High Cost Of Wrong Decisions

General Motors

Who? For more than a century, the American multinational corporation held the mantle as the largest motorvehicle manufacturer in the world. They produced trucks, automobiles, automotive components and also had their foot in financial services.

What? General Motors declared bankruptcy in 2009 and later subsisted thanks to the US government’s bail-out.

Why? GM’s management were so bottom-line driven that they ignored the shift in marketplace and innovation. Consequently, they were overtaken by Toyota, who could build quicker, at lower cost, and with better quality.

Borders

Who? Borders Group was once a giant global retailer of books, music, video and other entertainment items.

What? Filed for bankruptcy in 2011.

Why? They neglected to go digital when the Ebook trend took off. Competitor Amazon released their version of Ebooks - Kindle in 2007. This disrupted their sales of physical books. When they finally released “Kobo”, their own brand of Ebooks in 2011, it was too late.

POLAROID CORPORATION

Who? Polaroid Corporation a pioneer in instant photography as well as a manufacturer of cameras, film and optical equipment.

What? Filed for bankruptcy in 2001.

Why? Although the company was innovative and had come up with their version of a digital camera, its leaders were unable to break away from their traditional products which were instant photography.