Articles

It takes a special breed of project manager to execute business analytics projects.

Companies that pursue a number of improvement initiatives at once risk creating information overload for employees.

According to von Hippel, users are often the first source of new products.

Lessons for managers who are listening to social media.

Managers must figure out when it's best to pursue strategies of position, leverage or opportunity.

Companies experienced in analytics use are increasingly gaining competitive advantage.

"We're taking analytics from a planning perspective to a planning, execution and evolution perspective," says David Kreutter, at Pfizer Inc. As a result, analytics has become "much more operational than it's been in the past." The ways that Pfizer Inc., [link: http://www.pfizer.com/home/ ] the global pharmaceutical company, uses analytics is changing, in no small thanks to the pressure on physicians to prescribe generic rather than brandname drugs. David Kreutter, is accountable for Pfizer's U.S. commercial operations and analytics. He says that "in terms of customer analytics and commercial operating analytics, Pfizer U.S. has a strong legacy of management science in operations research support." With a team of 40-50 economists, statisticians, operations research colleagues and scientists, Kreutter says the group historically has focused on promotional tactics: understanding the effectiveness of strategies used in the field, in conversations with physicians and other players who influence whether a Pfizer drug is prescribed or not. Today, that's a little different. Today, Kreutter says his team closely track how sales representatives present material and how presentations are received. It's information, he says, that's critical. Kreutter spoke with David Kiron, executive editor at MIT Sloan Management Review, and Rebecca Shockley, the business analytics and optimization global lead for the IBM Institute for Business Value, about how the company is generating daily data reports, why precision is overvalued and what the coming generic version of the company's popular Lipitor drug has meant in terms of attention to analytics.

A look at key leadership decisions made during the 2010 mine cave-in crisis.

Statkraft, Europe's largest renewable power producer, led by Christian Rynning-Tonnesen, made a strategic decision to enlarge its portfolio of renewable technologies long before most other power companies. They first invested in understanding the political economies of target country's energy markets, then built on their established skill base in hydropower to add other technologies to their portfolio of plants. The company developed organizational structures that helped them in creating new profitable projects. Their strategy process depends on accelerated cycles of action and observation. As new strategic plans are implemented, the process of strategic exploration and invention for the next phase is already in motion. Quick feedback on what is working and what isn't ensures the company can innovate for competitive advantage. Encouraging a management style based on mutual trust and respect, rather than fear, ensured they could identify dangers, catch problems early and adapt quickly.

Students and companies have changing expectations for executive MBA programs. How should business schools respond?