business acumen video « Business Acumen Blog

Business Acumen Is Simple

August 2, 2010

Filed under: Business Acumen 360º Newsletter,business acumen video,Ram Charan — admin @ 3:54 pm

When you come right down to it, business is very simple. There are universal laws of business that apply whether you sell fruit from a stand or are running a Fortune 500 company. Successful business leaders know them. They have what I call business acumen – the ability to understand the building blocks of how a one-person operation or a very big business makes money…

I’ve been in the business world some forty years now, beginning when I was a child in my family’s small business in India, then working as an engineer in Australia. I then moved to America and taught at both Harvard Business School and Northwestern University’s Kellogg School, and have been advising CEOs and boards of directors at companies large and small around the world. The one thing I’ve noticed is that the best CEOs – the ones whose companies make money year after year – are like the best teacher you ever had. They are able to take the complexity and mystery out of business by focusing on the core fundamentals. And they make sure that everyone in the company, not just their executive colleagues, understands these fundamentals.

You could say they have their self-interest at heart, since the company and the CEO are more successful when everyone knows how the business works. But it’s not just the CEO who benefits. People feel more connected to their work and have greater satisfaction from their job. And as the company has profitable growth – that is, both sales (the “top line”) and profits (the “bottom line”) increase year after year – there are greater opportunities for people to expand their careers and to make more money.

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Ram Charan: Managing in Tough Times

July 8, 2010

Filed under: business acumen,business acumen video,Businessweek,Ram Charan — admin @ 9:27 am

Surviving the recession takes intensity
Ram Charan speaks about his new book Leadership in the Era of Economic Uncertainty. He tells CEOs to go “granular” — be aware 24/7 of their companies’ cash position (Driver #1) and customers’ needs (Driver #5).

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Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference

June 9, 2010

Filed under: Acumen Learning News,business acumen,business acumen video,Microsoft — Mike Wright @ 4:51 pm

Acumen Learning’s CEO, Kevin Cope has been invited to share his thoughts and ideas with Microsoft’s partners. Kevin will be hosting two different session, both focused on business acumen…

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