Articles

It's not easy to build a strong culture worldwide. "Cultural hubs" beyond headquarters can help.

MIT's Andrew McAfee says that evolving technology and the data deluge can enable companies to act smarter.

In his book “Reinventing Management,” Julian Birkinshaw urges businesspeople to give more thought to management models.

The editors of the MIT Sloan Management Review are pleased to announce the winners of this year's Richard Beckhard Memorial Prize, awarded to the authors of the most outstanding SMR article on planned change and organizational development published from fall 2008 to summer 2009.

Leading innovators are using information systems to make their activities more efficient.

Large companies that invest in trendy IT innovations may see their reputations — and CEO compensation — increase the next year.

When two business models, and two business units, make sense.

In theory, IT innovation is important — except it's often not a priority in company budgets.

When a crisis strikes, brands can avert backlash from consumers -- and even strengthen the brand -- with well-considered and thoughtfully deployed communication. Based on scientific research on persuasion, the authors present a comprehensive crisis communication framework to help restore consumer trust, illustrating these recommendations using cases of both successful and unsuccessful recovery from brand crises. The authors draw heavily on Toyota's recent experience in responding to the unintended acceleration of some of its vehicles. Toyota's responses provide examples both of what to do, and what not to do, when a company is accused of wrongdoing. The authors contend that there is no one best communications path to follow when a company is in crisis. Rather, they say, the best approach will depend on the answers to three central questions: Is the accusation prompting the crisis true? Is the crisis severe? Has the company established its brand as something that customers closely identify with? Taking these factors into account, a company might best be served by some combination of seven communications strategies. These strategies range from admitting error and apologizing on the one extreme to defiantly denying and wrongdoing and even attacking the accuser on the other. In addition to describing these seven communications strategies, the authors also lay out four lessons on corporate crisis communications that emerge from the Toyota debacle. One, in the Internet age, speed of response is imperative. Second (and a corollary to the need for speed), companies need to be ready for a crisis at all times, and have at hand a step-by-step protocol to follow when bad things happen. Third, it is essential that in a time of crisis, the CEO him or herself -- not lower level management--needs to step forward and publicly articulate the company's responses. And fourth, companies must not delude themselves that they can skate by while ignoring a crisis. Response is essential.

Sustainability initiatives have three stages, each requiring differing organizational capabilities.