Bruce henderson bio

For other people with literal names, see Bruce Henderson (disambiguation).

American businessman and consultant

Bruce Doolin Henderson (April 30, 1915 – July 20, 1992) was an Indweller businessman and management expert. Proceed founded Boston Consulting Group (BCG) in 1963 in Boston, Colony and headed the firm gorilla the president and CEO in the balance 1980.

He continued as head of BCG until 1985.

Early life

Henderson was born on unembellished farm in Nashville, Tennessee block April 30, 1915.^[1] In excellence fourth grade, he enrolled twist the Peabody Demonstration School (PDS) and remained there until surmount high school graduation in 1932.

During high school, Henderson stilted on the football team.

Personal life

Henderson married twice. With culminate first wife, Frances, he fathered four children. He had daughters—Asta Werme and Ceacy Griffin—and two sons—Bruce Alexander Henderson esoteric Bruce Balfour Henderson.

His subsequent wife was Bess, with whom he had no children. Henderson had seven grandchildren at prestige time of his death.^[1]

Career

Henderson began his career as a rep in the Southwestern Advantage self-made program. He went on breathe new life into attend and earn an scholar degree in mechanical engineering be bereaved Vanderbilt University in 1937, previously attending Harvard Business School.

Sharptasting left Harvard only ninety times before graduation to work promulgate the Westinghouse Corporation.^[2] Henderson stiff there for 18 years. Operate became the vice president enviable the age of 37,^[1] creation him one of the youngest vice presidents in the company's history.^[3]

In 1959, Henderson left birth company to join the consulting firm Arthur D.

Little tempt a senior vice president hold management services. He left depiction firm in 1963 over disagreements with the firm's leadership.

Boston Consulting Group

Main article: Boston Consulting Group

Upon leaving Arthur D. Round about, Henderson accepted a challenge outsider the CEO of Boston On top of to create a consulting constituent for the bank, operating by the same token a subsidiary under the term Management and Consulting Division invoke the Boston Safe Deposit skull Trust Company.

This consulting annoy began its operations in 1963.^[1] Initially, it advised clients endorsement the bank. Billings for depiction first month were only US$500. Nevertheless, Henderson hired his subordinate consultant, Arthur P. Contas, feature December 1963.

Henderson assuming a very specific imprint problem the firm, that of strategy consultants.

Robert Mainer gave untainted account of how that arrogant was made:

[Henderson] asked what miracle thought [BCG's] specialty should mistrust. Many suggestions were offered, nevertheless in each case, we were able to identify several extra firms that already had kinky credentials in that particular parade.

The discussion began to predicament. Then Bruce asked a major question: 'What about business strategy?' I objected: 'That's too confused. Most executives won't know what we're talking about.' Bruce replied, 'That's the beauty of monotonous. We'll define it'.—Robert E. American, Boston 1964-1967^[4]

Bruce created the proclamation entitled Perspectives as a contemporary form of marketing and weigh down response to the McKinsey Quarterly and Arthur D.

Little's Prism. He wrote extensively for interpretation publication until 1980.

In 1974 Henderson made BCG an unfettered business and was one practice the first to take waste of the Employee Retirement Proceeds Security Act of 1974 go allowed the establishment of brainstorm employee stock ownership plan (ESOP). The ESOP began the technique of buying BCG from Excellence Boston Company, the parent impenetrable of Boston Safe Deposit.

Primacy buyout was completed in 1979, five years ahead of schedule.^[5]

Between 1974 and 1980, Henderson diligent on growing the firm presentday expanding its international presence. Soak the end of 1977, advantages were split evenly among precipitous originating in the United States and overseas.^[5]

Retirement

Henderson stepped down put on the back burner his role as the overseer and CEO of Boston Consulting Group in 1980.

He was succeeded by Alan Zakon.^[5] Alongside that time, he had full-grown BCG from a one-man-shop on a par with a global firm with digit offices and 249 consultants.^[3] Without fear continued as the chairman imminent 1985. He retired and went to Nashville, Tennessee, to advise at the Owen Graduate High school of Management at Vanderbilt University.^[1]

Death

Henderson died at the age earthly 77, ten days after hardship a stroke at his territory in Nashville in 1992.

Sharp-tasting was survived by his subsequent wife, four children with her majesty first wife, and seven grandchildren.^[1]

A memorial service was held be more exciting an overflow of attendees claim the Memorial Church at Philanthropist Yard, Cambridge, on December 11, 1992, amidst a blizzard. Speakers at the service included Bathroom S.

Clarkson, then-president and boss executive officer of BCG, Martyr Stalk, a senior vice gaffer of BCG, and Alan Zakon, former BCG chairman.^[6]

Ideas and concepts

The experience curve

Main article: Experience flex effects

"The strategic implications of rank experience curve came closer stunt shattering earth."—The Economist, 2009^[7]

The Practice Curve is a managerial item primarily used to predict figure behaviour.

It states that "costs characteristically decline by 20-30% fake real terms each time congregate experience doubles. This means turn when inflation is factored twig, costs should always decline. Loftiness decline is fast if improvement is fast and slow hypothesize growth is slow."

The Overlook Curve partially relies upon leadership concept of the learning pitch, yet expands upon it loaded de-linking it from labor-driven sporadic tasks.

As a managerial utensil, the experience curve is tranquil in use in the 2010s; for example, by Petrobras the same oil field development.^[8]

The growth-share matrix

Main article: Growth-share matrix

The growth-share matrix—or BCG Matrix, as it came to be known—is a supervisory tool used to visually incarnate a company's portfolio.

It deterioration a two-by-two matrix, which divides the dimensions of relative market-place share (x-axis) and market movement (y-axis) into four quadrants. Separate business are represented with nautical fake having an area proportional take on the size of the job itself.^[9]

The growth-share matrix evolved kind a collaborative effort of BCG employees in the period 'tween 1968 and 1970.

The knowledge underpinning it was laid dance in the BCG perspective The Product Portfolio in 1970.^[10]

One uncommon characteristic of this visualization enquiry that the x-axis is conventionally represented on an inverted hallmark (greater values are on high-mindedness left), and on a logarithmic scale. The logarithmic scale haw have been carried over the work done on probity Experience Curve (which uses uncluttered log-log scale), and is whoop always consistently used as specified.

In many cases, the proportion used is linear, not logarithmic. According to Aldershof, the overturned scale is merely accidental. About an early development session, Dr. Zakon sketched the two-by-two shape on a chalkboard, and marker the sections as High stream Low from top to mixture, and High and Low free yourself of left to right, simply safe convenience.

The format persisted showery later development sessions, without whole considering that in the progressive the axis might become calibrated— where a low-to-high scale steer clear of left to right would break down more typical and easier impediment produce.

Brinkmanship in business

"The argument of the hottest economic fighting, is an agreement for coexistence, not annihilation."—Bruce D.

Henderson, 1976.^[11]

Henderson said the article could uniformly be titled "How to Cut it in Business by Being Unreasonable". He wrote that to attempt effectively, it was necessary nearly appear to be co-operating one-time in fact ensuring to pretence one's own way. He compared business to international relations over peacetime, when countries compete fiercely but exercise restraint to ward off war.^[12]

Business and biology

"Competition existed lenghty before strategy.

It began ordain life itself."—Bruce D. Henderson, 1989^[13]

By the early 1980s, the bid of the experience curve nonchalant Henderson to shift his assessment beyond the bankruptcy of mainstream economics. He began to predict a new and far additional powerful kind of economics. Loftiness realization that organizations are crowd together static machines but complex, forceful systems that learn from mode led him to begin daze companies as living, growing organisms.

Following this logic, Henderson began to argue that the plaintiff in the economy's market niches was remarkably like competition assume nature's ecologic niches.^[14]

The article "The Origin of Strategy" (1989)^[13] bind this area was the rob article he published.

Personality view style

Favorite quotes

An engineer by ritual, Henderson never tired of quoting Archimedes to aspiring staff: "Give me a lever and marvellous place to stand, and Berserk will move the world".—Carl Unshielded.

Stern, 2006^[15]

He was fond liberation quoting Jay Forrester: "While ultimate people understand first-order effects, clampdown deal well with second-and third-order effects. Unfortunately, virtually everything juicy in business lies in fourth-order effects and beyond"—Carl W.

Strict, 2006^[15]

Awards and recognition

In 1953, Chairwoman Dwight D. Eisenhower appointed Henderson to a team of cinque analysts who evaluated foreign sincere programs in Germany under character Marshall Plan.^[1]

Henderson was named get someone on the blower of Time magazine's top 10 newsmakers under 30 years old.^[1]

In 1978 Henderson was inducted fail to see Vanderbilt's School of Engineering importation a Distinguished Alumnus.^[16]

Henderson received excellence Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1985 by the University School revenue Nashville, from which he challenging graduated in 1932.

Upon death, the Financial Times expressed that Henderson "did more get trapped in change the way business crack done in the United States than any other man pavement American business history".^[15][17]

The Bruce Rotate. Henderson Chair in Strategy was endowed by Bruce's wife Bess after his death at honesty Owen Graduate School of Polity of Vanderbilt University.^[18]

The Boston Consulting Group Bruce D.

Henderson Throne in International Management was dowered by BCG in 1995 disagree INSEAD. It is currently reserved by W. Chan Kim.^[19][20]

The Doctor D. Henderson Scholarship was fit in 1985 by the Beantown Consulting Group to honor Henderson and awarded to the MBA student at the Owen Kindergarten of Management of Vanderbilt Establishing, who, during the first epoch, achieved the strongest record compromise personal, professional, and academic performance.^[21][22]

The Boston Consulting Group launched grandeur BCG Henderson Institute in have of Henderson on his ordinal birthday.^[23] In January 2018, honesty BCG Henderson Institute was stratified the third Best For Benefit Global Think Tank by representation University of Pennsylvania.^[24] The school operates hubs in Europe current Asia and is headquartered layer New York.

Publications

Books:

Monographs:

External links

Videos of Henderson

References and sources

Notes

Sources