New book on how corporate anthropology can help businesses grow

On the Brink: A Fresh Lens to Take Your Business to New Heights
by Andi Simon PhD
Greenleaf Book Group Press
July 2016, 184 pages

Abstract

Innovation has become such a ubiquitous value, it’s in danger of becoming cliché. Companies frequently talk about it as the sweeping secret to solve all their business problems; however, they often don’t know where to start or how to expand beyond creative brainstorming to strategically identify and act upon new business opportunities.

Andi Simon is a corporate anthropologist who has empowered thousands of business leaders to see their companies with fresh eyes, identify their next big ideas, and–most importantly–turn innovative solutions into executable change. In her groundbreaking book, On the Brink: A Fresh Lens to Take Your Business to New Heights, Andi presents her unique methods for harnessing innovation and revitalizing business growth. Taking readers on a journey through seven case studies, Andi shares how she helped these businesses discover new and profitable growth opportunities by exploring the untapped resources that were right in front of them.

From a medical center facing multiple years in the red to a rural university battling decreasing enrollment to an equipment manufacturer whose award-winning product just wasn’t selling–the stories of these seven companies struggling to innovate and grow provide invigorating testimony to the power of corporate anthropology.

Whether searching for a way to revitalize a business or to expand a successful company into new and profitable directions, the strategies outlined in On the Brink will give readers the fresh approach they need to achieve meaningful business breakthroughs.

The author

Andrea Simon, ”Andi,” is a corporate anthropologist who specializes in working with organizations that need or want to change. Her company, Simon Associates Management Consultants (SAMC), applies the theories, methods, and tools of corporate anthropology and ethnographic research to businesses and not-for-profit organizations. Dr. Simon formed SAMC to help companies and organizations adapt to changing times. Her proprietary ChangeMap process enables companies to envision a future and then ”reverse plan” to ensure that the vision is achievable.

Dr. Simon is a trained practitioner in Blue Ocean Strategy and since 2007, has given over 250 CEO workshops and speeches on the topic and consulted with a wide range of clients to help them redesign their strategies and open new markets. She has appeared on Good Morning America and has been interviewed for The Washington Post, Business Week, and Forbes, and has written for FierceHealthcare, Executive Street blog, and American Banker. A widely engaged speaker, she has conducted workshops and speeches for Vistage International, TEC, and The Executive Council and has presented keynote speeches and workshops at the National Association of Electrical Distributors, Family Firm Institute, IACC, ABIT, Society for Healthcare Strategy and Market Development, and the Forum for Healthcare Marketing, among others.

Related: Article by the author