Operational design paradox.
It seems paradoxical to me that the most successful company on the face of the earth over the last decade, one that has been successful because of their astonishingly good product design, have not leveraged that innovative capacity into their operational design. I...
Brand promiscuity
The net has changed everything. In the "old days" consumers brand choices were made from a small pool of acceptable brands that was defined by experience, limited access to detailed information, and advertising. Once a brand had been purchased, the well understood...
4 Brand qualities for the future.
Brand-building is an infinitely more difficult exercise in the current environment. Gone are the days when you could throw a bunch of money at mass media, and use it to drive distribution and consumer trial, and if the thing was any good at all, gain some measure of...
The Kodak brand story.
So Kodak is broke, chapter 11 which protects a company from its creditors whilst it radically restructures in order to survive and pay back creditors. It is only a few years ago Kodak was one of the most valuable brands in the world. In the mid 90's it was in the top...
Gaming on-line referrals
I purchased a set of Sidchrome tools as a 20 year old working on my first car, simply because a mate doing an apprenticeship told me they were the best tools, and 40 years later, I still think Sidchrome are worth the money, despite not putting a spanner on a cylinder...
Market to a mind-set
I'm 60, an early adopter of marketing analytics in the 70's. Demographics, U&A, and product positioning research all hooked into mass marketing media, the foundation of our mass market, consumer led social revolution. Now all that is irrelevant, or almost....
6 questions for advertisers with Apps.
Traditional paper publishing is going down the slot, we all know that, but it still has a place, particularly the magazines, and most particularly the lower volume, niche end, high fashion and exotic cars for example. So what happens to websites included in a print...
Human costs of innovation.
In the December 2011 quarter, Apple made $13 billion in profits, an extraordinary figure, 3 billion more than the revenue of Google in the quarter. Apple is an innovation machine, making it so is the legacy of Steve Jobs. However, there is usually a flip side to the...
5 key Leadership attributes
Libraries have been written on this topic, so perhaps a summary for 2012 is warranted, particularly as we go into tougher, and more ambiguous times. Plot a course that others can relate to, buy into, and understand. Inspire and energise others to do better than they...
Australia’s meaningless celebration.
It's Australia day, a celebration of nationhood, opportunity for pollies to grandstand, excuse for a piss-up, whatever floats your boat. Perhaps it should be a day for articulating our national challenges, in a manner that encourages rational debate based on data,...