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In some Third World factories, there is a literal wall of codes. Posted are dozens of codes of conduct as defined by dozens of customer, firm, and industry groups and a host of certifying organizations. The cost of this wall of codes is clear for managers: They must fill out streams of forms and host endless visits from compliance auditors. Less obviously, the wall of codes is costly for consumers and other stakeholders who care about the social performance of businesses. Not only must they pay the (passed on) costs of compliance, but with so many standards, they cannot always identify which standards and codes are valid measures of true social responsibility. Documents the proliferation of metrics and outlines some of the problems regarding reliability, validity, and comparability of existing codes. Examines two large sets of metrics: those used in the apparel industry and those created by socially responsible investment funds. Concludes with some practical suggestions to help reduce the burdens on managers and yield more reliable, valid, and comparable metrics.

Examines current priorities of nonfinancial reporting among large, publicly traded European corporations to assess how companies disclose on corporate social responsibility (CSR). Analyzes 90 multinational companies' social, environmental, and sustainability reports; identifies what they report on relations with stakeholders; and examines differences among reporting tools. The two key findings: Companies differ in the way they deal with nonfinancial reports, falling somewhere between a monitoring approach and a managerial approach. Second, companies tend to focus on specific CSR-relevant themes that reflect the priorities of multiple stakeholders. The latter include safety for workers and of products, product quality and innovation, environmental protection, dialogue with communities and stakeholders in general, attention to skill development, and responsible citizenship.

We highlight 20 ideas just bubbling up to the surface in 2006. Howard Gardner contends that the ability to synthesize information will be the most valued trait for leaders. Dan Williams explores how body area networks can lower health care costs and improve safety. William McDonough describes China as a seedbed for environmental innovation. Nitin Nohria and Thomas A. Stewart say the next frontier for business will be managing incalculable uncertainty. Jeff Cares outlines the challenge confronting business as networks face off against networks. Claire Craig reports how scientists are going beyond the lab and using the world outside as their petri dish. Ted Halstead recommends that every newborn in America receive $6,000 as a down payment on a productive life. Georg von Krogh warns that customer-collaborators are starting to demand a stake in IP. Ged Davis envisions an OPEC-like organization to benefit consumers instead of producers. Nancy M. Dixon describes a model for peer-to-peer leadership development. Harris Allen and Sean Sullivan contend that investment in employees' health can pay for itself. David Weinberger says that stores should imitate Web design. Gerd Gigerenzer shows how a leader's personal rules of thumb influence employees. Zachary Karabell discusses the growing gap between nations' and companies' economic performance. Paul Hemp tells why avatars make good customers. Philip Parker explains why creating private labels for your retail customers is smart strategy. Judith Samuelson and Claire Preisser describe how companies are combating short-term thinking. George Stalk Jr. explains why many firms aren't benefiting from China sourcing. Michael S. Gazzaniga punctures inflated expectations about what neuroscience can do for business. E.L. Kersten says employees shouldn't expect their jobs to provide meaning. HBR also offers a list of important business books due out in 2006.

For organizations like GE, P&G, and Visa, management innovation is the secret to success. But what is management innovation? Why is it so important? And how can other companies learn to become management innovators? This article from expert Gary Hamel answers those questions. A management breakthrough can deliver a strong advantage to the innovating company and produce a major shift in industry leadership. Few companies, however, have been able to come up with a formal process for fostering management innovation. The biggest challenge seems to be generating truly unique ideas. Four components can help: a big problem that demands fresh thinking, creative principles, or paradigms that can reveal new approaches; an evaluation of the conventions that constrain novel thinking; and examples and analogies that help redefine what can be done. No doubt, existing management processes in your organization exacerbate the big problems you're hoping to solve. To identify them, pose a series of questions for each one: Who owns the process? What are its objectives? What are the metrics for success? What are the decision-making criteria? How are decisions communicated, and to whom? After documenting these details, ask the people involved with the process to weigh in. This exploration may reveal opportunities to reinvent your management processes. A management innovation, the author says, creates long-lasting advantage when it meets at least one of three conditions: It is based on a novel principle that challenges the orthodoxy; it is systemic, involving a range of processes and methods; or it is part of a program of invention, where progress compounds over time.

In more than 30 essays for Harvard Business Review, Peter Drucker (1909-2005) urged readers to take on the hard work of thinking--always combined, he insisted, with decisive action. He closely analyzed the phenomenon of knowledge work--the growing call for employees who use their minds rather than their hands--and explained how it challenged the conventional wisdom about the way organizations should be run. He was intrigued by employees who knew more about certain subjects than their bosses or colleagues but who still had to cooperate with others in a large organization. As the business world matured in the second half of the 20th century, executives came to think that they knew how to run companies--and Drucker took it upon himself to poke holes in their assumptions, lest organizations become stale. But he did so sympathetically, operating from the premise that his readers were intelligent, hardworking people of goodwill. Well suited to HBR's format of practical, idea-based essays for executives, his clear-eyed, humanistic writing enriched the magazine time and again. This article is a compilation of the savviest management advice Drucker offered HBR readers over the years--in short, his greatest hits. It revisits the following insightful, influential contributions: "The Theory of the Business" (September-October 1994); "Managing for Business Effectiveness" (May-June 1963); "What Business Can Learn from Nonprofits" (July-August 1989); "The New Society of Organizations" (September-October 1992); "The Information Executives Truly Need" (January-February 1995); "Managing Oneself" (March-April 1999, republished January 2005); "They're Not Employees, They're People" (February 2002); and "What Makes an Effective Executive" (June 2004).

This is the fourth of a four-case series. At first glance, Hewlett Packard (HP) doesn't seem to be a family firm, but when push comes to shove - as it did during the controversial HP-Compaq merger - family matters. The case introduces the strategy that drove the merger, analyses Carly Fiorina's background and leadership style, and discusses the corporate culture of HP. Chronologically, the case begins with the announcement of the merger and ends with the shareholders' vote. This case study illustrates the importance of corporate governance, parallel planning, and a shared vision in organisations in which the founding families still have a large financial and emotional stake.

This is the fourth of a four-case series. At first glance, Hewlett Packard (HP) doesn't seem to be a family firm, but when push comes to shove - as it did during the controversial HP-Compaq merger - family matters. The case introduces the strategy that drove the merger, analyses Carly Fiorina's background and leadership style, and discusses the corporate culture of HP. Chronologically, the case begins with the announcement of the merger and ends with the shareholders' vote. This case study illustrates the importance of corporate governance, parallel planning, and a shared vision in organisations in which the founding families still have a large financial and emotional stake.

This is the fourth of a four-case series. At first glance, Hewlett Packard (HP) doesn't seem to be a family firm, but when push comes to shove - as it did during the controversial HP-Compaq merger - family matters. The case introduces the strategy that drove the merger, analyses Carly Fiorina's background and leadership style, and discusses the corporate culture of HP. Chronologically, the case begins with the announcement of the merger and ends with the shareholders' vote. This case study illustrates the importance of corporate governance, parallel planning, and a shared vision in organisations in which the founding families still have a large financial and emotional stake.

This is the fourth of a four-case series. At first glance, Hewlett Packard (HP) doesn't seem to be a family firm, but when push comes to shove - as it did during the controversial HP-Compaq merger - family matters. The case introduces the strategy that drove the merger, analyses Carly Fiorina's background and leadership style, and discusses the corporate culture of HP. Chronologically, the case begins with the announcement of the merger and ends with the shareholders' vote. This case study illustrates the importance of corporate governance, parallel planning, and a shared vision in organisations in which the founding families still have a large financial and emotional stake.

Being in charge of cleaning up the March 24, 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill accident, meant that Otto Harrison, the general manager of Exxon International Alaskan Operations, was there when the storm clouds over the event were thick. Despite years of learning, wisdom, growth, and dealing with success and failure, Harrison had never faced a challenge of this magnitude. He was sure his experiences would be utilized in full force. The questions he thought about included whether three different governing bodies, the state of Alaska, the federal government, and Exxon, a publicly held corporation, could work together toward a common goal-to leave few signs of the biggest oil spill ever to occur in North America. What type of help was most needed now? Would Exxon's plan satisfy the numerous stakeholders? How would the plan be viewed publicly? What impact would the cleanup plan have on Exxon's business? In the (A) case, the Exxon Valdez accident and immediate challenges are described so students can put themselves in Harrison's place to lead through the crisis. The (B) case (epilogue) outlines more problems and includes actions taken to try to clean up the oil as quickly and effectively as they could. The tragedy changed the oil industry in many ways-some of which are described in the epilogue.

Innovation was linked to Timberland's heritage. In 2005, CEO Jeff Swartz and COO Ken Pucker hoped the Invention Factory, an advanced concept lab, would develop new breakthrough products and reinvigorate the company's culture of innovation. Since the 1960s, Timberland had relied on innovation, developing the world's first waterproof boot and, in the 1980s, category-defining boat shoes and day hiking boots. Creating variations of these core products, along with expansion into apparel, had sustained Timberland's business for more than 30 years. Timberland's growth in the past six years was due to increased international sales and new customer segments. As Timberland's leaders looked to the future, they hoped Doug Clark, a biomechanist, and his Invention Factory team would bring a scientific approach toward building the next generation of Timberland products and ideas. The team had to convince those in the mainstream business to accept their new ideas and integrate them back into the product line.

Esquel Group is one of the world's leading producers of premium cotton shirts, and among the most dynamic and progressive global-scale textile and apparel manufacturers. The company was founded in 1978 in Hong Kong. Over the years Esquel, which was part of an old-fashioned industry, gradually grew to become a larger and more modern organization: it expanded its product offering as well as its scope of operations, adding to garment manufacturing the production of woven and knitted fabric, spinning operations, and eventually cotton ginning and farming; it opened manufacturing facilities outside China and multiple representative offices in the U.S., the U.K. and Japan; developed strong product development capabilities and expanded its service offering to its customers; and invested in supporting IT and supply chain management applications and applied advance RFID solutions to improve efficiency of internal operations. In parallel, a strong corporate culture was established, emphasizing ethical business practices, creativity, and continual improvement. All these initiatives provided Esquel with the means to offer high-quality, innovative products and services, and to secure a loyal customer base consisting of some of the world's best known and most highly respected brands. While striving to run a successful business, Esquel also took steps to ensure the well-being of its employees and to have a positive impact on society, and was devoted to protecting the environment in areas where it operated. Describes in detail the transformations the company has gone through over the years, and the uniqueness of its corporate culture, and product and service offerings. In addition, discusses the pros and cons of Esquel's strategy and provides some perspective about the future of the company (e.g., what steps it should take to meet its growth targets; how will the elimination of quota restrictions impact Esquel; etc.).

Six Sigma has become a popular management philosophy adopted by several large companies, including Maple Leaf Foods, as a means of reducing waste systematically. The plant manager at the Rivermede plant is preparing for a meeting with the senior manager to discuss the new initiative Six Sigma @ the Edge. Based on the success of Six Sigma at this plant, it was chosen as a pilot for this new initiative. Students will develop a deeper understanding of Six Sigma and the challenges associated with embedding it in the organization.

This note introduces some key game-theoretic concepts and techniques, with an emphasis on their underlying motivations. It covers the following topics: • Domination • Iterated elimination of dominated strategies • Nash equilibrium • Randomized Stra

Mote Aquaculture Park is raising sturgeon for the production of caviar. With eggs imported from Eastern Europe, the park is engaging in a unique venture, bringing Russian caviar harvesting to the United States. The project manager is faced with evaluating a number of issues such as political-legal forces, local and international economics, production technologies and socio-cultural forces. Further, industry factors also played a key role. As he considers Mote Aquacultural Park's current situation, he knows that a thorough review of these environmental factors are necessary. The case offers students the opportunity to determine what forces pose critical threats as well as potential opportunities for future growth. However, since sturgeon farming and caviar production in the United States is a new industry, the application of traditional models of evaluation may not universally apply.

The general manager of ABS Global-Canada, was given the task of turning around the Canadian division after several years of declining sales in its principal product, bovine semen used to artificially inseminate cows. On taking charge, he made organizational changes, and then introduced a marketing approach that was successful in the United States. In May 2003, a dairy cow in northern Alberta was discovered with Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE). In the next several months sales of beef and dairy bull semen dropped to 50 and 30 per cent respectively. He now had to decide whether he should maintain the priorities of his turnaround program.

TPV Technology Limited is a worldwide computer monitor manufacturer. In this case, the general manager is reviewing the annual performance result. During the past year, sales of original equipment manufacturer monitors and self-branded monitors dominated the market but the profit margin had decreased sharply, and flat-panel TVs were becoming more popular. The general manager must determine if TPV Technology should enter the flat-panel TV market.

The chief executive officer of Western Union had just begun implementing a new organization structure. Changing the structure set out a clear message of Gold's desire to change the company's mindset to a new more global culture. Already the CEO was finding that leaders in the United States were reluctant to give up control of product lines. At the regional level, she had keen leaders in place who wanted to push out the responsibility within their own regions and move towards a decentralized plan. While the CEO supported this notion in principle, she wanted to ensure that the right leaders could be placed in decentralized offices in order to execute on the six strategic pillars that she had laid out for the organization. One thing was certain - the CEO had made it clear that no revenue decreases would be forgiven amidst the change. Many considerations had arisen: What pace of change should she take? How would she deal with resistance to change? How could she ensure that the new structure would support Western Union's global expansion?

For many decades, the automobile industry had played a major role in Canada's economy. A large portion of Canadian jobs depended on the auto industry, both directly and indirectly. However, by 2005, Canada faced serious globalization threats. Analysts were stating that in the future the number of automobile-related jobs in Canada would depend upon the international competitiveness of Canadian plants. To continue to increase wages would raise Canadian production costs so far above the levels in Mexico, China and other emerging nations, that the assemblers would shift production to low-cost jurisdictions. Meanwhile, the Big Three were losing market share to their non-union competitors, especially Toyota and Honda.

For many decades, the automobile industry had played a major role in Canada's economy. A large portion of Canadian jobs depended on the auto industry, both directly and indirectly. However, by 2005, Canada faced serious globalization threats. Analysts were stating that in the future the number of automobile-related jobs in Canada would depend upon the international competitiveness of Canadian plants. To continue to increase wages would raise Canadian production costs so far above the levels in Mexico, China and other emerging nations, that the assemblers would shift production to low-cost jurisdictions. Meanwhile, the Big Three were losing market share to their non-union competitors, especially Toyota and Honda.