How they boost income: 01-August-08
Sourav Mitra -
Friday, August 01, 2008 10:15 PM
Monsanto, the leading producer of genetically modified, or biotech, seeds:
1. It shifted focus from agricultural chemical sales businesses to biotech seeds business. It focused on corn, soybeans, and cotton seeds and exited wheat
2. It changed the strategy planning process from a yearly retreat to a meeting of top executives every Monday morning to run through various strategic and operational issues the business lines are facing, with off-site review sessions every six to eight weeks.
3. It created cross-functional teams to hasten the transition to more high-tech, faster-changing lines of business.
[Click here for full story at Businessweek.com]
Clairvoyance + courage + commitment = income growth imperatives in the constancy of change
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Beijing Olympics sponsors are sponsoring the Games because:
1. They seek early advantage in the relative immaturity of the Chinese consumer market, and the intense pride among Chinese in hosting the Games
2. Beijing has banned non-sponsors from using Chinese Olympic athletes and outdoor advertising by in the city's airports, buses, and billboards within the city center.
3. GE landed $700 million in revenues from 400 Olympics-related projects such as rainwater recycling at Beijing's Bird's Nest stadium.
[Click here for full story at Businessweek.com]
Capturing the customer's mind = first step to income growth
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Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd., the maker of Subaru-brand cars:
1. It introduced a redesigned version of the Forester sport-utility vehicle in Europe, U.S. and Japan.
2. It introduced a new Impreza sports wagon in Japan the first new regular car model in four years in Japan.
3. It will co-develop models and share production with Toyota
4. It makes Toyota's Camry at its factory in Indiana.
[Click here for full story at Bloomberg.com]
New products + improved products + joint ventures = more income
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Haier Group Corp., China's largest maker of refrigerators and air conditioners:
1. It is focusing on acquisitions to expand overseas.
2. It wants to acquire General Electric Co.'s appliance arm to gain a household name to help drive its U.S. expansion.
[Click here for full story at Bloomberg.com]
Acquisitions = absolute growth + synergic growth
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Mirvac Group, an Australian real estate investment trust, whose investors sought to pull out of property assets amid the global credit crisis:
It stopped redemptions for three mortgage funds holding more than $227 million. It won't accept redemptions or new investments for as long as six months to address both the loan performance issues and to restore value to the funds/pools investors.
[Click here for full story at Bloomberg.com]
Forced restraint of withdrawal of funds from the business = funds retained for business = scope for income