| Greetings!
While the so-called lazy days of summer actually may slow down only when you take some vacation, when you finally do settle back in the hammock, grasping a frosty glass of iced tea and serenaded by crickets, indulge in some "what ifs" and imagine how to improve your business. This Summer 2010 issue of Neo will spur your wanderings.
Consider guest contributor Jonathan Clark's proposal on how to brainstorm more effectively in "Better Brainstorming."
Take a step back and ponder the malpractices of the leaders in the media industry as outlined by Jonathan A. Knee, Bruce C. Greenwald and Ava Seave in The Curse of the Mogul: What's Wrong with the World's Leading Media Companies, and summarized in my book review.
And do some summer cleaning: identify ways to eliminate clutter in your office and your mind. Imagine organizing meetings more efficiently using the mashup of CloudContacts, Timebridge and Vello that I suggest in the New and Noteworthy section.
Correction: The patient formulary lookup tool mentioned in the New and Noteworthy section of the Winter 2010 issue of Neo is Fingertip Formulary, a Decision Resources, Inc. company, not Search ICD-9 from eMDs. I regret the error.
Questions? Suggestions? Your feedback is welcome.
Read on! Lead on! |
| Book Review by Teri Mendelsohn
The Curse of the Mogul: What's Wrong with the World's Leading Media Companies
By Jonathan A. Knee, Bruce C. Greenwald and Ava Seave |
The Curse of the Mogul: What's Wrong with the World's Leading Media Companies (Portfolio, 2009) is a daring book. Written by Jonathan A. Knee, investment banker and adjunct professor and director of the Media Program at Columbia Business School, Bruce C. Greenwald, Robert Heilbrunn Professor of Finance and Asset Management at Columbia Business School,* and Ava Seave, principal and cofounder of the consulting firm Quantum Media, it takes to task the leadership of the media industry. Many media titans repeatedly make decisions - bad decisions - that are the consequence of swagger and disinformation, and that ultimately erode shareholder value, the authors argue. The evidence: since 2000, the largest media conglomerates have written down $200 billion in assets from their balance sheets, adjustments made for overpayment for acquisitions, "strategic" investments, and contracts for talent and content. As a result, the financial returns of media companies consistently and significantly trail those of the overall stock market.
This lackluster performance is the consequence of a tendency among some moguls to "behave badly." Knee, Greenwald and Seave pinpoint three characteristics of the "cursed" mogul who is "turning to the dark side":
1."Actual or perceived absolute power over the operations and governance of [his] business....
2."A variety of mythic attributes ranging from the ability to manage creative talent and select ultimately successful creative properties to uncanny prophetic skills with respect to the future shape and direction of the industry specifically and media consumption trends generally....
3."An unhealthy but relentless interest in expanding the scope of [his] domains, usually with other peoples' money, but with no corresponding reduction in control over the business...."
Having seized the reader's attention with this dramatic diagnosis, the authors proceed to outline a framework for assessing the media industry's strengths and weaknesses. They consider the dynamics of an industry dominated by conglomerates; review the critical feature of competitive advantage, namely, barriers to entry; highlight the link between businesses with the fewest competitive advantages and the most moguls; debunk prevailing media myths about the virtues of growth, globalization, content, and convergence; and exhume the often-ignored challenges posed by the internet. "Those with barriers to entry ... should focus ... on efficiency and those with unique barriers ... should focus relentlessly on reinforcing them," Knee, Greenwald and Seave conclude.
They go on to recommend appropriate strategies for the various sectors. First, the authors examine the perceived value of hits in the movie, music and book sectors versus the real value of their film libraries, artist catalogs, music publishing businesses, and backlists. Other sources of value include efficiency achieved through well-managed operations; the raw data that get packaged and sold by network and database businesses; competing cooperatively so as not to erode margins; unsung local media (newspapers, theaters and communication); and sharing the spoils equitably in order to prolong one's advantage.
Finally, Knee et al. offer case studies of good moguls, like Michael Eisner and Rupert Murdoch, with strong operating skills who manage costs and revenues. They describe the fallout of complex and resource-consuming mergers and acquisitions, such as those at Comcast-AT&T Broadband, AOL-Time Warner and Vivendi-Universal.
The Curse of the Mogul marches unflinchingly through the data and demonstrates how media companies need to tighten their performance and refine their definition of what it takes to compete successfully. The authors pull no punches in their assessment. Will their exhortations be heeded?
*-I studied with Professors Greenwald and Knee, respectively, while I was a student at Columbia Business School, or subsequently. |
| New and Noteworthy Technology
Mashup: CloudContacts + Timebridge + Vello
By Teri Mendelsohn | |
Remember how, in the old days, meetings were held in one of two ways: in person or by phone? Those days are long gone. Now we use phone or web conferencing and often everyone manages the entire process - from Rolodex to dialing in - himself. A lot can go wrong along the way. Business cards languish in a stack at the back of the desk drawer. Calendars outside company firewalls cannot be accessed. Entries in the contemporary equivalent of the Rolodex, the customer relationship management (CRM) system, are outdated or incomplete. You forget to attach the agenda to the meeting distribution list. Attendees misplace the log-in information or forget about the meeting or are away from their desks when it's scheduled to start. Odds are, one or all of these things happen each time you organize a meeting with anyone other than yourself.
CloudContacts enables users to scan in business cards; connect to business social networks like Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter with one click; and integrate with CRM software, including Salesforce and 37Signals.
CloudContacts' Twitter Follow Page. Contact information, including social media and CRM, is centralized and summarized. |
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With Timebridge, you can share your calendar with anyone, no matter what system you use, and you can choose who gets access. When you propose a meeting, Timebridge software juggles all the calendars and includes a unique web site for each meeting where attendees can access and collaborate on relevant documents like agendas and action items. They also offer web conferencing and useful iPhone apps.
Vello sets up calls, instantly or in the future, and tracks down participants by calling them at all their known numbers until they are reached, or by leaving automated messages with call-back instructions.
The "Mashup" would work like this:
1. A Business Person receives a stack of business cards at a conference.
2. She sends the cards to "Mashup" to scan, or inputs the information herself. The records automatically link to profiles on business social networks and CRM files, such as history, correspondence and purchasing record.
3. A partnership opportunity arises and a follow-up meeting is in order. The Business Person selects participants for the meeting from her favorite calendaring system and proposes five meeting times.
4. Participants indicate preferred times and "Mashup" checks all calendars and selects a commonly available slot.
5. The Business Person creates a centralized web page for the meeting, where relevant documents are accessible to attendees.
6. "Mashup" sends out meeting reminders.
7. At the time of the call, "Mashup" assembles all parties and, using the iPhone app, monitors meeting progress against the agenda.
8. After the meeting, the Business Person writes up and distributes action items.
Result: Rich contact information is centrally located. Meetings are scheduled and participants are rounded up automatically. Meeting logistics are streamlined. One system, three steps, fewer hassles. |
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Mendelsohn Consulting is a New York-based consulting firm specializing in digital product development in science, technology and medicine. We work with clients to achieve top-line growth through innovation.
Cordially,
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| Featured Article: Better Brainstorming | |
Brainstorming is a phase of product development at its most freeform and creative. Done well, it can generate exciting new products and ideas. Done poorly, it can be a frustrating waste of time for all involved. Read strategy and innovation consultant Jonathan Clark's "Better Brainstorming" for suggestions on how to get it right. |
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