New Breed of Business Gurus Rises†

Psychologists, CEOs Climb in Influence, Draw Hits, Big Fees

Wall Street Journal, May 5, 2008 — Psychologists, journalists and celebrity chief executives crowd the top of a ranking of influential business thinkers compiled for The Wall Street Journal. The results, based on Google hits, media mentions and academic citations, ranked author and consultant Gary Hamel No. 1

But Dr. Hamel is the only traditional business guru in the top five, which includes two journalists, Thomas Friedman and Malcolm Gladwell, and a former CEO, Bill Gates. Mr. Gladwell is among three thinkers in the top eight who focus on psychology.

Tub of Cool Whip too Challenging? Try the Can†

Kraft Wants to Prove It Can Innovate by Unveiling Slew of Even-Easier-to-Use Products

Advertising Age, May 5, 2008 — Kraft Foods, which has made a business out of making meals easy, has heard from consumers that its products still weren't easy enough. And so Kraft is preparing to unveil to grocers some 80 new products at the Food Marketing Institute show in Las Vegas next week designed to appeal to even the laziest Americans.

The launches come as the company negotiates a complicated turnaround. It is beset with an unwieldy portfolio, old-but-storied brands and sky-high commodity costs. In order to hold prices and still drive demand, Kraft has boosted marketing spending, reformulated products such as Maxwell House and Oscar Mayer franks, and attempted to make its products more convenient and portable.

McD's CMO Dillon Activates 'The Year of Innovation'†

Brandweek, May 4, 2008 — McDonald's is a juggernaut. The No. 1 U.S. fast food chain grew 6.1% to $28.75 billion last year, per Technomic, Chicago. For a little perspective about how big McDonald's is: Its sales are three times that of No. 2 burger chain Burger King.

At Kodak, Some Old Things Are New Again

Eastman Kodak, which once considered itself the Bell Labs of chemistry, has embraced the digital world and the researchers who understand it

New York Times, May 2, 2008 — Steven J. Sasson, an electrical engineer who invented the first digital camera at Eastman Kodak in the 1970s, remembers well management’s dismay at his featMy prototype was big as a toaster, but the technical people loved it,” Mr. Sasson said. “But it was filmless photography, so management’s reaction was, ‘that’s cute — but don’t tell anyone about it.’ ”

Since then, of course, Kodak, which once considered itself the Bell Labs of chemistry, has embraced the digital world and the researchers who understand it.

Hotels Try New Features With Test Rooms

New York Times, April 29, 2008 — It is known simply as the X-room. Set up last November at the Courtyard by Marriott in partnership with the University of Delaware in Newark, it is a test guest room. It is equipped with everything from waterproof mattresses to the experimental technology of wireless electricity (no plugs) to a specially designed Nintendo Wii game console for travelers. There is also a digital door display that lets guests see who is in the corridor.

Kraft: No More Cheesy Extensions†

Brandweek, April 29, 2008 — Until recently, Kraft's growth strategy largely revolved around extensions, like Philadelphia Cream Cheese snack bars or Jell-O cheesecake snacks entry with peaches and bananas. But now the company is taking a different approach.

Otellini Hopes Everyone Gets an Intel Chip†

CEO Oversees Restructuring As Firm Turns to Powering Gadgets for Web

Wall Street Journal, April 28, 2008 — Intel Corp. already reaches hundreds of millions of people with its chips. But Paul Otellini has his eye on billions.

The Silicon Valley giant's chief executive is no longer content to just supply the electronic brains for conventional computers. He also wants to push Intel microprocessors into people's pockets, exploiting a shift to add Internet capability to cellphones and other gadgets.

The World's 50 Most Innovative Companies

BusinessWeek, April 17, 2008 — In a climate when innovation efforts and research and development budgets are likely to see more scrutiny than ever, our 2008 list of the World's Most Innovative Companies adds three financial measures to the mix to determine the rankings. For this year's list, votes cast in the proprietary BusinessWeek-BCG survey received 80% of the overall weighting, stock returns were weighted 10%, while three-year revenue and margin growth each got 5%.

The World's Most Innovative Companies

Smart ideas for tough times: The 50 companies that make up our annual ranking nurture cultures that value creative people in good times and bad

BusinessWeek, April 17, 2008 — Suddenly, innovation has a bull's-eye on its back. As the recession debate shifts from "what if" to "how long," slashing research and development budgets just got a lot more tempting. That high-risk product in your pipeline? It's about to get much more scrutiny. And the "chief innovation officer" your CEO brought in last year to show his commitment to creativity? He'd better start proving his worth. Outside consultants are starting to pick up on the effects of such belt-tightening. "I'm seeing it in my business," says Jeneanne Rae, president of Alexandria (Va.)-based consulting firm Peer Insight. "There's this sense of which shoe's going to drop next."

Others are seeing two camps emerge. "One is saying times are tough, so it's the most important time... continue reading

It's All About Experience

Companies that try to create holistic experiences by emotionally engaging their consumers are flourishing

BusinessWeek, April 11, 2008 — Advances in manufacturing technology and the global reach of the Internet have leveled the playing field in the product marketplace. It wasn't long ago that time-to-market was two years, then 18 months, and then 12 months. Now, a competitor can knock off your "innovation" in six months or less. Many businesses understand that being "new" or "different" is no longer a differentiator. Countless companies are elbowing their way to the top with designs that are also "feature-rich" or "patent pending." Innovation in product design has lost its meaning and, therefore, its value.

There is still one frontier that remains wide open: experience innovation. This is the only type of business innovation that is not imitable, nor can it be commoditized, because it is... continue reading