Continuing to produce beers with ingredients like maple syrup and bacon despite low consumer appeal may not sound like a smart business idea, but research suggests it may serve a special purpose.
Companies invest millions of dollars in developing performance management systems, yet managers and employees continue to be frustrated by performance evaluations they perceive to be ineffective. A 2005 survey by consulting firm People IQ reported that only 13 percent of employees and managers — and only 6 percent of CEOs — found their organizations’ performance appraisal processes useful.
Working with family-owned firms in New Orleans over the past few years, I started hearing stories about the days, months and years after Katrina and how these firms maintained continuity and restructured in response to the disaster. These stories differed significantly from those I heard from non-family firms, and they led me to conduct a formal academic study comparing the two groups.
While all this might sound like 21st century Wall Street-style art dealing, nothing could be further from the truth. Research into past art markets has revealed the existence of sophisticated dealer networks in the 19th century and possibly even earlier.
