Latepost Focus Pocus: Is Breaking Upwards A Cure For Corporate Attending Deficit Disorder?

I could start this postal service past times telling you lot that about of my best friends are corporate strategists, but I would live lying. I practise bespeak maintain a few strategists every bit acquaintances, but maybe non afterwards this post. In my cynical view, the original contribution of corporate strategy seems to live to render buzzwords that tin live used past times managers to distract investors together with justify the unjustifiable. In an before post, I highlighted about of these words of majority distraction, including disruption, synergy together with strategic considerations, together with argued that the repeated usage of these words past times a manager, analyst or investor is a dot that the numbers don't work. In this one, I desire to add together focus to that listing of words, every bit it shows upward amongst increasing frequency inwards the context of corporate interruption ups. In this post, I suggest to lay focus nether the microscope, using EBay (and its proposed interruption up) every bit my illustrative example.

Focus, the novel strategic buzzword?

As nosotros become through about other moving ridge of companies breaking up, it is worth remembering that this is non the outset fourth dimension that nosotros bespeak maintain seen this phenomenon, nor volition it live the last. Each interruption upward wave, though, comes amongst its ain overriding rationale, that CEOs highlight together with journalists together with thence parrot inwards their intelligence stories. The subject for this interruption upward moving ridge tin live seen inwards the rationale offered past times the CEOs of HP together with EBay for breaking up:

“We’re inwards a ameliorate seat to larn focused companies who tin response more quickly…. We felt similar this was the correct fourth dimension to bespeak maintain payoff of setting upward ii scaled  companies who volition live a lilliputian chip to a greater extent than focused together with a lot to a greater extent than nimble.” Meg Whitman, CEO of HP, on CNBC

“ This transaction creates ii manufacture leaders, each amongst meaning achieve together with scale, together with volition permit us to proceed our focus on customers, project design together with execution. …That volition permit a greater marking of strategic focus, greater strategic agility, together with greater strategic flexibility. Simply put, nosotros believe the premium on focus together with agility volition permit each work organization to compete together with win inwards this exciting environs going forward. So nosotros tin movement to a greater extent than rapidly together with brand targeted, focused investments.. So I think, an independent PayPal unequivocally volition bespeak maintain the focus together with agility to play across the board inwards this fast moving payment space.” John Donahoe, CEO of EBay, on conference telephone telephone amongst analysts

Notice that the “focus” shows upward twice inwards Ms. Whitman’s brief disceptation together with 5 times inwards Mr. Donahoe’s conference telephone telephone brief. If you lot count inwards the role of the words “strategic”,“agility” together with “innovation”, the Donahoe disceptation is strategy-speak, run amok. Taking both Ms. Whitman together with Mr. Donahoe at appear upward value, i.e. that breaking upward into smaller units improves focus, at that spot would live ii questions that I would bespeak maintain for them.