Masterpieces of Swiss Entrepreneurship : : Swiss SMEs Competing in Global Markets.

• Author: Jeannet, Jean-Pierre.
• TeilnehmendeR: Volery, Thierry.; Bergmann, Heiko.; Amstutz, Cornelia.
• Place / Publishing House: Cham : : Springer International Publishing AG,, 2021.; ©2021.
• Year of Publication: 2021
• Edition: 1st ed.
• Language: English
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (579 pages)

Table of Contents

• Masterpieces of Swiss Entrepreneurship
• Foreword
• Masterpieces of Swiss Entrepreneurship
• Foreword
• Masterpieces of Swiss Entrepreneurship
• Acknowledgments
• Endorsements
• Contents
• About the Authors
• Part I: Introducing the Project
• 1: Introduction
• Undertaking the Project
• Genesis of This Project
• Chasing a ``Big Idea ́́-- Recruiting a Team of Like-Minded Researchers
• Selecting a Research Design Fit to Purpose
• Identifying Firms to Research
• Establishing a Long List
• Selecting a Convenience Sample
• Creating a Company Specific Database
• Conducting and Documenting Interviews
• Compiling Company Profiles
• Requesting Fact Checks
• Performing Pattern Analysis
• Analyzing Management Practices
• Compiling Company Profiles
• Clustering Growth Trajectories
• Reflecting on Impact of Swiss Entrepreneurship Ecosystem
• How to Read This Book
• 2: Founders, Shakers, Prime Movers
• Who Were Those Guys?
• Founders from the Early Period
• Founders from the Interwar Period (WWI to WWII)
• Founders Creating Businesses During WWII
• Founders from the Post-WWII ``Baby Boomer ́́Generation
• Founders from the More Recent Era
• Differentiating Between Prime Movers and Founders
• Reflecting on the Background of Founders
• And Women?
• Part II: Governance Practices
• 3: Ownership Structures
• Ownership Structures for Stability and Control
• From Single Ownership to Family Company
• Family Ownership for the Long Term
• Owned by the Same Family Over Multiple Generations
• The Effort to Keep the Business Within the Family
• How Two Families Preserved Combined Ownership for the Next Generation
• Passing Ownership from One Family to Another Family
• Passing Ownership Through a Succession of Three Different Families
• Going Public to Assure Succession
• Employing Shareholder Agreements to Provide Stability.
• Assuming Founding Partner Stakes to Provide Stability
• MBOs to Recruit New Owners
• Reflections on Ownership Models
• 4: Achieving Ownership Stability
• Stability Through Foundations
• Stability Through Private Investors
• Employees Riding to the Rescue
• Stability as Public Company
• When Ownership Stability Fails
• Independence Versus Autonomy
• 5: Boards and Governance
• Governance Arrangements
• Board Composition at Public Companies
• Board Roles in Family-Owned Companies
• Board Role in Foundation-Owned Companies
• Emergence of Dual Board Structure
• Board Structures at Investor-Driven Companies
• Evolving Role of Boards
• Part III: Managing for the Long-Term
• 6: The Role Played by Management
• Owner-Manager Versus Professional Manager Models
• Multi-generation Owner-Managed Firms
• First Generation Owner-Managed Firms
• Second Generation Owner-Managed Firms
• Challenges of Sticking with Owner-Manager Model
• Separating Ownership and Management
• The Challenge of Recruiting Successors
• Practicing a Unique Management Style
• 7: Financing the Enterprise
• Frugal Beginnings Predominate
• Starting Up in Garages and Old Factory Buildings
• Tapping into Personal and Family Savings
• Bootstrapping Mentality
• Leveraging External Investor Resources
• Utilizing Leveraged Financing
• Financing Current Business
• Relying on Cash Flow and Internal Sources
• Adopting Conservative Financial Policies
• Part IV: Focus Choices
• 8: Business Focus Choices
• Focus Comes in Different Forms
• Focusing on a Single Industry
• Experience Leading to Business Focus
• Focusing Around Core Competency
• Pursuing a Technology Focus
• Focusing on a Single Market
• 9: Franchise Focus Choices
• Focusing on a Customer Franchise
• Building a Customer Franchise Around Industries
• Building a Customer Franchise Around Institutions.
• Building a Customer Franchise Around Professional Groups
• Adopting a Solution-Based Customer Franchise
• Employing a System-Centered Approach
• Consumer Franchise Focus
• 10: The Process of Focusing
• Focus Does Not ``Just Happen ́́-- Finding Focus Is a Journey
• Employing Multiple Layers of Focus
• Reaping the Benefit of Focus
• Lessons from Focus Journeys
• Part V: Marketing Practices
• 11: Segmentation Choices
• Segmenting Markets and Selecting Segments
• Defining and Segmenting Market Space
• Subsegments to Define Target Customers
• Playing the Product Features Game
• Targeting Multiple Segments
• Market vs. Technology Segments
• Selecting Quality and Premium Price Segments
• Moving into High-Volume Segments
• Niche-Within-Niche Segments
• Organizing Around Segment Choices
• Observations on Segmenting
• 12: International Sales and Distribution Strategies
• Early Pioneers of International Expansion
• Relying on Distributors and Agent Networks
• Building Distribution Partnerships
• Creating Subsidiary Networks
• Market Entries Around Manufacturing Acquisitions
• Cracking Difficult Markets
• Managing Changes in the Distribution Channel
• Reflections
• 13: Marketing and Sales Processes
• The Marketing vs. Sales Debate
• B2C SMEs Engaging in Global Brand Building
• Professionalizing the Marketing Process
• Itś All in a Name
• Marketing and Selling in a B2B Environment
• Application-Driven Sales
• Employing Key Account Systems
• Global Sales Practices in the Medical Cluster
• The Importance of Lead Customers
• Review
• Part VI: Product Building Choices
• 14: Production Footprint Choices
• Exclusively Swiss-Based Production
• Modified Swiss Manufacturing
• Swiss and International Production
• Globally Distributed Production
• Offshoring Production Capacity
• Colocating Production.
• 15: Production Processes Choices
• The Role of Proprietary Processes
• Designing Proprietary Production Lines
• Building Custom Equipment
• Installing Automation and Robotization
• Capitalizing on Long-Term Improvements
• 16: Product Design Choices
• Designing for Durability
• Designing with Flair
• Ergonomics, Broadly Defined
• Design Thinking by Tradition
• 17: Product Line Choices
• Adopting Modularization Strategies
• Employing Platforming Strategies
• Combining Modularity with Platforming
• 18: Supply Chain Choices
• Models of Supply Chain Integration
• The Integrators
• The Partial Integrators
• The Assemblers
• The Fabless Two
• Reflections
• Part VII: Innovation Practices
• 19: Sourcing the Defining Business Idea
• The Defining Idea
• Leaving Unresponsive Employer
• Capitalizing on Personal Experience
• Walk-Ins as Innovation Sources
• Power of Customer Suggestions
• Just Reading About It
• Rejected Job Application
• Exploiting Disruptions
• Borrowing from Other Industries
• Practicing the Open Mind Principle
• 20: Innovation Processes
• Product Innovation Over the Long Haul
• Reinventing at Regular Intervals
• Product Platform Innovations
• Innovating with Materials
• Innovating Production Processes
• Winning at the Innovation Game
• 21: Organizing for Innovation
• Organizing for Perpetual Innovation
• Creating an Innovation Assembly Line
• Entering into Customer Partnerships
• Business Model Innovations
• Resting on Laurels Not Allowed!
• Part VIII: Leveraging Strategies
• 22: Leveraging Local Competitiveness
• Leveraging Local Resources
• Engaging in Premium Pricing
• Leveraging Core Competencies and Skills
• Leveraging Talent
• Recruiting Talent in Urban Centers
• Recruiting Talent to Rural Areas
• Growing Talent Internally
• Apprenticed Managers.
• Leveraging Institutions of Higher Education
• Leveraging Entrepreneurship Among Employees
• Leveraging ``Swissness ́́-- Leveraging Industry Clusters
• Swiss Framework Conditions
• 23: Leveraging Resources for Growth
• Different Strategies for Growth
• Differentiation Through Expansion Strategies
• Global Expansion Strategies
• The Role of MandA in Growing SMEs
• Decoding Drivers for Growth by Company Size and Age
• Examining Differences in Growth Patterns
• Clustering Companies by Development Trajectories
• Meeting the Long-Distance Runners
• Meeting the Middle-Distance Runners
• Meeting the Sprinters
• Meeting the Steeplechasers
• Who is in the Starting Blocks?
• Size vs. Longevity
• Surviving Crises
• Courageous Bets for Growth
• Resurrected Companies
• 24: Role of Swiss Entrepreneurship Ecosystem
• Why This Chapter?
• Why So Many SMEs in Switzerland?
• Swiss Tradition of Entrepreneurship
• Techne vs. Episteme: A Wall Street Bankerś Observation
• Swiss Dual Education System
• A Knack for Engineering Ingenuity
• Tradition of Cooperative Governance
• A Deeply Rooted Work Ethic
• Swiss Management Philosophy
• Switzerland: Exception or Role Model?
• Reflections
• 25: Epilog: Implications for Public Policy
• Observations for Business and Managerial Community
• Observations for the Entrepreneurial Community
• Observations for Financial Community
• Observations for Consultants and Advisors
• Observations for the Educational Community
• Observations for Political and Governmental Community/Public Policy
• Observations for Members of the Media
• Observations for Society at Large and Individual Citizens
• Part IX: Company Profiles
• 26: Company Profiles
• Company Profile 1: Sefar-A Big Business Based on Small Holes. From Cottage Weaving to Industrial Enterprise
• Business Founded in a Small Village.
• Capitalizing on the Industrial Revolution Changing Grain Processing.