4 Innovation Strategies From Big Companies That Act Like Startups INNOVATION ENGINE

WRITTEN BY: Soren Kaplan

ESTABLISHED COMPANIES HAVE A REPUTATION FOR BEING WAY TOO

BUREAUCRATIC TO BE INNOVATIVE. BUT TAKING A PAGE FROM STARTUP

CULTURE, SOME HAVE FIGURED OUT HOW TO BECOME AGILE AND FAST-

MOVING DESPITE THEIR SIZE, SOREN KAPLAN WRITES.

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Stodgy. Slow. Bureaucratic. Big companies get a bad rap when it comes to innovation.

It’s easy to focus on the failures: Blockbuster, Borders, Blackberry, and Kodak.

It’s also easy to become enamored by the latest fast-acting upstarts likeUndrip, Tout,

and Glyder. For many, “innovation” has become synonymous with small, agile, and

social.

But there’s a quiet revolution happening in corporate America. Big companies are

applying startup strategies and tools to jump-start innovation. It’s not about pontificating

on the innovation process. It’s about being lean, focused, and maniacally strategic.

• Intuit organizes multi-day “lean start-ins” that gather “intrapreneurs” together from

across the company to teach them how to apply rapid experimentation to create new

products, services, and business models.

• Kimberly-Clark promotes one-day “expert acceleration sessions” that bring hand-

picked outside “thought leaders” face to face with business teams to bust mental models

and create game-changing strategies.

• Whirlpool uses a network of innovation mentors (also called i-mentors), who are loaded

with innovation tools and guidance to help business teams focused on challenging

market “orthodoxies.”

Big companies that behave like small startups focus on two things. First, they accelerate

the speed of innovation, just like a Silicon Valley incubator. Second, they give internal

businesses and teams an outside-in perspective, similar to the type of reality-checking

that comes from advisory boards or venture capitalists.

Here are four strategies that anyone can use to start-up, start in, or jump-start their

innovation:

1. FOLLOW CUSTOMERS HOME

Intuit’s innovation success is tied to a value for finding and savoring customer surprises-

-unexpected insights about customer needs, problems, and desired experiences that

can’t be anticipated or pre-defined. That’s why the company does customer “follow-me-

homes,” where everyone from CEO Brad Smith to engineers and marketers immerse

themselves in the customer’s natural environment to see how things are working (or not)

in the real world.

2. TAP OUTSIDE COLLABORATORS

Kimberly-Clark knows that insular thinking is the death knell of teams and organizations.

That’s why they work with their businesses to define specific problems and opportunities

that need a jolt of external insight. They then recruit a small group of “thought leaders”

from other companies, universities, startups, or think-tanks to join a collaborative

innovation session for a day to lend their expertise. These deep dives deliver strategic

and practical insight that would otherwise take months to gather through traditional

research.

3. STAY SMALL

Big innovations don’t necessarily have to begin by taking big risks or making bet -the-

farm investments. Intuit, for example, provides guidance to its “intrepreneurial” teams

that they should use the “lean startup” model. It’s not about waiting around for senior

leadership to sponsor and fund the next big idea but rather rapidly testing ideas to

identify the things teams can do to have the biggest impact.

4. USE THE BEST, INVENT THE REST

Speed and agility come from realizing we don’t have to invent everything ourselves--

either the approach or the innovation itself. When going after breakthroughs, it’s

essential to dismiss the “not invented here” stigma, as Apple learned the hard way with

its foray into mobile maps. There’s no shortage of tools and templates out there. The

strategy is to use the best--like the one-page Business Model Generation tool (from the

book with the same name)--and then adapt it or combine it with other approaches that

work within the specific company context. Same goes for the innovation itself. The most

innovative companies don’t always wait to build a new technology themselves--they look

outside, find what exists, and then go from there.

These big-company strategies aren’t about ivory-tower innovation departments, wacky

hats, or Kumbaya creativity. They’re focused on pushing entrepreneurial thinking and

practices into the places they’re needed the most--inside established businesses. And

their explicit objective isn’t about reaching that elusive holy grail of creating a “culture of

innovation” (though it can be the by-product of these efforts). Their strategies combine

strategic thinking with the practical tools required for driving forward new products,

services, and strategies, all focused first and foremost on leapfrogging to the next big

thin

What Are Two Strategies Commonly Used by Multinational

Companies? by Steven Symes, Demand Media Multinational companies do not need to

be large, but can be small businesses that

operate in several countries at the same

time. Because of the variety of types of

multinational companies, which differ in

industry, size and other elements, not all

multinational companies engage in the

same business strategies. Insourcing and

purchasing foreign competition are two

strategies commonly used by

multinational companies of all types.

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Insourcing

Insourcing takes place when a

multinational company moves a certain

business practice or set of practices to

another country. Instead of contracting

with another company in a foreign

country, as in outsourcing situations, the

company keeps the business activity

within the company. The company either

uses an established subsidiary in another

country, or sets up a subsidiary in a

specific country. The other country must

present certain advantages for the

company to participate in these certain

business practices there and not in the

multinational company's home country.

Benefits of Insourcing

Insourcing provides a variety of benefits,

depending on the company, business

practices and where the company locates

the business practices. Some areas of the

world provide less expensive labor,

making the production of products such

as textiles or electronic components less

costly. A multinational company may

locate some activities within a certain

country to avoid paying tariffs or other

penalties imposed on goods imported

from outside of the country, or to benefit

from tax incentives offered to businesses

operating in the country. A company may

also want to tap into the unique skill sets

found in a particular area, leveraging

those skills for certain business practices.

Purchasing Foreign Competition

A multinational company may not

operate in all of the countries in the

world, choosing instead to operate and

even sell its goods and services in only

certain parts of the world. This decision

may be due to lack of interest in the

products or services in certain areas, the

company's knowledge of market

conditions and cultural forces in certain

parts of the world, or the presence of

competition and barriers to entry in some

foreign markets. An international

company may decide to purchase foreign

competition to overcome some of these

challenges.

Benefits of Foreign Purchases

When an international company

purchases a foreign company that is a

competitor, the international company

benefits in several ways. One of the most

obvious benefits is that the company

removes a competitor from the

marketplace, even if the two were not

directly competing at that point in time.

If the company did not previously have a

presence in the country or region where

the newly purchased company operates,

the international company expands its

sphere of influence as well. The

international company also stands to

learn from the business practices of the

newly purchased company, including

how to best conduct business in the

cultures of certain parts of the world

5 Big-Business Growth Strategies Small Business Can Use James Clear, Passive Panda, Recent Posts

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Eventually you want your small business to grow into a big business, right? If that’s true,

then learn which big-business growth strategies might work for you.

Here are five growth strategies that small businesses should consider. Not every strategy

will be right for your situation, but some of these might offer an opportunity for your

business.

1. Market segmentation

“Market segmentation” simply means picking a sub-set of the entire marketplace that you

can organize your sales efforts around. Out of all the people in the world, who will you try to

sell to?

Most big businesses are good at carving out their corner of the market. Then they do

whatever they can to own that space.

Red Bull gets its energy drinks in front of a young, adventurous crowd: its segment of the

market. Have you wondered why Red Bull owns a Formula One racing team? That’s why.

Pepsi was losing its battle with Coca-Cola to become the heavyweight cola company.

Instead of trying to beat Coke at its own game, Pepsi focused on a young, fun-loving

demographic. Many Pepsi commercials show younger music stars, celebrities or other

young status symbols.

In other words, Pepsi stopped targeting the over-30 crowd and segmented its market. Coke

is still the top dog, but thanks partially to market segmentation, Pepsi has built a very

successful brand as well.

Most small business owners would be happy with building the next Pepsi, but many are

afraid to eliminate part of a potential market. It can seem scary, but you need to focus on

your core customer if you want a clear path to growth.

Segmenting your market comes down to making choices. Who will you serve? Who will you

avoid? And which segment can you focus on to improve profitability?

2. Leveraging partnerships

Some small business owners love to complain about how they can’t compete with

the vendor relationships that the big guys enjoy. It’s true you can’t “pay to play” like

the Fortune 500s, but you can leverage partnerships in a savvy way.

For example, let’s say your small business makes tennis balls and you have a technology

that makes the balls bounce better and last longer. You have a great product, but you don’t

have a manufacturing facility, a distribution channel or any of the other parts of the tennis-

ball supply chain. All you have are great tennis balls.

You may not be able to compete with the big industry players like Wilson, Penn or Prince for

sponsorships or tournament partnerships, but you could partner with a tennis-ball factory

and a distribution company. In fact, you could partner with them without having to pay a

cent for your own factory or distribution. Just pay your partners a portion of the profit every

time you sell a tennis ball.

The result? You negotiate for mainstream production and distribution without paying the

huge upfront cost of building a plant or hiring a shipping company. Now you can focus on

selling tennis balls instead of worrying about making them.

Big businesses can pay for partnerships up front. Small businesses have to negotiate for

partnerships that pay per sale.

3. Use checklists

Big businesses have massive facilities, complex supply chains and large equipment.

Managing the day-to-day operations in these environments is too complex for one person.

There are too many variables to track.

Guess what? Small businesses are the same way. Small business owners have to wear

many hats. If you don’t hold yourself accountable and remind yourself to do something that

“brings home the bacon,” then it’s easy to get caught up doing things that aren’t essential. In

the rush of a normal day, it’s also easy to forget to do a critical task.

Take a page from big business and develop process lists or checklists for specific tasks and

jobs. Give yourself a guide to success and a reminder to do the essentials each day.

4. Acquisitions

Perhaps the primary way that most big businesses grow is through acquisitions. Before you

think I’m off my rocker by suggesting this move for small businesses, let me explain.

First, acquisitions are tough. You can easily break the bank with one bad purchase. That

said, acquisitions can be a massive source of profit and a means to growth if you make a

few key moves.

You know what’s a good buy in your industry. Follow tip No. 3 and keep to a specific list of

characteristics that you’re looking for. Don’t let emotion or ego play a role in a major

purchase. Stick to the checklist.

Secondly, do you have the budget to buy up everyone in the industry? Probably not. I’m not

suggesting that you buy something you can’t afford. But you can afford some businesses,

especially those that you can improve. Don’t dismiss acquisitions just because you’re small.

5. Become a leader in the industry

Big businesses often make their name by leading an industry. They make moves when

other businesses sit by the wayside.

I was recently talking with the employees of a large distribution company that wants to do

business in China. There’s just one problem: The distribution company ships products for

other companies and those businesses don’t trust the distribution channels in China yet. As

a result, the distribution company isn’t selling in that region.

If there are no products to ship to an area, the company doesn’t set up distribution in that

area. But if there’s no reliable distribution network, nobody ships products. It becomes a

chicken or egg problem where neither side wants to move first.

So what does this company do? They say, “We know you don’t like the distribution there, so

we’re going to fix it. Then, you can give us all of your business in China.”

Is it a bold move? Yes.

Is it an expensive move? Yes.

Is anyone else currently doing it? No.

Does that mean that there is a huge opportunity for growth? Yes.

What’s the lesson for small businesses? Don’t be afraid to solve the hard problems that

everyone else avoids. There is a lot of money to be made when you’re the first person to fix

something.

James Clear is the founder of Passive Panda. He is an award-winning writer on business

strategy and entrepreneurship and has delivered speeches in the United States, Britain and

Switzerland.

The Top 10 Strategic CIO Issues For 2013

Bob Evans, Oracle

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Perhaps no C-level position has undergone as many changes in expectations,

approaches, and philosophies during the past few decades as that of the Chief

Information Officer.

And the turbulent forces shaping businesses in today’s always-on global

marketplace promise to accelerate that ongoing evolution. In that context, I’ve

put together a list of what I believe will be the top priorities for strategic CIOs

in the coming year.

As you’ll see, each of these 10 is rooted in change, and calls for the CIO to be a

leader instead of a follower; a disrupter instead of a go-alonger; and a

business-driven executive instead of a tech-focused manager.

OracleVoice: The Deadly Cost Of Ignoring Big

Data: $71.2 Million Per Year Bob Evans@Oracle

OracleVoice: Can CIO

Turbocharge NASCAR Revenue? Bob Evans@Oracle

Several themes reverberate throughout: analytics, breaking down silos, social,

the cloud, and particularly customers, opportunities, growth, and innovation. I

hope these prove helpful, and please share your feedback in the comments

section below or on Twitter at @bobevansIT.

1) Simplify IT and Transform Your Spending: Kick the 80/20

Budget Habit.While surely not as sexy as Social and Business Analytics and

Cloud, this bold decision to take an entirely new approach to IT infrastructure

is the one and only way CIOs can unlock the funding necessary to pursue those

snazzier and unquestionably vital new initiatives. Far too many companies

today find that they need to devote 70% or even 80% of their IT budget just to

run and maintain what they’ve already got, leaving as little as 20% for

innovation. And if you wonder sometimes why you’ve got precious little IT

budget available to fund growth-oriented innovation, the answer becomes

pretty clear by looking at the list of usual suspects that have brought us to this

point: server sprawl, massively underutilized storage resources, unproductive

data centers, labor-intensive integration requirements, and a near-endless list

of “strategic” vendors. The IT policies of the past that resulted in the 80/20

trap are simply no longer able to meet the needs of today’s intensely

demanding and always-on business world, and are indeed becoming liabilities

not just because they’re inadequate but also because they suck up vast

percentages of the IT budget and make it almost impossible for CIOs to fund

essential new efforts in analytics or cloud or mobile or social. CIOs need to

determine which vendors are only exacerbating this problem, and which ones

offer modern alternatives that are cheaper, faster, and smarter. My

POV: CEOs should tie most or all of the variable compensation for their CIOs

to changing that deadly 80/20 budget ratio by 5 percentage points per year.

The CIOs willing to tackle this huge issue will not only earn some nice bonus

dollars but will unlock huge value for their companies as well as for their

own careers.

2) Lead the Social Revolution: Drive the Social-Enabled

Enterprise. When social media began to invade the corporate world some

years back, the traditional border-collie behavior of many CIOs triggered

immediate and unconditional opposition to social tools on the grounds of

security challenges, lack of familiarity, and unproven value. As social’s ability

to forge new and more-immediate relationships with customers became more

clear, some CIOs grudgingly agreed to let down the drawbridge (but they drew

the line at removing the alligators from the moat!). Today’s business-

technology leaders must go well beyond that passive acceptance and become

passionate and unconditional zealots for the social-driven revolution and its

ability to help their companies grow by providing real-time customer insights,

engagements, and processes. Beyond customers, the social revolution is also

becoming indispensable internally for motivating existing employees and

recruiting great new talent, and in forging deeper and more-valuable

relationships with partners. My POV: CIOs who fight this trend will be

pushed aside by CMOs and LOB heads who understand social’s potential and

know they can’t compete unless that potential is harnessed by the company

for competitive advantage. And what does “pushed aside” mean? At best,

temporary embarrassment, and at worst, demotion or even unemployment.

3) Unleash Your Company’s Intelligence: Create the Enterprise-

Wide Opportunity Chain. Building on but transcending existing notions of

supply chain and demand chain and data warehouses and data marts, the

Opportunity Chain transforms that internally oriented information into the

customer-centric and growth-driven language of opportunity. New prospects,

new market trends, new chances to engage, new insights for new products,

new demographic patterns: information and insights about all of these

probably exist somewhere within your corporate IT maze but are almost

impossible to find because we cloak them in IT-specific terminology and then

trap them in incompatible silos. But today’s new and always-on global

marketplace requires new insights driven by the social revolution, and many

of our old and trusty systems and approaches are simply not suited to the new

realities demanded by our customers and by our times. In addition, the

Opportunity Chain concept provides a market-facing framework and context

for richly exploiting the potential of business analytics and Big Data. My

POV: Whatever it’s called, this idea of the Opportunity Chain gives CIOs a

fantastic, well, opportunity to drive high-value new information assets

throughout the company and demonstrate again that when business

technology is aggressively imagined and led, it drives growth and sparks

new and deeper engagements with customers.

4) Embrace the Engagement Economy: Merge the Back Office and

the Front Office into the Customer Office. One of the most-valuable

perks of being a CIO is the ability to be involved with and understand not just

some but all of a company’s end-to-end processes. From manufacturing to

marketing, from procurement to product development, from finance to

Facebook, the CIO and the business-technology team have tremendous

insights into how a company’s operations, its priorities, its vulnerabilities, and

its opportunities. So today, as our systems of record become systems of

engagement, and as the social revolution opens up all facets of our enterprise

to customer interactions as well as customer scrutiny, isn’t it time to bulldoze

the internally constructed silos separating the folks that have traditionally

touched the customer (the “front office”) with those that were never allowed

to—or at least supposed to (the “back office”)? Shouldn’t we try to engage our

customers in product development? Engineering? Service plans and

operations? Marketing? Pricing options? My POV: While traditional systems

reinforce the notion that only the privileged few get to interact with

customers—and while that might be convenient for us internally—today’s

socially powered consumers want access beyond the sales team. The question

is, are you able—and willing—to grant that essential access?

5) Future-Proof Your IT Architecture. Think back just three years to the

state of your business and the state of your IT strategy: the cloud was still

mostly conceptual or isolated out on the fringes, social was a minor but

persistent irritation, Big Data was mostly an egghead conversation and not

likely to get beyond that, “engagement” was something you hoped your

daughter would not get into with her goofy boyfriend, business analytics was

all taken care of by a big team of specialists serving a small team of executives,

and the iPad was still blessedly nothing but a rumor. The CFO badgered you

every month about your endless demands for more real estate in which to put

endlessly growing racks of servers requiring endlessly growing volumes of

electricity and air conditioning, but what else could you do? The data

explosion required a parallel explosion infrastructure growth, right? But the

physics and the finances of such an approach no longer work, and the new

business demands of today must surely be met with more-innovative tools

tomorrow. My POV: Businesses need fresh thinking about the architecture

of tomorrow because merely rehabbing or adding on to the existing plan will

simply not meet the wildly different and more-demanding requirements of

tomorrow. Cloud, social, mobile, engagement, Big Vision (formerly Big

Data), and a greatly accelerated pace and scale of global business require

modern apps, optimized systems, fault-tolerance, full support across cloud

and on-premise and a mix of both, and built-in BI and social capabilities.

6) Upgrade “Cloud Strategy” to “Business Transformation Enabled

by the Cloud.” Without question, CIOs must have detailed strategies and

plans for cloud computing and many already have those in place (to those of

you who don’t, well, did you ever get that high-school teaching certificate?).

But the strategic CIO will use the next several months to collaborate with the

CEO in upgrading that tech-centric plan into a broader vision for a sweeping

business transformation of the entire enterprise. If you’re still viewing your

cloud strategy based on a tech-driven plan written a year or two ago—before

the ascendancy of social, customer engagement, Big Data, and business

analytics—you’re going to miss the boat. My POV: Cloud projects will not be

judged on their technical merits or on hitting their go-live dates, but rather

by how deeply they impact essential business-transformation initiatives, and

by how much business value and opportunity they unlocked. In the process,

CIOs will segment themselves into two groups: IT leaders who focus solely

on the tech aspects of cloud deployments, and business leaders who ensure

that cloud projects are conceived and executed in the service of customers,

business execution, and engagement.

7) Transform Big Data into Big Insights, Big Vision, and Big

Opportunities. In the past year or so, much of the talk about Big Data has

obscured the fact that the real issue is enabling intelligent and instantaneous

analysis to provide optimal insights for business decisions. CIOs need to

ensure they’re looking at these high-volume, high-velocity challenges in the

right way: as business enablers, not tech projects. For example: What if you

could enable dynamic pricing of your company’s products around the globe?

What if you could perform fraud-detection analytics across all of your

transactions in real time, instead of across just a random sampling of only a

few percent of all those transactions? What if you could analyze three years’

worth of customer data in minutes, rather than only the past three months in

hours? In the meantime, we can be certain that the scale and speed of this

current challenge will only increase as CIOs must rapidly and seamlessly

enhance their traditional corporate data with vast new streams of social and

mobile data to realize the full potential of these strategic Big

Opportunities.My POV: Some forecasts say the CMO will soon be calling the

shots for IT; while I don’t buy into that, I do agree that CIOs who choose to

sit back and wait for “the business” to tell them what to do will end up

reporting to the CMO within a year or two. But companies will fare much

better if their CIOs eagerly and rapidly begin framing Big Data challenges

and opportunities in terms of customers, opportunities, revenue, and

business value.

8) Preside over a Shotgun Wedding: Systems of Record Marry

Systems of Engagement. Your traditional back-end systems might be

sturdy and proven workhorses but they’re simply not equipped to handle the

vast new streams of data and information from social, video, Customer

Experience, and more. Conversely, while those new engagement tools and

solutions are fabulous gateways into the real-time wants and needs of

customers and employees, they lack the historical and institutional breadth

and knowledge of your trusty ERP systems. The strategic CIO will find new

approaches and/or solutions to rapidly and seamlessly tie these separate

worlds together. This strategic integration will become the cornerstone of the

Opportunity Chain described above in #3, and also of the consolidation of the

archaic front office and back office into the modern Customer Office as

described in #4. My POV: This union of social/mobile with transactional

capabilities will give companies a new way to move at the speed of their

customers, new methods for engaging with customers to build multifaceted

relationships rather than linear transactions, and the ability to avoid getting

stuck in the tar pit of siloed systems designed to meet internal requirements

rather than enable the co-creation of value with customers

7 Successful Business Strategy Models You Must Emulate

inShare25

Today, I want to reveal to you seven businesses I am modeling. As you know, I am in the

entrepreneurial process of building a business so I have to follow the footsteps of the great business

leaders. Just as I have business mentors and entrepreneurial role models, I also have business models

that I strategically follow.

In this article, I will be revealing seven companies I use as a standard to build my own business; I

will also be telling you the strengths of these companies. I love and model my business after these

companies not because of their great products but because of their strategic management style. They

are successful companies and they make good business models for younger companies.

I will be specifically explaining the specific business strategy used by each of these successful

business models. You are also free to adopt any of these strategies for your business. If you are

ready, let’s set the ball rolling. Below are seven successful business strategy models you must

emulate.

7 Successful Business Strategy Models You Must Emulate

1. Apple Inc - Good Innovation Strategy

“Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a

follower.” – Steve Jobs

I listed Apple Inc because of the innovative style of

their management. Apple has kept the pace by using

strategic innovation to maintain leadership position

in the technology industry. Apple’s innovative

strategy is simply breathe taking.

You can never predict what they’ve got up their

sleeves. They are always coming out every now and

then with one innovative product or the other.

They’ve caused several frenzies in the marketplace

with products such as iMac, GMac, IPod and IPad.

“To turn really interesting ideas and fledging ideas

into a company that can continue to innovate for

years, it requires a lot of disciplines.” – Steve Jobs

“In three years, every product my company makes

will be obsolete. The only question is whether we

will make them obsolete or somebody else will.” –

Bill Gates

Apple’s innovative style has made them consistently

rank top ten in the Fast Company’s list of innovative

companies. I try to model Apple in my own little

way by constantly improving on businesses. I

constantly seek innovative ways to increase

customer’s loyalty and profit. If you want to make

innovation one of your company’s core values, then

Apple is one of the successful business strategy

models you can emulate.

“Pretty much, Apple and Dell are the only ones in

this industry making money. They make it by being

Wal-Mart, we make it by innovation.” – Steve Jobs

2. Virgin Group – Strong Competitive

Strategy

“A business has to be involving, it has to be fun and

it has to exercise your creative instincts.” – Richard

Branson

I respect Richard Branson’s Virgin Group for their

guts. They are always unafraid to tackle giant

companies head on. The Virgin group is respected in

the business world for their strong Competitive

spirit; they are quite good at outsmarting the giant

companies.

Virgin’s competitive style of management has made

them go head to head with giant corporations such as

British Airways, AOL and Coca Cola. If you have

the entrepreneurial spirit of competition, then Virgin

is the company to model your business after.

“We have always had a pretty competitive ferocious

battle with British Airways. It lasted about 14 years

and we are very pleased to have survived it.” –

Richard Branson

“What does the name Virgin mean? We are a

company that likes to take on the giants. In too many

businesses, these giants have had things their own

way. We are going to have fun competing with

them.” – Richard Branson

3. Oracle Corporation: Tactical Acquisition

Strategy

“Everyone thought the acquisition strategy was

extremely risky because no one had ever done it

successfully. In other words, it was innovative.” –

Larry Ellison

What really made me doff my hat for Larry Ellison,

founder of Oracle Corporation was his aggressive

acquisition strategy. What will you say of a

company that spent over $65billion to buy up 57

companies in a space of five years?

The company was molded by the founder “Larry

Ellison” to expand via strategic acquisition and this

strong acquisition strategy made them beat IBM to

the game by acquiring Sun Microsystems. If

mopping up smaller companies delights you, then

Oracle acquisition strategy is a business model to

study.

“In order to grow at this pace, there’ll have to be a

couple of acquisitions along the way. The tricky

thing is to grow at this rate and maintain a 40

percent operating margin.” – Larry Ellison

“I think you might see us growing much deeper into

banking. You might see us acquiring companies in

the banking area. You might see us acquiring

companies in the retail area. I think you might see us

acquiring companies in the telecommunications. I

think you will see us getting stronger in business

intelligence.” – Larry Ellison

4. Dangote Group – Niche Domination

Strategy

One of the successful business strategy models you

must be on the watch out for is that of the Dangote

Group. This group is so strong in the Nigerian

commodities market that they have held the market

to ransom for years.

The Dangote Group has a thorough understanding of

the commodity market. Their strategy to focus and

dominate this niche has put them in control of over

42% of Nigeria’s commodity market; a country that

boast of a population with well over 150 million

people.

Dangote Group now maintains a stronghold on the

Cement, Flour, Pasta, Salt and Sugar market. Thanks

to the vision of its founder, Aliko Dangote; the

richest black man in the world. One lesson I picked

up from the Dangote Business strategy model is this;

forget about satisfying everyone, just pick a niche,

master the ins and outs and strive to be the best in

that niche.

“The ultimate goal of the Dangote Group is to

dominate every niche in which it operates. In order

to achieve this goal; we acquired over 3000 new

trucks, developed a strong distribution network and

increased production capacity. Our strategy is to sell

our products faster than our competitors and at

uniform price.” – Aliko Dangote

“And here is the prime condition of success, the

great secret. Concentrate your energy, thoughts and

capital exclusively upon the business in which you

are engaged in. Having begun in one line, resolve to

fight it out on that line; to lead in it. Adopt every

improvement, have the best machinery and know the

most about it.” – Andrew Carnegie

5. Reliance Group – Thinking big strategy

Do you know one thing I love about Mukesh

Ambani’s lead Reliance Group; they think big and

do things big. They own the largest refinery in the

world and they are one of the largest conglomerates

in the world; but they were not as big as this many

years ago.

To further proof their belief in doing things big,

Reliance Group invested $5billion in a single swoop

to create a network of retail stores. The ultimate

lesson from this successful business model is this;

start small but think big.

“I like thinking big. If you’re going to be thinking

anything, you might as well think big.” – Donald

Trump

6. Wal-Mart: Unique Pricing Strategy

“Always low price.” – Wal-Mart slogan

Wal-Mart, in the face of stiff competition came up

with a winning strategy that made them industry

leaders. They decided to use strategic pricing as a

weapon to overcome their competitors and that

pricing strategy has put them in the leadership

position.

Today, as at the time of this writing; Wal-Mart is the

most capitalized company in the world and number

one on the list of Fortune’s 500 companies.

“There is one rule for the industrialist and that is:

make the best quality goods possible at the lowest

price possible, paying the highest wage possible.” –

Henry Ford

7. Coca Cola: Strong Brand Strategy

“If you are not a brand, you are a commodity.” –

Robert Kiyosaki

The seventh successful business strategy model we

will be looking at is Coca Cola; owners of the world

strongest brand. Sometime ago, Coca Cola’s fixed

assets were estimated at $8billion but its brand name

“Coca Cola” was estimated to be worth over

$80billion. Why? The reason is because Coca Cola

has worked diligently over the years to strengthen

their brand.

The Coca Cola brand is the most popular all over the

world; thanks to the strategic brand management

team of the company. If using your brand image to

gain an edge over competitors looks like something

you can diligently pursue, then Coca Cola’s business

strategy model is definitely worth emulating.

These are the seven successful business strategy

models you can use as a benchmark to model your

business. I want to state categorically that it’s

useless trying to implement all these strategies. Just

pick one or two and diligently give it your best shot;

and success will be yours