Hidden Champions of the Twenty-First Century Success Strategies of U
What do Tetra aquarium supplies, Elector-Nite sensors, and Nissha touch panels have in common? They are typical "hidden champions," medium-sized, unknown companies (with annual revenues under $4 billion) that have quietly, under the radar, become world ma
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Hermann Simon
Hidden Champions of the Twenty-First Century Success Strategies of Unknown World Market Leaders
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Hermann Simon Simon-Kucher & Partners Haydnstr. 36 53115 Bonn Germany [email protected]
ISBN 978-0-387-98146-8 e-ISBN 978-0-387-98147-5 DOI 10.1007/978-0-387-98147-5 Springer Dordrecht Heidelberg London New York Library of Congress Control Number: 2009928014 © Hermann Simon 2009 All rights reserved. This work may not be translated or copied in whole or in part without the written permission of the publisher (Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, 233 Spring Street, New York, NY 10013, USA), except for brief excerpts in connection with reviews or scholarly analysis. Use in connection with any form of information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed is forbidden. The use in this publication of trade names, trademarks, service marks, and similar terms, even if they are not identified as such, is not to be taken as an expression of opinion as to whether or not they are subject to proprietary rights. Printed on acid-free paper Springer is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com)
Acknowledgments
This book would not have been possible without the responsiveness and cooperation of thousands of companies, managers, and employees of the hidden champions throughout the world. Their information and data were collected in countless interviews, workshops, consulting projects, presentations, and surveys. I would like to thank all interview partners as well as my colleagues in the worldwide offices of Simon-Kucher & Partners who assisted in research, analysis, and interpretation. Ingo Lier and Doro Hayer managed the documentation and information flow professionally. Jennifer Hoehr, Gunnar Market and Brie Casazza polished up the text. Astrid Blume and Kerstin Schoene in our research department helped me make the hidden champions a little less “hidden” by incessantly digging out data and relevant information. Elizabeth Doyle-Aseritis did an excellent job as copy editor. I would like to thank them all for their outstanding commitment and their perseverance—truly hidden champions’ virtues. I am indebted to the team at Springer in New York, and particularly to Nicholas Philipson and Daniel Valen, who provided most valuable advice and pushed the project through.
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Contents
Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xiii How I Discovered the Hidden Champions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xiii Chapter 1: The Mystique of the Hidden Champions . . . . .
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Who Are They? A Selection of Hidden Champions Around the World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Veil of Secrecy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Who Qualifies As a H
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