Having created and shaped several successful brands over the past decade,
including FrontBridge (acquired by Microsoft) and FileNet (acquired by IBM),
there are a few fundamentals that are key to successful brand development. It
has to start at the top with the CEO supporting an investment in branding and
disciplined brand management. Without that, it’s a non-starter. Given
technology companies are continuously innovating and changing products, the
brand strategy has to be differentiated and relevant to target markets and
the executional guidelines have to be consistently applied in order for brand
equity to be built over time
Brand Manifesto
A good place for marketers to start is to have a branding manifesto, i.e.,
what’s the purpose of building a brand and what differe... (more)
Given all the pressure to deliver "in quarter" results, it's becoming
increasingly difficult to get executive attention on strategy formation
and/or re-examination. Executive energy is largely consumed with driving
operational excellence and available "cycles' are devoted to sales and growth
initiatives designed to drive near-term, measurable improvements in sales
and/or profitability.... (more)
It's anyone's guess when the recession bottoms out and we get back to
growth. Rather than remain in a "state" of denial - like California did for
too long - or adopt a hunker down mentality - "let's just ride this one out"
- as many companies have, there's a middle path of taking proactive measures
steps now, so that when growth reappears, your company is better positioned
to gain an u... (more)
Most organizational experts will tell you that when joining an organization,
the company's culture is the key to determining whether you will thrive or
suffer in a given work environment. While this is true for a mid-level
manager or individual contributor, the closer you get to the top, the less a
culture matters and the more the CEO's leadership and management style impact
your work s... (more)
Over the past 15 years waging war in the technology marketplace, I’ve come
to appreciate that the first battle for marketing is often the one fought
inside a company between sales and marketing. Let’s face it, the two
functions are often at odds due to the he fundamental schism of one function
primarily rewarded for delivering near term results, i.e. get sales this
quarter, and the othe... (more)