Free Essay

Thinking Big and Staying Small

In: Business and Management

Submitted By julietahugo
Words 1221
Pages 5
Abstract
This report analyzes why Eli Lilly and Pfizer, both well-established companies, were unsuccessful in the introduction of innovative products, the 100 percent insulin “Humulin” and the first inhaled insulin “Exubera” and why “thinking big but acting small” is significant in the need to innovate and in knowing and keeping the customer. Big companies must think outside the box by solving their customer problems, making better products and creating value.
Keywords: insulin, inhaler, customer
Thinking Big and Staying Small
Both Eli Lilly and Pfizer realized unforeseen decrease in market shares in their efforts to “enhance their technology trajectory” (Christensen, 1999) by introducing groundbreaking products in the market. For any market opportunity, validating the market appropriately and defining the products in terms of customer needs are crucial. Undoubtedly, poor planning and short-term investment horizons may have played roles in creating troubles for both companies.
To explain why these companies failed, I will explore their mistakes hopefully establishing clear grounds for conclusions and strategic business recommendations.
Mistakes Were Made
Developing Products with No Market
The Humulin-brand was technically successful. However, because of its premium price, the product had no takers. Its price was 25 percent higher compared to the animal-extracted insulin. Retailers were reluctant to add it to their crowded refrigerators of insulin products because “the market was not dissatisfied with purified pork insulin. Only a fraction of a percent with diabetes developed insulin resistance and the differentiation was not significant (Christensen, 2004).
The defeat of Exubera, on the other hand, was due to its halting sales in the market. After the drug was approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration, it never gained the acceptance of the customer. “The bulky inhaler, tricky dosing and lingering questions about side-effects in the lungs hurt the product” (Simons, 2007). Development of these insulin products was a research and development triumph and not a product that knocks into the marketplace and its customers. Influence of Stakeholders
The important influencers of Humulin were their sales representatives and physicians. The sales representatives contacted the physicians in the office to describe the advantages of the products and encouraged them to prescribe the drugs over competitors’ products.
The case of Pfizer was different. Physicians had no knowledge of the usage of the Pfizer-designed inhaler and were unwilling to train their patients. They were unhappy about the lung-function test they needed to perform on patients. Furthermore, Pfizer was unsuccessful to roll out an aggressive physician education, or a direct-to-consumer advertising effort (Simons, 2007).
Failed to Understand the Customer
Eli Lilly overshot the needs of average customers by introducing multiple similar products simultaneously in a race to be the first to market insulin products, all of which priced at a premium compared to traditional insulin products. Not too many patients were eager to use Exubera in their daily life. There were few clinical trials conducted and no insurance reimbursement was offered due to its price. These companies were opportunistic and do not know their customers well. They adopted the “ready, fire, aim” approach to build the business (Adams, 2002). Experience to uncover customer pain and envisioned solution to it were not taken. A market validation to assess customer pains was not performed. Patients of Exubera did not really care about needles nor need an inhalable insulin product.
Conclusions
These products had serious issues that “root in the Technology Adoption Life Cycle of new products” (Moore, 1999). Both companies were focused on the products alone and blamed the market for their failures. Moreover, they had serious problems with their business models that were not centered on the customer.
Recommendations
Stay Close to Customers and be Happy
In order to thrive and act as a start-up, both companies need to stay close to their customers and understand different types of pains they have. These companies need to “align their team with a common goal to resolve the customer’s pain. They should be on the same page” (Adams, 2002). At the present time, both companies viewed their customers with diabetes as one group with potential revenue. They produced products that can be used by each and every patient. Focusing more on patient groups to develop a product that can be used by each patient may be smarter. For instance, therapy for obese and elderly patients may differ due to different metabolic control of these groups. Some markets may dislike needles due to cultural or religious reasons. The fate of these products is determined by conducting market validation again and again. Close coordination with different departments of the two companies is also critical. Often, employees in research and development do not communicate with employees from other functions such as the marketing departments. They simply come up with clinical ideas, develop that product and see if it sells. Understanding the customer needs and preferences are fundamental to business success.
Ski with Your Knees Bent
From the medical point of view, inhaled insulin was a door opener in the history of science. Its fate most likely also hampered the development of all other alternative routes. We should not forget to support new routes as they need a front-runner to help needy customers. Creating a subsidiary or partnering with agile companies whose reputation stand out in this specialization may be a viable solution. I am aware that Pfizer has already a similar structure with Nektar Technologies but being open to other potential partners in the future may uncover successfully the next generation of innovative products. Clinical development may take time but I believe in the principle of downhill skiing (that is to keep your knees bent and flexible and your center of gravity low). This style enables you to patient and responsive to change – on the slope, in surface conditions or with obstacles or other skiers – and still achieve your goal of gracefully traversing the hill. Conversely, skiing with locked knees, a rigid posture and a fixed gaze is a formula for disaster. It is too easy when working in established companies to develop certain rigidities on how they approach decision-making. Most times they can get away with it by standing upright, knees locked and eyes trained straight ahead. Because established businesses necessarily develop standard operating procedures, the rigidities creep up. Keeping loose and with a low center of gravity will help in absorbing change and keeping the business on its feet. References
Adams, R. (2002). You don’t know your customer as well as you think you do. A good hard kick in the ass: Basic training for entrepreneurs. (pp.43-47). New York, NY: Random House/Crown Business.
Adams, R. (2002). Big companies need to act more like start-ups. You don’t know your customer as well as you think you do. A good hard kick in the ass: Basic training for entrepreneurs. (pp. 237-263). New York, NY: Random House/Crown Business.
Christensen, C. M. (2004, April 15). Eli Lilly and Company: Innovation in diabetes care. Harvard Business School. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Publishing
Christensen, C.M. (1999). Value networks and the impetus to change. Innovation and the general manager. (pp. 11-24). Boston, MA:McGraw-Hill Irvin.
Simons, J. (2007, October 19). How the Exubera debacle hurts Pfizer. Fortune. http://money.cnn.com/2007/10/19/magazines/fortune/simons_pfizer_erbitux.fortune/?postversion=2007101916

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Miss

...grab this opportunity by the horn and be the CEO of your own venture. We can let the depressing news feed make us feel like there is no chance for a business to be successful, to thrive through the current difficult times but the fact of the matter is staying in a 9 to 5 job is not going help much.  J O B Just over broke As intellectual human beings we have the best chance to be the biggest opportunist’s and I’m telling you now we have to take this opportunity and step up to the plate. Old companies won't be able to hire all of us young and old people so the gap needs to be filled. Start dreaming big and stop thinking small. I say this because it is very easy to do what you know already like getting a job, but being a CEO of a multi- million pound company may be thought of as a wish, and should actually just be as easy think to think of just like a job. You need to let your mind demand more from life and dream big.  A book you should consider to help with your thinking is Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill. I don't want to dive in to it too much, but this book is for people seeking help in personal development, the title is pretty much self-explanatory and on a personal note it has helped change my way of thinking and allowed me to learn how to self- discipline...

Words: 316 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Business of Facebook

...first million dollars at age 19. This article is very useful in learning how to be a successful entrepreneur. Some important advice that I retained from this article is to stay in control of the situation. It's important not to let people walk all over you or take advantage of you because if you let them, they will continue to take advantage of you all the time. It will also allow you to gain respect from others when they see that you are steadfast. When executives met Mark Zuckerberg in his Adidas flip flops they assumed they were dealing with a young kid who happened to come up with this great idea but didn't know how good it really was, however, Zuckerberg outsmarted them in many ways. Many "big shots" jumped on the opportunity to try and buy Facebook from Zuckerberg. Their thinking was that they were dealing with a money hungry, ignorant adolescent. They were wrong; they didn't even know that they would actually learn something from him. One of the most important things that I gained from the article that will be useful for me as I become a manager is not to jump on the first opportunity somebody offers me. Mark Zuckerburg is a phenomenally strong minded person. Although he has received criticisms, he has done everything he could to make sure Facebook remains successful. Something else that stuck out to me that...

Words: 1550 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

The Best Strategies

...The Best Strategies and Methods to Insure That a Business Succeeds in This Sluggish Economy Brown Mackie College The best strategies and methods to insure that a business succeeds in this sluggish economy In these hard times businesses have failed miserably. A lot of Small businesses are having a hard time staying afloat in this sluggish economy. Small businesses don’t have the luxury of finances that the big businesses do . “ Just because the economy is sluggish doesn’t mean people aren’t still buying—they are just more cautious with the money they are spending” (Clements, 2010). As the economy gets worse business have to find ways to survive by cutting back and also by being efficient and effective. During these tough times business owners have to come up with a plan and brainstorm. The best strategies to keep a business going in this sluggish economy are to contact new and old clients, check weekly business publications for new events or meeting and send out blast emails, and be creative. “When employees and employers, even coworkers, have a commitment to one another, everyone benefits” (Glass, 2011). Always stay in contact with your old customers. Go all out and pamper your clients. Keeping in contact with your clients will help the business stay afloat. Provide your customers with great service so that they will keep coming back ” (Clements, 2010). While providing your old clients with great service this will lead to new business because you’re old customers...

Words: 1081 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Strength In To Kill A Mockingbird

...“Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle” -Napoleon Throughout Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, the characters face many struggles. The story takes place in a small Alabama town called Maycomb in the 1930’s, where everybody knows everybody. This can be a problem, because word spreads like wildfire in the town. Word spreads about Scout and Jem’s father, Atticus, and how he’s defending a black in a court case. The story follows this case and how it affects the children, and in the end, leaves readers shocked. Through the concept of strength, Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, teaches readers to continue going no matter what happens. Harper Lee first teaches strength to readers by showing them it...

Words: 1082 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Immigration Essay

...Essay We all see America as a big country where dreams can become reality, - The American Dream -, and in my opinion it is true. America has become a big destination for immigrants from Mexico, Spain, Africa etc. and in my opinion it is great because for a nation as big as America, it is important to have immigrants from different society to build an even greater society. The society as we know as America. Of course many people think it would be better to have one common culture, nationality or religion because then they might have the same habits, norms and the same sense in terms of policy, but I think they are wrong. I think they are wrong because in a country as big as America you will need many immigrants from different places for the influence of the culture and the people. The influence of immigrants is very good, because it is forming a strong society with a lot of different cultures, which means they get affected by each other in a positive way. The melting pot, also known as “the salad bowl”, is a synonym for a country build with a lot of different immigrants from different places, to build a strong society. Well we can definitely say that America is the melting pot, because of all the immigrants that have built such a strong and big country as America. It is not a surprise that there are many Immigrants in America, because America is a country where people, think that their dreams can become true and they want to secure their kids future. Most of the immigrants...

Words: 1057 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Nursing Program Reflection

...heart. It is my number one priority and all I think about. However, still, I need to spend even more time reading. Overall, I need more time. More time to study, more time with my family, and more time for regular everyday activities. I realize now that I took for granite the extra time I use to have for the little things like laundry, cleaning house, and simply shaving my legs. Still, I took the advice of the professors at orientation and have learned to give a lot of things up and to say no. I have restructured my home life and everyday activities to fit this new life of school and studies. This task alone was hard to adjust to and was a big shock to my life and my family. It has been hard on all of...

Words: 702 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Providing Quality Service

...Strayer university | Providing Quality Service | | | | This paper outlines methods, strategies, and tools in the hospitality industry to deliver the “wow” factor and enhance the guest experience. | Providing Quality Service The guest can be involved in several ways to provide quality service which includes being a consultant, marketer, co-producer of the experience or a manager of the service providers and systems (Ford, Heaton, & Sturman, 2012). When the hotel industry takes an assessment of the guests experience using surveys to give feedback on their stay or create small focus groups on how to improve their services, the guests becomes a consultant or expert. When the guests have an experience whether good or bad, they instantly become a marketer by word of mouth, or social site review. This is a very significant marketing tool that is orchestrated by the guest and must be managed and addressed by hotel management. Likewise, the industry can also use guests in co-production which is when guests become participants in the production and service delivery. This might involve having the guests self serve at a buffet, elect not to have their sheets changed or participate in a green program. If the guests are allowed to co-produce the experience, then it can increase the quality of service and at a lower cost. One service standard that the hospitality industry uses to meet customer expectations is when the guests make their initial reservations. A...

Words: 940 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

What'Sapp

...to exchange messages without having to pay for them. WhatsApp Messenger is available for iPhone, BlackBerry, Android, Windows Phone and Nokia and yes, people using these different phones can all message each other! Due to the fact that WhatsApp Messenger uses the same internet data plan that we use for email and web browsing, there is no cost involved in messaging and staying in touch with your friends. WhatsApp was founded by two guys who spent 20 years doing geeky stuff at Yahoo! Inc. before starting WhatsApp Inc. The idea of developing this application was to create a service that is really wanted and needed for daily life and it worked, it has saved us a lot of money and made our lives better in a way, this idea has become an amazing SMS alternative. There was an option to place ads in this application in order to sell ad spaces to other companies so they could advertise their products and services and attract potential customers. But most people aim to avoid ads every single day, because it is a nuisance to Internet users. No one wakes up excited to see more advertising and no one goes to sleep thinking about the ads they’ll see tomorrow. People are going to sleep excited about the opportunity given to chat with their friends/family from all over the world during the day without any costs involved. Developers want WhatsApp to be the product that keeps you awake and the product that creates desire to reach for in the morning, because no one is jumping out of the bed in...

Words: 474 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Book Summary - Who Moved My Cheese

...Book Summary Who Moved my Cheese? There are four characters in this story; Snif and scurry, and Ham and Haw, who we might recognise as ourselves when dealing with changes. Their actions reflect how we might have reacted when faced with the similar situation. Sniff and Scurry are two little mice with simple mind and thinking process. Their mission to “FIND’ cheese. Hem and Haw are little people with complicated mind and thinking process. Their mission also to 'FIND' a cheese. The mice and little people both are very hard working. They woke up early morning and scurrying around the maze looking for a cheese. They normally found bits and pieces of cheese her and there until one day they found one room full of cheese. Four of them were happy and enjoyed the cheese so much. After finding one room (section C) full of cheese, they went there every day. They followed the routine every day. Hem and Haw started to get lazy, going there a bit late because they always think that the cheese will always be there. However one day, they found that the cheese in section C was gone. Sniff and scurry was there earlier than them and there were sniffing and scurrying here and there, go round and round wondering where the cheeses have gone. After being sure there was no more cheese there, Sniff and Scurry decided to go back to the maze to find new cheese outside. Sniff and Scurry put their running shoes and wondering whether Hem and Haw are following them. Unfortunately they just...

Words: 1140 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Persuasive Speach Analysis

...audience’s life and my own experience I want to tell and show them why it is important to stay in contact with people. C. Audience Analysis: 1. To whom am I speaking? Fellow bond university student and tutor; age between 17 -25 years old 2. What do you want them to know, believe, or do as a result of my speech? I want the audience to understand and acknowledge the importance of staying in touch with people and how it can have a positive impact on you; I also want the audience to understand that with today’s technology of ‘Facebook’ it has the ability of taking away the effort in staying in touch with people. 3. What is the most effective way of composing and presenting my speech to accomplish that aim? - Use of anecdotes in portraying personality to the audience and showing the audience through my stories that I have credibility in this area and I know first hand the benefits of ‘staying in touch’ - Connotative language to shape peoples opinion of staying in touch; use bubbly, infective, energetic words so people will have a positive image when they are think of staying in touch with people, this will also help them get motivated to reconnecting with people. - End with a rhetorical question / positive statement to allow the audience to question if they are doing all they can do to stay in touch with people and if they not they will want to after listening to the speech. - Use the introduction as a way of telling the audience that by listening to this...

Words: 1712 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Small Town or Big City

...Small Town or Big City I was born and raised in a small country town, where there were more corn fields than businesses. Everybody knew each other and what everyone did; needless to say; when you are young you could not do anything wrong without your family finding out. Living in a small town like this had its ups and downs, but mainly it was a great way to live. You never had to lock your doors at night, because you always felt safe. The only crime you saw was on TV and you could honestly say, that don’t happen here. It made you become close with your family, because they are all you had. The only downside for me was the lack of job opportunities, ones that actually paid you enough to live off of. I moved out of my parents house at the age of 17, when I graduated high school. I had always had a job or two so I could take care of myself and not rely on any help from my parents. By the age of 24, I realized this was not the way I wanted my life to be. My best friend and I decided we would look for work in the city and see if we could find anything. It did not take long for us to find a job that paid more and gave us benefits. The next step for us was to find a place to live and move to the big city. The hardest part for me, was having to say goodbye to my family. Knowing I was making a great decision to better my life, did not matter so much at that point. I felt like I was saying goodbye, forever. Big city here I come! The excitement of something new was so exhilarating...

Words: 1068 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Essay - a Gap of Sky

...of living life in a modern society is depicted in the short story A Gap of Sky. The story is about the young, nineteen year old girl Ellie, who lives in London. She deals with an environment full of temptations as drugs and alcohol - but she definetly feels the freedom of todays society, especially in the big citites. The main character in the short story is 19 year old Ellie, as mentioned in the beginning of the essay. She lives alone in appartment in London. This means has the responsebility for her own life now. She has been send here by her parents to study at UCL. Ellie has her own way of living life and that is by staying until late. When she is at a party drink a lot, but she also uses drugs. This might be some way of dealing with her loneliness, but she faces the reality when she wakes up the morning or in her case the afternoon after. It seems as Ellie might think it is difficult to find the whole meaning of life, but she is surrounding by things in the big city who leads her on to an answer on that question. A Gap of Sky is told by a third-person narrator, which means the reader has the oppotunity to know a little about what the character is thinking, and it makes it easier to indentify with Ellie in this short story. The languange, composition and sentences is very important for this story, becauses it says a lot about the character. There are many short sentences and it seems as it is written as a stream of thoughts in Ellie’s head; “Anything else...

Words: 953 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Daily Life In The Aztec Empire

...“To start of, I’m going to tell you about the daily life, Mr. Cortes. The daily life in the Aztec Empire, if you were rich, would be like, you staying in the best home you could ever imagine, everyday. The rich don’t really do much work for themselves, they have slaves to do their work for them. And the poor, they don’t have slaves. They do their own work, all by themselves, all the time. It’s like doing your homework 24 seven. The rich also live in homes built of sun-dried brick and sometime stone, it just depends. And, stone can be very pretty sometimes. They also have whitewash, to make them sparkle. There is separate areas for steam baths, to wash themselves. Staying clean is very important to them. And lastly their clothes are colorfully embroidered and decorated with features. They even have fans to carry, fans are a sign of status. But the poor on the other hand, aren’t as lucky. They are mostly farmers, and farmers, well they work a lot. They live in huts with thatched roofs, which is a roof covered in straw or another material like it. And on the inside, there isn’t much of anything. But there is woven baskets and mats to cover the floor and to hold...

Words: 769 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Home Alone Chapter Summaries

...Tres Camarones in Mexico. This is a small town that is relatively left in the past and has a lot of people who live there that do not like change. Chapter 2 In this chapter, a main character is introduced. Her name is Nayeli. She is 19 years old and apparently always very happy that sometimes makes her look a little flirtatious. She works at a taco shop in Tres Camarones. Chapter 3 In this chapter, you meet a guy named Tacho who is a very open gay man in this small town of Tres Camarones. He likes to fight the stereotyping of gay guys in his town and named his restaurant La Mano Caida which means the fallen hand. This is a gay slang in Spanish. You also learn that they have internet...

Words: 887 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

College Degree Benefits

...Attending college has many benefits to a person’s life. Having a college degree will help you get a well-paying job, with no college there are very few jobs that pay well. Not only will a person have the ability get a better job, you can usually find jobs quicker than people with no degree. People with college degrees of any kind seem to be happier with their life and their job. If you work for the job that you want, usually people live a happier and less stressful life when they succeed. I plan to go to West Virginia University, this is where my dad attended college and they have what I have been told is best engineering program that West Virginia has to offer. Staying in or around West Virginia is very important to me, because I...

Words: 613 - Pages: 3