People management in the project era

Academics

IE Focus - People ManagementIE Focus | By Kenneth Dubin, Professor at IE Business School

In an environment marked by uncertainty, scant resources and a lack of interconnectivity, people management should be based on structures that are more horizontal and less formal coordination systems.The present crisis should mark a before and after in human resources management. Politicians and social players will (or may not) reform the employment market and the labour relations system. However, for businesses and managers (and also for employees), the change is a must: yesterday´s competitive strategies have expired and taken with them the (bad) habits we acquired in people management.

The current situation is defined by uncertainty, the shortage of financial resources and the revolution of inter-connectivity; new business commitments in both SMEs and multinationals must be quick, flexible and innovative. This means working by project and generating value through knowledge rather than capital resources. Projects require collaboration between the functional areas of the company and also between the company and external agents (suppliers, other businesses and, more often than not, clients) and who may be located far from Spain.

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Online MBA – against the crisis

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It is curious to see how flexible we are when we are affected by an economic crisis. Suddenly, established business models are changing within weeks. Companies develop creative solutions to their problems they had for years – and these solutions are working well from spot. Of course, some corporations have to lay off people, but…

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White brands: heroes or villains?

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White brands: heroes or villains?

IE Focus | By Carmen Abril, Professor at IE Business School

Things are not often black or white, but rather tend to come in varying shades of gray. The world of white brands is no exception. They are no better or worse than other products, but they are certainly competitive.We are currently witnessing a controversial debate on white brands in Spain owing to the rapid growth they have enjoyed in recent months, where they have reached 38% of the sales of packaged large-consumption products.

As a result of this situation, which, on the other hand, is nothing new, many manufacturers, such as Danone, Nabisco and Kellogg´s, among others, have launched a massive advertising campaign to clarify certain concepts that consumers supposedly confuse regarding the manufacture of white brands in the hope that the message hampers their growth.

The importance of the issue and the controversy it has caused is worth taking a look at. First of all, we should start by giving this type of brand its correct name: if, by white brands, we understand undistinguished products based purely on their composition and ingredients and directly comparable with others, such as generic drugs, the name given to these products is incorrect.

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