Beyond The Core

This work shows executives how to grow profitably by finding and focusing on their core business. It shows how they can increase the odds of successful expansion once their core business no longer provides sufficient new growth.

Clear-headed advice on strategy from the international consulting firm Bain & Company restores a timely and refreshing "back-to-basics" approach to growth.

Over the next decade, two out of every three companies will face the challenge of their corporate lives: redefining their core business. Buffeted by global competition and facing an uncertain future, more and more executives will realize that they must make fundamental changes in their core even as they continue delivering the goods and services that keep them in business today. Unstoppable shows these managers how to look deep within their organizations to find undervalued, unrecognized, or underutilized assets that can serve as new platforms for sustainable growth. Drawing on more than thirty interviews with CEOs from companies such as De Beers, American Express, and Samsung, it shows readers how to recognize when the core needs reinvention and how to deploy the "hidden assets" that can be the basis for tomorrow's growth. Building on the author's previous books, Profit from the Core and Beyond the Core, this book shows how any company in crisis can transform itself to become truly unstoppable.

When Profit from the Core was published in 2001, it became an international bestseller, helping hundreds of companies find their way back to profitable growth after the bursting of the Internet bubble. The 2007 global financial meltdown reaffirmed the perils of pursuing heady growth through untested strategies, as firms in industries from finance to retailing to automobiles strayed too far from their core businesses and suffered the consequences. In this updated edition of Profit from the Core, authors Chris Zook and James Allen show that a renewed focus on the core is more critical than ever as firms seek to rebuild their competitive advantage coming out of the downturn—and that a strong core will be the foundation for successful expansion as the economy recovers. Based on more than ten years of Bain & Company research and analysis and fresh examples from firms responding to the current downturn, the book outlines what today’s executives and managers need to do now to revitalize their core, identify the next wave of profitable growth, and build on it successfully. Zook and Allen explain how companies can: • Develop a strong, well-defined core and use it to establish a leadership position • Follow the golden rule of strategy: discourage competitors from investing in your core • Assess whether your core is operating at its full potential • Uncover hidden assets in your core that provide the seeds for new growth • Find a repeatable formula to apply core business strengths in adjacent markets Building on powerful and proven ideas to meet today’s formidable business challenges, Profit from the Core is the back-to-basics strategy field guide no manager should be without.

Grow the Core stands conventional wisdom about business growth on its head and provides a proven formula for growing your business in recessionary times. These days, it′s a common belief among business leaders across industry sectors that the best way to grow their businesses is to expand into new markets. In reality, virtually all top–performing companies achieve superior results through a leading position in their core business. Unfortunately, there′s very little in the way of practical advice on how to do this. Grow the Core shows you how tofocus on your core business for brand success, with a program of eight workouts road-tested by the author's consultancy, the brandgym. The book provides inspiration, practical advice and proven tools for building and strengthening your core business. It is packed with case studies from brandgym clients, including Mars, Friesland Campina, SAB Miller and Danone. The book features exclusive brandgym research, in addition to front–line experience on over one hundred brand coaching projects.

CORE is shortlisted for the Best Business Book Awards in the Engaging Change category. At the core of the world's most admired businesses lies a powerful Single Organizing Idea. These organizations deliver sustainable economic and social benefit; they unite people, attract investment, inspire innovation, pioneer new efficiencies, and enjoy positive reputation. Such businesses are admired but they remain a rare breed. Though the tides of change are engaging the minds of business leaders, most are still trapped behind their brands and an approach to corporate social responsibility that is out of step with a connected society that increasingly questions 'who' these businesses really are and what drives their purpose. This book is about how businesses can adopt a Single Organizing Idea and, more importantly, why they have to. Drawing on stories and case studies, and with reference to the UN's Sustainable Development Goals, its no-nonsense approach sets aside the ideals to confront the realities of business reform. It demonstrates the power and potential that a Single Organizing Idea can bring to any business prepared to take its head out of the sand and proactively respond to today's challenges.

'A thought-provoking book, bringing readers outside their comfort zones. It challenges us to think beyond the typical macro and microeconomic …' [Read Full Review]A TanFT readers' best 2021 summer booksThroughout the history of mankind, the rise of societies, whether civilizations, nations, or communities, has been a story of human achievement. From the rise of the Akkadian empire in ancient Mesopotamia to the re-emergence of modern China, people constitute the basic denominator upon which societies build their success. The way people around the world think and behave is guided by a complex system of values. These values constitute key factors in the way economies are structured and their potential for further growth. To a large extent, they explain why Japan has gone through multiple lost decades; why Nordic countries accept the highest tax rates in the world, making their societies much more equal; why China has such a large trade surplus with the United States; or why some nations become stuck in a middle-income trap. It is these values, coupled with the right policies, that ultimately determine the destiny of nations.In this book, we explore how the combination of human values and policies affects national economic outcomes. We focus on certain key values conducive to growth: are people of a given nation, on average, hardworking, thrifty? Do they trust each other? Are they risk-takers? The harder people work, the higher the growth potential. Different savings patterns determine, to a large extent, whether a country will grow through investments and exports or consumption, and have generated large global imbalances over time. Trust goes a long way in explaining wealth and income inequalities and the role that governments can play in minimizing those inequalities. Economies with highly risk-averse citizens will stall. We also identify policies which have the greatest impact on economies. Political stability, much more so than any form of governance, is a precondition for growth. Free markets imply a process of creative destruction, free and fair competition, and a level playing field among companies. An educated workforce is a vital enabler of higher productivity and innovation. Corruption can seriously derail growth once it becomes endemic. Sound fiscal and monetary policies stabilize an economy as it goes through cycles and can greatly contribute to a more equal society and a more robust financial sector.

WALL STREET JOURNAL BESTSELLER Jay Steinfeld, Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year and the founder and CEO of Blinds.com (acquired by Home Depot), never planned to create the biggest online window blinds retailer in the world. Against all odds to succeed, Steinfeld’s journey in business included failed acquisitions, partnerships gone wrong, perpetual self-doubt, deaths in his family, budget-limited guerilla marketing, corporate buy-outs, brutal market competition, and a complete disruption of industry leaders, including Amazon and big-box retailers. To build something meaningful like Steinfeld, you need to do more than dream about it. You need to Lead from the Core. Learn Steinfeld’s “Four Es”—a set of guiding principles that help overcome any obstacle to your organization’s success: Evolve Continuously, Experiment Without Fear of Failure, Express Yourself, and Enjoy the Ride. In these pages, you’ll also learn specific, actionable tactics, including: How to start a business with little money and experience Ways to avoid the early failure that plagues many businesses Strategies to scale beyond the startup phase Exactly how to communicate with boards and investors Proven lessons to attract potential acquirers of your company Told with humor and heart, Lead from the Core is not just a roadmap to make your company a resounding success. It’s a masterclass for leaders looking to prevent costly business mistakes, no matter where you are in your journey.