Sharpbenders

This book presents the results of a unique and illuminating study of corporate success in Britain. Based on a wide sample of industry, analysed in depth for over ten years, Sharpbenders focuses on companies which have affected — and, crucially, sustained — a marked improvement in performance in comparison with their competitors.

The book is a fascinating document of changing patterns of corporate growth and competitiveness in a period of dramatic economic and technological change, and provides clear lessons for all modern business. The authors explain the reasons for a company's original decline, what subsequently triggered off the change, the 'sharpbend', how this change was implemented, and the characteristics of continuing success. All companies want to improve their performance, most have the potential to do so, but relatively few actually achieve striking results. This book analyses how firms can succeed in unleashing their potential quickly and effectively in the hope that it will encourage others to achieve similar success.

1. A Need for Action
1. Why read This Book?
2. The Sharpbenders
3. Plan of the Book
4. The Structure of the Project
5. What is a Sharpbender?
6. The Process of Change
7. The Rest of the Book
2. The Causes of Relative Decline
1. Adverse Changes in the Total Market Demand
2. Falling Revenues due to Competitive Pressure
3. Lack of Marketing/Sales Effort
4. Poor Quality and Reliability
5. Poor Management
6. Inadequate Financial Control
7. Organization
8. High-Cost Structure Relative to Competitors
9. Acquisitions
10. Big Projects that Failed
11. The Combination of Causes
3. Triggers of Radical Change
1. The Need for a Trigger
2. Triggers found among the Sharpbenders
3. External Intervention
4. Change of Ownership
5. Injection of a New Chief Executive
6. Recognition by Management
7. An Overview of the Process of Triggering Change
4. What the Sharpbenders Did
1. Changes in Management
2. Changes in Organization
3. Stronger Central Financial Control
4. New Product Market Focus
5. Improved Quality and Service
6. Improved Marketing
7. Reduced Costs
8. Acquisitions
9. Debt Reduction
10. Windfalls
11. An Overall View
5. Characteristics of Sustained Improved Performance
1. The Relation between the Continuing Characteristics and the Steps Taken
2. Good Management
3. Appropriate Organizational Structure
4. Effective Financial and Other Controls
5. Sound Product Market Posture
6. Good Marketing Management
7. High Quality Control
8. Tightly Controlled Costs
9. Characteristics of the Sustained Improvement Considered
6. Unleashing Corporate Potential
1. The Initial Appraisal
2. Putting the Sharpbend into Practice
3. An Omission
4. Concluding Remarks

• Technical Appendix
• Vignettes of the Individual Companies