Start your Friday morning by updating your MBA, discussing the latest management concepts, sharing insights with fellow GSB alums, extending your network and still make it to the office by 9 AM. The article for September’s discussion is: “The Right Way to Manage Unprofitable Customers” from Harvard Business Review April 2008. Some of our past topics have included: closing the gap between strategy and execution, participative management, innovation, how successful leaders think, leadership and behavioral economics. These discussion sessions are designed to provide a highly interactive, engaging forum of particular value to alumni responsible for developing, influencing or executing enterprise strategies and policies. The Strategic Business Practices Issue Group consists of a series of monthly small group discussions bringing a practical focus to current research in business strategy, organizational design, and general management practices. This group is all about participation and making connections while learning about the latest management concepts. A differentiating feature of this group is the focus on engaging member dialogue while creating community and connectedness across the members. (There is no invited speaker or formal presentation.) The facilitated discussion starts with reactions to a selected background reading (available online from a leading strategy, business, or academic publication) before branching out into a broader exploration of the topic as participants share their own personal and practical experience of what works, what doesn’t, and how to tell the difference.

Where

CharterMast Partners LLC
11 South LaSalle Street
Chicago, Illinois

Event Details

The article for September’s discussion is: “The Right Way to Manage Unprofitable Customers” from Harvard Business Review April 2008. Problem customers can cost your business lots of money, but quickly ejecting them may not be the best way to relieve the burden. Mittal, of Rice University, Sarkees, of Penn State, and Murshed, of Towson University, explore the ins and outs of customer divestment. Using real-world examples, the authors show how deciding to end a relationship with a customer segment or individual can increase profitability, improve employee morale, address capacity constraints, and bolster a business strategy. This article is available for purchase at the Harvard Business Review website for a nominal fee (free to members) and is also available at many public and corporate libraries. Each month we explore the topic through a facilitated discussion of an article which is available free or at a nominal cost from a leading business publication. Our past topics have included: closing the gap between strategy and execution, participative management, innovation, how successful leaders think, leadership and behavioral economics. Future articles will explore additional areas of strategy. Suggestions for future articles or future topics are welcome. Please send your information to strategyig@chicagogsbclub.org. This is a discussion event and will not include a featured speaker. Meetings are usually held on the third Friday of the month in the 11 South LaSalle Building. Meetings in 2008 will be: October 17 and November 14 second Friday. 2009 meetings include January 16, February 20 and March 21. It is important that this group stays in compliance with applicable laws and regulations regarding the protection of intellectual property and copyrights. Accordingly, we are not able to provide copies of articles that are discussed, but we do direct you to sources where these articles are available either for free or for purchase. Most sites that provide articles in downloadable format stipulate that these articles are for personal use only and not for distribution to others. Please respect whatever limitations or conditions are attached to the articles you download.

Cost

No Charge

Registration

Register Online
Include your email address when registering. It is needed for the email confirmations which will be provided on or before September 17. If you need to cancel, email Dennis Aust at dennis.aust@chartermast.com so that we may give your seat to someone else.

Deadline: 9/16/2008

Questions

Dennis Aust 

312.224.8509

Other Information

If you need to cancel, email Dennis Aust at dennis.aust@chartermast.com. In order provide sufficient opportunity for everyone to participate, attendance is strictly limited to 20 people. If this event is oversubscribed, priority will be given to GSB Alumni Club members who RSVP before September 12. Please feel free to bring coffee and/or breakfast to enjoy during the discussion.