The business environment is a fundamental subject in any Business Studies degree course. This new, student-friendly book divides the subject into the internal and external environment and, where relevant, discusses the interface between the two. It is written with the outward-looking student in mind and, as a result, encourages readers to reflect on what they have read and to consolidate their learning through regular self-testing exercises and discussion points. The text contains highly relevant and 'household name' case studies, ensuring that it is a highly topical and engaging book. Where organisational styles differ, the authors put forward the pros and cons of different points of view, ensuring that students have the information necessary to make up their own minds and develop management strategies of their own.

First Published in 2009. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

Sustainable Frontiers throws down the gauntlet to business to step up and be the catalyst for a sustainable future. It presents eight keys to unlocking transformational change – through leadership, enterprise, innovation, transparency, engagement, responsibility, integration and future-fitness. Far from being another tame review of corporate social responsibility and sustainable business initiatives, the book dispels the myths of sustainability and challenges us to let go of old systems that are failing to deliver economic, social and environmental transformation. Sustainable Frontiers gets to the heart of why the sustainability and CSR movements have failed in the past and offers a new view of how sustainable business practices can shape-shift to make a genuine difference inside and outside organisations. The book gathers together experiences from across the globe and shows to the reader what can be achieved with the right vision and leadership. Expect to be challenged, engaged and inspired to join the revolution on the sustainable frontier.Making a successful transition to a more sustainable future depends on letting go. Sustainable Frontiers shows how we must find ways to let go of an industrial system that has served us well, but is no longer fit for purpose. How we will need to let go of old styles of leadership and out-dated models of business, high-impact lifestyles and selfish values. How we must learn to let go of cherished ideologies that are causing destruction and beliefs about ways to tackle problems that are failing to resolve crises.If we are to reach sustainable frontiers, it must begin with changing our collective minds - and only then will we change our collective behaviour. How we accomplish such a global mind-shift is the subject of Sustainable Frontiers. And it starts by admitting that those of us at the vanguard of the sustainability revolution also have to change. We will also have to let go of cherished beliefs and strategies that are not working - starting with the way we communicate our vital, life-saving mission.

This new book explores how firms achieve competitive advantage in a disruptive, digital and globalized business landscape. An integrative framework, ‘The Four Rs of Competitive Success’, is introduced, which covers the four core pillars of global strategy: resources and capabilities, technology and innovation (recombination), internationalization and international markets (reach), and physical and virtual location (roots). It then explains how competitive advantage is achieved through an interaction of these four drivers against the backdrop of a globalized and digitized world. It is uniquely practical in its approach, combining theoretical understanding with international case studies and real-life examples throughout each chapter, including Apple, IKEA and Microsoft. Unlocking Strategic Innovation is concise, applied reading for postgraduate students studying international business, corporate strategy, innovation and digital strategy, as well as academics in the field. It will also be important reading for practitioners looking to gain further understanding of how firms compete and flourish in a global and technology-driven environment.

How the smartphone can become a personal concierge (not a stalker) in the mobile marketing revolution of smarter companies, value-seeking consumers, and curated offers. Consumers create a data trail by tapping their phones; businesses can tap into this trail to harness the power of the more than three trillion dollar mobile economy. According to Anindya Ghose, a global authority on the mobile economy, this two-way exchange can benefit both customers and businesses. In Tap, Ghose welcomes us to the mobile economy of smartphones, smarter companies, and value-seeking consumers. Drawing on his extensive research in the United States, Europe, and Asia, and on a variety of real-world examples from companies including Alibaba, China Mobile, Coke, Facebook, SK Telecom, Telefónica, and Travelocity, Ghose describes some intriguingly contradictory consumer behavior: people seek spontaneity, but they are predictable; they find advertising annoying, but they fear missing out; they value their privacy, but they increasingly use personal data as currency. When mobile advertising is done well, Ghose argues, the smartphone plays the role of a personal concierge—a butler, not a stalker. Ghose identifies nine forces that shape consumer behavior, including time, crowdedness, trajectory, and weather, and he examines these how these forces operate, separately and in combination. With Tap, he highlights the true influence mobile wields over shoppers, the behavioral and economic motivations behind that influence, and the lucrative opportunities it represents. In a world of artificial intelligence, augmented and virtual reality, wearable technologies, smart homes, and the Internet of Things, the future of the mobile economy seems limitless.

The business of biomimicry—companies the way nature intended.

Practical Guidance and Inspiration for Launching, Sustaining, or Improving Any Agile Enterprise Transformation Initiative As long-time competitive advantages disappear, astute executives and change agents know they must achieve true agile transformation. In Unlocking Agility, Jorgen Hesselberg reveals what works, what doesn’t, and how to overcome the daunting obstacles. Distilling 10+ years of experience leading agile transformation in the enterprise, Hesselberg guides you on jumpstarting change, sustaining momentum, and executing superbly on customer commitments as you move forward. He helps you identify appropriate roles for consultants, optimize organizational structures, set realistic expectations, and measure against them. He shares first-hand accounts from pioneering transformation leaders at firms including Intel, Nokia, Salesforce.com, Spotify, and many more. • Balance building the right thing, the right way, at the right speed • Design a holistic transformation strategy using five dimensions of agility: Technology, Organizational Design, People, Leadership, and Culture • Promote agile skills, knowledge, and abilities throughout your workforce • Incorporate powerful leadership models, including Level 5, Teal, and Beyond Budgeting • Leverage business agility metrics to affect norms and change organizational culture • Establish your Agile Working Group, the engine of agile transformation • Define operating models and strategic roadmaps for unlocking agility, and track your progress You already know agile transformation is essential. Now, discover how to customize your strategy, execute on it in your environment, and achieve it.