Advice for CEOs

In my last article, I surveyed the range of activities that fall under the heading of e-commerce. I said you should try to understand how this dynamic channel will impact your industry and company profoundly in the years to come, even if it’s hard to know exactly how. I would like now to mention several frameworks that help CEO’s of emerging growth companies evaluate and exploit e-commerce opportunities.

This series of articles addresses the e-commerce landscape - as it exists today and the various directions in which it is swiftly evolving. Almost every business on the planet will need to understand and invest in “commerce-enablement technology” to stay innovative and competitive. Meanwhile there are key decisions that emerging growth companies need to consider now, to formulate winning digital growth strategies.

If you’re a small or family-owned company, a decision to move part or all of your operations offshore is ultimately about a lot more than company economics. This is particularly true if the decision to move offshore would involve shutting down a U.S. operation. It may mean laying off long-term employees who have been loyal, productive contributors to your business. It may involve hurting the economic health of a community you care about, at least for the near future.