Advice for CEOs

While there may be few issues that both political parties in the United States can agree on, over the last two decades nearly every politician and pundit has stressed the importance of returning U.S. jobs.

The rate of change in today’s business environment is faster than it has ever been - and getting faster. Years of experience as a CEO of consumer product companies selling to retailers and consumers have taught me that even very strong demand for your product is not nearly enough. The pressures of today’s market mean that, no matter how good a product or service you are selling, a strategy to improve profitability in customer package goods must have three components: a well-defined product strategy; a highly coordinated process across the supply chain that optimizes the product’s value and attractiveness to the end consumer; and the right balance between bricks and mortar and on-line retailing.