Stay ConnectedThe Knowledge at Wharton feed features standout episodes from across the Wharton Podcast Network. Discover timely conversations and expert insights on business, markets, leadership, innovation, and the forces shaping the global economy.
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Copyright: © 2013 The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
Over the past two decades sushi -- a familiar accessible and immensely desirable food that can be found in supermarket aisles and fast food outlets as well as high-end restaurants -- has become a staple of cultures around the globe. Indeed far from signaling the snobbery of those who eat it sushi today belongs to the masses. Yet sushi also says something important about how wealth taste and markets interact according to Sasha Issenberg. In his new book The Sushi Economy: Globalization and the Making of a Modern Delicacy Issenberg argues that sushi reveals the ”complex dynamics of globalization” and shows against all odds that ”a virtuous global commerce and food culture can exist.”
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The long-term performance of a company’s stock may be the ultimate test of a CEO’s talents. But that’s not the only measurement used by boards of directors to gauge how well the boss is doing. Experts at Wharton and elsewhere say that companies use many different metrics -- all of which can be fine-tuned to fit a company’s circumstances.
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It’s open season on Microsoft Office. Google is distributing Sun Microsystems’ StarOffice and also has its own web-based productivity suite. Apple has a new spreadsheet called Numbers to compete with Microsoft’s Excel. Open source suite OpenOffice along with several web-based products are attacking as well. All these challengers emerge at a time when Microsoft’s dominance in productivity software -- Microsoft Word PowerPoint and Excel -- remains strong. So why try to overthrow the leader? And how vulnerable is Microsoft to this assault?
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Mattel’s recall of more than 10 million toys in the U.S. over the past three weeks has done more than focus attention on the company’s wide array of products which include such household names as Elmo Ernie Big Bird Barbie and Batman. It has also further raised public awareness of quality control problems in China and the relentless push to cut costs along every step of the supply chain. Knowledge at Wharton looks at Mattel’s response to the crisis its potential liability and the consequences for China.
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Wharton marketing professor Leonard Lodish admits he is somewhat to blame for the erosion in brand pricing power that has hit many consumer-goods companies -- but not entirely to blame. In 1993 as store-level scanning data started to become widely available Lodish coauthored an article outlining its power to gauge the effect of price promotions on revenue. But he also warned that these tools were not the only determinant of brand power. Now in a new paper Lodish and co-author Carl F. Mela show how widespread adoption of easy-to-harness short-term measures has altered consumer behavior and made it harder for brand managers to compete.
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Several years ago while visiting a regional branch of Lee Hecht Harrison a global career management services company then-president Stephen Harrison was stopped short by ”Ray ” his COO. ”You didn’t greet the receptionist ” said Ray who went on to explain that ”a receptionist is a corporate concierge. They will talk to more important people in a day -- suppliers customers even CEOs -- than you will talk to all year.” Harrison speaking at the recent 11th annual Wharton Leadership Conference contends that small acts like this are part of what makes for an ethical corporate culture. He was joined at the conference by public speaking coach Richard Greene author of Words that Shook the World: 100 Years of Unforgettable Speeches and Events.
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On August 1 Mattel recalled approximately 1.5 million toys made by a manufacturer in China because of dangerous levels of lead in their paint. Four days earlier the Chinese government ordered the country’s banks to increase their reserves as part of an effort to cool down its red-hot economy. But quality concerns and rapid growth aren’t China’s only worries. There is also the government’s need to keep forging ahead on preparations for the Olympics next August in Beijing despite criticism about overdevelopment and unsafe levels of pollution. Knowledge at Wharton asked management professor Marshall Meyer for his perspective on these issues.
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This spring World Bank president Paul Wolfowitz was forced out after being accused of arranging a big raise and promotion for a woman with whom he was having a relationship. As anyone who works in an office knows though favoritism isn’t confined to love and sex: Family relationships and close friendships can upset co-workers’ sense of fairness too and end up undermining an organization’s performance. What’s the solution? There’s no one answer according to Wharton faculty and other experts but companies would be well-advised to keep their rewards systems transparent and to have clear policies regarding conflicts of interest.
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Fast-growing social networking site Facebook and mobile messaging service Twitter didn’t introduce break-through technologies but they have become phenomenal success stories nonetheless. Increasingly ”web 2.0” companies like these are altering the traditional venture capital formula which used to count technology differentiation as a key requirement when evaluating new targets. In many cases technology has become a commodity but a big idea can go a long way provided there’s a rapidly growing audience. As VC firms look for new investments several questions come into play: How should companies be evaluated when they rely on technology that is easily replicated? How much value does a big audience carry? What is the preferred exit strategy? Wharton faculty and VC experts weigh in on these and other questions.
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In June a high-profile Supreme Court case held the attention of retailers and manufacturers alike. In a five-to-four ruling the high court overturned a lower-court decision to award $1.2 million to a Dallas-area clothing store that was cut off by a supplier Leegin Creative Leather Products because the retailer refused to abide by the manufacturer’s retail price maintenance (RPM) or no-discount policy. The decision means that manufacturers no longer face a blanket prohibition against implementing an RPM policy. The case has spurred concern among consumer groups who claim it overturns a century of precedent and will lead to price fixing and unjustifiably higher prices. But Wharton faculty suggest that any changes will be gradual and may ultimately benefit consumers.
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