to treat safety as an abstract value rather than as a driver of performance. And when a safety crisis hits, they often react with unsustainable measures, generally aimed at managing their public image. To help companies get out of this rut, the authors present evidence that safety can be a key driver of performance. Then they offer a five-step process for leaders: align on the definition of safety, agree on which metrics to use, anticipate and prevent problems, customize safety training, and incentivize employees to adopt preventive behaviors. By reimagining safety not as a defensive necessity but as an offensive opportunity, companies can elevate safety from a siloed function to a shared mindset, and from a cost center to a value accelerator.

The pandemic is forcing many B2B companies to cut costs, but conventional approaches to cost reduction may not serve them well. Instead, leaders should intensify their focus on customers by identifying the small, select group of customer value drivers in their companies. They then should cut costs by reducing value-added waste, managing customer acquisition and retention more effectively, and prioritizing and eliminating strategic initiatives that don't align well with customer value.

Problem customers can cost your business lots of money, but quickly ejecting them may not be the best way to relieve the burden. Mittal, of Rice University, Sarkees, of Penn State, and Murshed, of Towson University, explore the ins and outs of customer divestment. Using real-world examples, the authors show how deciding to end a relationship with a customer segment or individual can increase profitability, improve employee morale, address capacity constraints, and bolster a business strategy. However, divestment also comes with potential downsides for various constituencies, including employees and remaining customers, both of whom may wonder whether they're next. In addition, ethical and legal consequences - and the risk of bad publicity - always loom. Before you rush to action, say the authors, walk through their five-part customer divestment framework. First, reassess the context of present customer relationships, looking beyond simple profitability. You may find that the most productive option is to educate customers rather than drop them. In some cases, if you renegotiate the value proposition with them, both of you will win. In other instances, you'll want to migrate customers to other subsidiaries or providers, as long as the move is undertaken - and perceived to be conducted - in good faith. If it becomes necessary to terminate a customer relationship, use a direct, interpersonal approach. No business can afford to squander its customer base, so divestment should not be boiled down to determining merely who is profitable and who is not - the strategic consequences are too weighty. In the end, the decision about whether to divest might prove to be the toughest customer of all.