Kaihan Krippendorff

A Hidden Key to Growth: Unlocking Your Channel Strategy

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Many rapidly scaled companies won through channel strategy – finding or creating a new path to the customer. Consider Dell. They decided to sell PCs directly to consumers, bypassing traditional retailers. Salesforce delivered a customer relationship management (CRM) platform via the cloud, avoiding on-premises installations. Apple opened its own stores, reducing its dependence on third-party […]

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Transform from Bureaucracy to Entrepreneurialism in 3 Simple Steps

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This audio was recorded by an AI program. I’m just back from my second visit in the last month to Qingdao, China, where I attended an award ceremony conference that Haier calls the Zero Distance Awards. In addition to enjoying the beer (also called Qingdao) and seafood the city is known for, I got to

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How to Spot the Future Before it Arrives

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The following is an updated version of a post that was originally published in 2016. It is so easy to miss! When the future was lobbing softballs at you, you could hit the trends every time. But now the future has upped its game. It’s throwing fastballs and curveballs. Who would’ve predicted five years ago

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My Surprising Visit to a Washing Machine Factory

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Click here to listen to an AI recording of this post. I just returned from an exciting trip to Qingdao, China. In addition to eating brains and snails, I saw something that blew my mind when I visited a Haier washing machine factory. To the common observer, the process to create the appliances simply looks

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Is Your Company Really Customer-Centric?

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“Get closer than ever to your customers. So close that you tell them what they need well before they realize it themselves.” – Steve Jobs This audio was recorded by an AI program. I just got back from China for a special research visit to Haier, the leading appliances manufacturer, and I had the realization that

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The 5 X 5 X 5 Experiment

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The following post was originally published in 2015. Here is the fundamental issue: innovation seems too risky. Your company says they want it. They hold innovation events, call “innovation” a top priority, and build internal innovation teams. But no one, even the most admired innovators, is confident their efforts are paying off. Perhaps we fundamentally

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The Evolution of Strategy: From Competition to Customers to Employees

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This audio was recorded by an AI program. In the 1980s, business strategy was dominated by competition. Michael Porter introduced the concept of competitive advantage. Strategists and business leaders became obsessed with differentiating their business from the competition by taking market share and becoming, as General Electric famously was, number one or number two in

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If Entrepreneurship Were a Sport

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This audio was recorded by an AI program. I was at the Jersey Shore a couple of weeks ago, spending time with my family and enjoying slow, relaxed mornings. I would wake up at 8am and sip my cup of coffee while sitting on our balcony overlooking the water and the dunes. It was a

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Outthinker Networks’ 2024 Strategy & Innovation Summer Reading List

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Click here to listen to an AI recording of this post. For strategy and innovation leaders, staying ahead of the curve is crucial. Our annual Outthinker summer reading list aims to bring you the most impactful and thought-provoking books that are shaping our field. Throughout the year, we’ve curated this list from member recommendations, the

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Macroeconomic Insights and CSO Career Paths: Key Takeaways from Outthinker Networks’ Strategy Roundtable in New York

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This audio was recorded by an AI program. On June 12, 20 chief strategy officers (CSOs) and innovation executives convened for a roundtable in New York City. The event, hosted by Heidrick & Struggles in the iconic One Vanderbilt building, brought together peers leading strategy and innovation across organizations and industries. One Vanderbilt, a sleek

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