Back in the dark ages of mainstream 3- D printing — say, five years ago — the next-generation hardware was idealized as a game changer in consumer electronics. Users could create just about any kind of plastic trinket they could imagine, so long as they came back several hours later to claim the object after it finally finished rendering. Along with shorter print times, recent years have ushered in new competition, market segmentation and economic incentives for 3- D printing. A horde of startups and public companies have already entered the -billion field, but tech giants like Amazon Inc. are also now circling to plot new competing offerings or scout acquisitions. From improved efficiency to more advanced fabrication possibilities, specialized 3- D printing subsectors are emerging that cater to an array of enterprise buyers with money to inject into the field. Machines can now produce materials with potential health applications, such as human cartilage, plus batteries, LEDs and motor components. “ These advances have brought the technology to a tipping point — it appears ready to emerge from its niche status and become a viable alternative to conventional manufacturing processes in an increasing number of applications,” notes one 2014 report by New York-based consultancy Mc Kinsey & Company. In the meantime, researchers are also starting to piece together the puzzle on what the proliferation of 3- D printing technology could mean from a sustainability perspective. Generally, higher-volume production lowers the amount of energy wasted. But the amount of waste and potential for harmful environmental impacts of materials used in the supply chain still varies. Here, a guided tour of five trends driving innovation in the 3- D printing space — and the companies angling to make the most of them: 1. Advanced manufacturing Industrial designers have been relying on 3- D printers to.
Business leaders can't develop and execute effective strategy without first gathering the right information, says Harvard Business School professor Robert Simons. In his new book, Seven Strategy Questions: A Simple Approach for Better Execution, Simons explains how managers can identify holes in their planning processes and make smart choices. Here's an excerpt outlining the seven questions every manager should ask. 1. Who Is Your Primary Customer? The first imperative—and the heart of every successful strategy implementation—is allocating resources to customers. Continuously competing demands for resources—from business units, support functions and external partners—require a method for judging whether the allocation choices you have made are optimal. Therefore, the most critical strategic decision for any business is determining who it is you are trying to serve. Clearly identifying your primary customer will allow you to devote all possible resources to meeting their needs and minimize resources devoted to everything else. This is the path to competitive success. It's easy to try to duck the tough choice implied by the adjective primary by responding that you have more than one type of customer. This answer is a guaranteed recipe for underperformance: the competitor that has clarity about its primary customer and devotes maximum resources to meet their specific needs will beat you every time. 2. How Do Your Core Values Prioritize Shareholders, Employees, And Customers? Along with identifying a primary customer, you must also define your core values in a way that ranks the priority of shareholders, employees, and customers. Value statements that are lists of aspirational behaviors aren't good enough. Real core values indicate whose interest comes first when faced with difficult trade-offs. Prioritizing core values should be the second pillar of your business.
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