All articles

Despite challenge from Asia, "The West" leads in digital - US, Canada and seven European countries in top 10

PRESS RELEASE - The USA leads the IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking 2018 followed by Singapore, Sweden, Denmark and Switzerland. Rising from the 3rd spot, the USA overtakes Singapore and...

IMD MBAs Visit Silicon Valley, a hotbed of technology and Innovation

Silicon Valley is an intense cacophony of innovation, full of the world’s most valuable internet companies, top universities, an abundance of intellectual property and venture capital that no...

Why every company should embrace the World Cup

By Ina Toegel, Maude Lavanchy

The true bane of an organization is a lack of engagement and job satisfaction among its employees. World Cup mania could actually help

IMD MBA alumni gather to explore reinvention and rediscovery

For the third consecutive year, IMD is hosting the All MBA Alumni Event, which brings together 250+ IMD MBA graduates from as far and wide as Brazil, China and Senegal, and from classes spanning...

“A common on-boarding tool kit is essential”

IMD’s program The First 90-Days is an interactive, 2-day learning journey, where executives in new leadership positions diagnose the situations they have inherited, define strategic direction...

Professor Howard Yu releases new book on how companies stay successful

Despite patent filings, market dominance, and financial resources, copycat competition continues to pose an existential threat to all businesses. How can a business shield itself from copycats?

Will Amazon do to the grocery industry what it did to ecommerce?

By Ralf W. Seifert with Richard Markoff.

Amazon has been busy lately. After entering the grocery delivery market with Amazon Fresh and buying Whole Foods, it is now in the process of launching its own supermarket, Amazon Go.

IMD’s June 2018 EMBAs celebrate their learning journey

Last week IMD’s June 2018 EMBA cohort commemorated the end of one chapter of their journey and the beginning of another with an elegant graduation ceremony at the Beau-Rivage Hotel in...

IMD Professor Knut Haanaes appointed to Lead New Global Leadership Institute at the World Economic Forum

The World Economic Forum announced yesterday that Professor Knut Haanaes is appointed the first Dean of the new Global Leadership Institute. Haanaes joins the Forum from IMD, where he is...

Scandals in the non-profit sector: Research shows people attempt to psychologically offset misdeeds

By Jennifer Jordan

This year has seen a number of scandals in the humanitarian sector come to light – from Oxfam to a high-profile aid-worker in Nepal. What’s common in all these stories is that the accused workers...

Why YouTube’s attempt at a new music service will fall flat

By Michael R. Wade, Stefan Michel

Last week, YouTube announced a new music streaming service—a revamped version of the existing YouTube Music. Launching Tuesday, the free, ad-supported version will remain in place, and there will be...

IMD’s EMBAs mark the end of an intense and rewarding learning journey

This Friday IMD’s June 2018 EMBA cohort will commemorate the end of one chapter of their journey and the beginning of another with an elegant graduation ceremony at the Beau-Rivage Hotel in...

IMD races to raise funds for international charity

Members of the IMD 2018 MBA class and IMD staff recently participated in a charity sporting event in Geneva called Race for Gift organized to raise funds for over 20 international and...

Machine intelligence will shake up banking, but the disruptors won’t be fintech startups

By Howard H. Yu with Urs Rohner.

Artificial intelligence and machine learning are being woven into the fabric of every aspect of our lives. The financial sector, historically faced with inefficiencies, is already...

Tesla’s problem: overestimating automation, underestimating humans

By Bettina Büchel with Dario Floreano.

Tesla was hoping to produce 5,000 new Model 3 electric cars each week in 2018. So far, it has failed to manufacture even half that number. Questioned on the matter, the company’s CEO, Elon Musk...

IMD thought leadership recognized for excellence by EFMD

EFMD, an international, not-for-profit, membership organization of business schools and corporations recently announced the winners of its annual case writing competition and IMD authors...

Why we can't innovate

By William A. Fischer

“Ad Hoc, slow, short-term, insular.” That’s the overall characterization of corporate innovation processes that appears in a recent “State of Innovation” report by CB Insights, based on a survey of...

The US overtakes Hong Kong at first place among world’s most competitive economies

PRESS RELEASE - Marking its 30th edition this year, the IMD World Competitiveness Rankings emphasize a long-term trend highlighted in past editions – that the countries on the top of the list each...

Digital disruption and transformation: What executives need to know

By Amit M. Joshi, Jennifer Jordan, Michael R. Wade

IMD recently interviewed professors Amit Joshi (digital marketing and analytics expert), Jennifer Jordan (digital leadership expert), and Michael Wade (digital business transformation expert) on...

What makes a successful, innovative team?

By Cyril Bouquet

What makes a successful, innovative team? This is a fundamental question innovation specialists have investigated over the years. My experience at IMD suggests that great moments of creativity...

Building On Talent (BOT): preparing the next generation of leaders

As a young sales and marketing manager for Tequila Fortaleza, a drinks company based in the San Diego area, Billy Erickson was the perfect candidate for a program that targets younger generations...

IMD MBA alumnus wins EY Entrepreneur of the Year award

IMD alumnus Hans-Petter Mellerud is on track to become the world’s best entrepreneur after being chosen as Norway’s Entrepreneur of 2017 by EY, a professional services firm.

Getting ABC classifications right

By Ralf W. Seifert with Richard Markoff.

ABC Classification: It is one of the oldest, most reliable methods for catalogue or customer segmentation. It relies on the properties of the Pareto distribution and states that about 20% of...

IMD business school events, reports and programs in 2018

PRESS RELEASE – As a top-ranked business school, IMD is expert in developing leaders, transforming organizations and creating positive, sustainable impact – immediate and long-term. We strive to...

Why nobody takes corporate social responsibility seriously

By Paul Strebel, Knut Haanaes

Why the cynicism? Consider this real setting: About 25 owners and top executives of medium-sized companies have come together to discuss sustainability. An executive for a major oil company presents...

IMD President Manzoni and Professor Garelli address Basel Leadership talks

What qualities make a great leader? How does the Swiss army prepare its officers for command roles? And how can the private sector incorporate some of the army’s best leadership practices...

Three key questions you will not escape for industry 4.0

By Ralf W. Seifert with Richard Markoff.

A recent survey by IMD business school asked supply chain leaders across Europe to select from a diverse list of 20 hot topics what would be their biggest supply chain drivers in 2020. They were...

IMD mourns the loss of Jean-Pierre Lehmann

PRESS RELEASE – IMD is saddened to announce the passing away of Professor Jean-Pierre Lehmann. Jean-Pierre was a highly active and appreciated member of IMD’s community beginning in 1995, when he...

Humility in learning

By Michael R. Wade with Andrew Tarling.

Can we continue to rely on theories of leadership that were developed many decades ago, long before the widespread adoption of the Internet? What makes a leader successful in highly volatile...

ICRC continues strategic reflections at IMD

On Dec 14, The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) hosted the third edition of its Global Partnerships for Humanitarian Impact and Innovation (GPHI2) at IMD. GPHI2 is an initiative by...