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The purpose of this paper is to describe the implementation journey of global account management (GAM) programs. ALTANA’s case offers a good example of the challenges a supplier faces when attempting to ascend into the highest supplier league – as well as lessons on how they can be resolved.

The conceptual approach for the GAM implementation is based on the results of benchmarking studies with more than 300 companies. Over the period of six years, the authors then conducted planned interventions and captured results via multiple sources on a yearly basis.

Findings include: implementing GAM pays off (i.e. driving business in good times, protecting business in economic downturns), and implementing GAM catalyzes a company-wide transformation and creates client-focused organizational structures without expensive, often useless “integration” projects.

A limitation of the research is that it consists of a single company research study in one industry. Cross-industry validation studies would generate further insights.

The described approach can serve as a blueprint for other firms and can help them to save time and costs in their own efforts.

This is one of the few multi-year studies on GAM implementation. The results confirm that implementing GAM pays off, but also show that only a cautious and evolutionary approach generates sustainable success. In this respect, the findings contradict the widespread assumption that GAM programs can be implemented within 12-18 months and offer those who are charged with such a task useful lessons for their own practice.

The purpose of this article is to present a method to help management teams and sales leaders evaluate opportunities and risks in business‐to‐business relationships from an outside‐in perspective.

The approach derives from practical work with companies over the past ten years and has been validated by five benchmarking consortia held by Columbia Business School (New York) and the University of St Gallen (Switzerland), in cooperation with approximately 30 large‐scale enterprises from the USA, Asia, and Europe.

An increasing share of wallet follows an S‐shaped curve, such that for high and low performing companies, increasing the quality of the customer relationship usually leads to only marginal growth. In contrast, companies situated in the area around the steepest part of the slope are the best growth candidates that promise the potential for exceptional gains. The paper refers to this area as the “booster zone”.

Investing in business‐to‐business (B2B) relationships located in the so‐called “booster zone” drives above‐average growth. Mapping customer relationships properly offers also a valuable early‐warning function and complements widely used, past‐oriented performance indicators effectively.

Many companies claim to have established senior executive relationship programs, but few have linked their account plans to senior executive actions, and consequently, only a few can report successful growth results. This article provides a systematic approach to create a replicable executive engagement process.

During 1997‐2005, five research consortiums on global account management (GAM), involving more than 30 companies around the world, were conducted. The objectives were to explore current successful practices and future competencies in GAM. In addition to the empirical investigation of the effects of successful GAM implementation, several case studies were developed.

The case of Siemens Information & Communication illustrates the benefits on both the supplier and the customer sides when companies make a systematic effort to link their account plans to senior executive actions. In the case of Siemens, the growth rate of the systematically “managed” accounts outperformed that of “non‐managed” accounts by a factor of two.

The results from the research in general and the case in particular suggest that executive engagement in customer affairs represents a strategic choice rather than an agenda filler. By following the described process, companies can create their own growth agendas.

This paper offers middle and senior managers a proven and inexpensive process for translating account plans into real growth. Companies that commit to creating such an executive engagement process can expect to benefit from hard‐to‐copy intimacy with their customers, which in turn results in new, sustainable sources of competitive advantage.

Reviews the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoints practical implications from cutting‐edge research and case studies.

This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context.

This is a useful case study of how a blue chip has successfully implemented a CRM program, and analysis of how this could work “in the real world” which is so often absent from an academic article.

The evidence of growth potential is particularly illuminating, and will back up any CRM project involving senior executives when presented to the Board.

The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy‐to‐digest format.

Assesses the place of Heinrich von Stackelberg in the history of ideas as reflected in the literature of economics. Uses evidence from three main sources: histories of economics, the periodical literature and doctoral dissertations to support the conclusion that Stackelberg already has an important and lasting place in the history of economic thought. Points out that the use of Stackelberg’s ideas and techniques is now as general and common as the use of those of Cournot, Walras, Pareto and Nash. Presents a short section devoted to his views on state control because these are so often misunderstood. Speculates on possible reasons why Stackelberg is not ranked more highly than he usually is.

This study aims to investigate the quality of disclosure of a cutting-edge reporting tool – integrated reporting (<IR>) – in terms of its effectiveness to report on COVID-19 pandemic information, its ability to provide forward-looking information and risk impact implications, and its quality determinants in challenging times.

Thanks to a content analysis of 247 <IR> for FY20, an integrated reporting disclosure score was developed to assess the disclosure quality provided by the sampled companies. Three research questions were tested through logistic regressions.

Non-financial disclosure activities struggle to provide adequate information in terms of potential future scenarios, risk assessment and forward-looking analyses. However, companies incorporated in “Anglo-Saxon” territories drafted integrated reports of higher quality. More recently, incorporated companies have made a greater effort to measure and report COVID-19 pandemic impacts on environmental, social and governance and business activities, also increasing their risk assessment and mitigation efforts. Concerning the determinants of disclosure quality, leverage, corporate governance structures, country of incorporation and belonging to “high impact” industries all lead to a higher quality of <IR> disclosure.

Examining in detail corporate social responsibility activities and corporate governance integrity is pivotal to orienting strategy towards sustainable trajectories: to do so, corporate reporting and disclosure practices are essential tools. In this context, corporate governance systems that emphasize board diversity are proven, even in disruptive circumstances, to play a crucial role in providing corporate reports of higher quality. High disclosure quality that goes beyond mere financial results is considered to be necessary to remain competitive strategically, socially and environmentally.