Chris Zook, a partner at Bain & Company and a bestselling author, shares insights on redefining core businesses for sustainable growth. He identifies three critical warning signs that signal a need for transformation. Zook emphasizes the importance of uncovering 'hidden assets' within organizations to fuel future growth. He draws on examples from well-known companies like General Electric and De Beers, highlighting strategies for navigating market pressures and leveraging platform capabilities for success.
18:39
forum Ask episode
web_stories AI Snips
view_agenda Chapters
menu_book Books
auto_awesome Transcript
info_circle Episode notes
insights INSIGHT
Redefining the Core
Redefining your core business involves addressing the limitations of your current strategy or model.
This might be necessary due to changing market conditions, new competitors, or a loss of differentiation.
insights INSIGHT
Predicting Core Decline
Most companies will only recognize the need to redefine their core business when it's too late.
This makes it crucial to proactively identify warning signs and predict when the current growth formula will stall.
insights INSIGHT
Warning Signs for Core Redefinition
Three warning signs indicate a need to redefine your core: shifting industry profitability, attacks from superior models, and evaporating differentiation.
Recognizing these signs can help companies adapt before it's too late.
Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode
In 'Unstoppable Us, Volume 2: Why the World Isn't Fair', Yuval Noah Harari delves into the evolution of human society from the Agricultural Revolution to the establishment of kingdoms and laws. The book explains how an innocent experiment in growing wheat 10,000 years ago led to significant changes in human history, including famine, plague, and war. It also covers the development of writing, the origin of taxes, and the rights of various social groups. The narrative is accompanied by vibrant color illustrations by Ricard Zaplana Ruiz, making the story engaging and accessible for middle-grade readers[1][3][5].
Beyond the Core
Expand Your Market Without Abandoning Your Roots
Chris Zook
In 'Beyond the Core', Chris Zook presents a strategy for growth by leveraging adjacency moves—expanding into areas related to the core business, such as new product lines or distribution channels. This approach is less risky than diversification and can create significant competitive advantages by building on existing strengths. The book is based on extensive research and interviews with CEOs of successful companies.
Profit from the Core
A Return to Growth in Turbulent Times
Chris Zook
James Allen
Profit from the Core is based on a ten-year study by Bain & Company of 2,000 companies across various industries. The book argues that many growth strategies fail because companies diversify too far from their core business. Zook and Allen outline three key factors for successful growth strategies: maximizing the core business, expanding into related businesses, and redefining the business before competitors do. The book stresses the importance of 'adjacency expansion' from the core and provides practical advice on how to revitalize and expand a company's core to achieve profitable growth[3][4][5].
Is your company’s existing growth formula finally reaching its limit?
Bain & Company partner Chris Zook says you may need to redefine your core business if you want to power new growth.
Zook was co-head of Bain’s Global Strategy practice for 20 years. He’s also a best-selling business author.
In this episode, he shares three warning signs that indicate your core business needs to be redefined, and he explains how to approach that transformation. In particular, he focuses on how to uncover what he calls “hidden assets” within your company that can offer future sources of growth.
HBR On Strategy curates the best case studies and conversations with the world’s top business and management experts, to help you unlock new ways of doing business. New episodes every week.
HBR On Strategy 
