Category: Competitive Advantage & Differentiation

Path of Equity Value Creation Not Easy to Plan or Pace (see Disney)

Equity value creation, in my experience, does not follow a smooth, straight path or a predictable timeline. It zigs and zags, stalls and spurts. Therefore, forcing a company into a certain path of possibilities or tight timetable is often counter-productive. I have found it to… Continue reading

Competitive Advantage Leads to Persistently Good Performance — Like Top Tier VC Firms

It is good to be the incumbent.  Usually.  They have often built competitive advantages over time.  Except maybe in the ever-changing world of technology, it is usually an advantage for a business to have been around a long time and to have established customers, suppliers,… Continue reading

BCG Growth Share Matrix of Cash Cows, Dogs, and Stars

Older ideas, seen anew, can be helpful to business owners.  In that spirit, I have highlighted Economies of Scale and Michael Porter’s Five Forces previously.  Today, I highlight another older idea in the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Growth Share Matrix that was developed by the global consulting… Continue reading

Built to Last or Built to Flip?

Is your business built to last or built to flip?  No question influences your business strategy more than this one.  There is no right answer — either strategy is fine.  However, making sure that you have alignment throughout your organization on this question is very… Continue reading

Investment Strategy & Structure Is the #1 Thing Founders and CEO’s Should Watch In Raising Capital

To be better, one must first be different.  Thus, good strategy focuses on understanding differences and creating differences.  This also applies to investment firms — differences in structure often drives the strategy.  Any entrepreneur or business owner considering raising capital needs to understand the structure… Continue reading

Should CEO’s, Business Owners, Founders Focus Inside or Outside?

Founders, CEO’s, and business owners need to be skilled at knowing how to balance many competing ideas, priorities, initiatives, and more.  We explored this idea in the post the Art of Balance that listed 20 continuums that founders, CEO’s, and business owners must balance constantly. How much to focus… Continue reading

Five Forces by Michael Porter — Fundamentals Through Graphics

Five Forces of Competition The five forces of competition concept is one of the most influential in modern business.  It was developed by Michael Porter of the Harvard Business School.  Like all good frameworks, it takes something complicated and provides a simple, shorthand method to… Continue reading

Art of Balance — the Key to Business & Management Success

Balance is key to success, particularly for business owners and leaders who think about an entire organization.  This means: a) the ability to decide where and when to focus on multiple continuums, b) the ability to execute those decisions, and c) the ability to know when to reassess (a… Continue reading

Great Business Leader I Know — Roger Williams At A Non-Profit

A story well told.  An organization well led.  For me, these are two of the most inspirational things in life.  I found a wonderful leader in an organization I never would have expected to find such a person, a national accrediting agency for vocational and… Continue reading

Best Mobile Scheduling App From Appointment Plus

Manage your Appointment Schedule with an excellent Mobile Scheduling App Appointment Plus, a portfolio company of my investment partnership, released their latest native appointment scheduling apps for iPhone, iPad and Android and they are awesome.  The apps enable organizations to manage their customer appointment schedules… Continue reading