technological insanity

Procurement’s Technological Insanity 

“Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” –Albert Einstein. Over on Sourcing Innovation, the Sourcing Doctor has an excellent series of posts on driving adoption of Procurement technology. As someone who spent most of the last 15 years in the field of Procurement technology: in a Procurement organization, as a user first and, then, as…

McKinsey & Company logo

Stress testing for nonfinancial companies

McKinsey & Co argue that assessing a company’s vulnerability to risk makes otherwise theoretical discussions of strategy more real. They contend that nonfinancial companies, too, would benefit from a more aggressive look at the risks they face. This article contains the findings of their recently tested  ‘qualitative thinking’ in interviews with the CFOs, company secretaries,…

Harvard Business Review

How Ratings and Awards Do (and Don’t) Benefit Companies

This article by Gabriel Rossman and Oliver Schilke from Harvard Business Review explores the interrelation between the perceived standard of excellence of any particular company, and the demands created by chosen judgment devices. These devices range in things like star rankings, reviews, ratings, certifications, and awards. While these judgment devices serve the function of depicting information in a consistent…

Interim Management: It’s Role in Family Business Continuity

You are the principal shareholder of the family business and receive a call on Thursday morning from your chief financial officer.  A similar call was made to your banker.  There is no cash for tomorrow’s payroll.  Even though you have been a long time customer of the bank, it refuses to lend any more money…