Issue 73, Winter 2013

In this issue
Cover story
- Booz & Company’s annual study of R&D spending reveals the tools that are transforming innovation – from customer insight to product launch. See also our interactive graphic, The Digital Tool Landscape.
Are You Your Employees’ Worst Enemy?
Many leaders inadvertently stand in the way of superior performance. Here’s how to avoid the hindrance trap.Are You Caught in the Hindrance Trap?
Complete this interactive assessment to find out.A Skeptic’s Guide to 3D Printing
Excitement about any new technology should be balanced with the application of time-tested forecasting tools.Why Eric Ries Likes Management
The author of The Lean Startup is thinking big about the challenges facing companies in an economy driven by innovation.In Conversation: Eric Ries on How to be Entrepreneurial inside a Big Company
In the first video interview of this five-part series, Eric Ries, author of The Lean Startup, tells Paul Michelman, executive editor at strategy+business, that entrepreneurs exist everywhere—and discusses what that means for innovation at big companies.Best Business Books 2013 – In Pictures
View a slideshow of our picks for the Best Business Books of 2013 in seven categories.
Leading Ideas
Same-Day Delivery? Not So Fast
Traditional retailers can outshine their online competitors in the distribution game.From Netscape to eHarmony: The High Risks and Big Rewards of Platform Markets
Companies that link complementary partners, like dating sites or online auctions, can dominate for years or be swept away in an instant.Jonah Berger Is Over Twitter
How the science of social transmission will help your brand catch on—and why tweeting alone is not enough.Waiting for the Digital Grid
The modernized grid should revolutionize the way electricity is distributed and used, but its potential hasn’t yet been realized.Let’s Just Stop Calling Them Leaders
Executives, officials, and managers should have to earn the title of “leader,” not just expect to receive it.s+b Trend Watch: Chinese Companies Reclaim “Made in China”
Chinese companies’ total exports are now roughly equal to that of foreign companies operating in China.
Recent Research
Conglomerates Bounce Back
Borrowing clout gives large companies an edge in a financial crisis.