RT @Droid_News: Motorola earnings beat expectations http://bit.ly/btsNAg | #Droid #Android
20 minutes ago by frogiss117 on twitter
TOP NEWS: iPhone 4 to ring in Singapore on Friday
ZDNet / News / Business
Sony hires a professional fixer
Summary
The Japanese electronics giant, in the middle of an internal makeover, hires George Bailey from IBM, a longtime electronics industry consultant.
Topics
ibm, apple, electronics, consulting, consumer electronics company, consumer electronics show, sony, electronics company, consumer electronics
Events
IT Priorities 2010
Sydney, Australia - 27 Jul 2010
Melbourne, Australia - 28 Jul 2010
Mumbai, India - 4 Aug 2010
Delhi, India - 6 Aug 2010
IDC's Asia/Pacific Cloud Computing Conference 2010
31 Aug 2010
Marriott Hotel, Singapore
It's not really a secret that Sony is in trouble. But the consumer electronics company is taking some calculated steps to change its fortunes.
Last week, Sony announced it has hired longtime IBM executive George Bailey as chief transformation officer. He will report to Sony CEO Howard Stringer beginning June 1 as head of the Transformation Management Office and consult with two main company divisions: Consumer Products and Devices and Networked Products and Services.
Bailey served for five years as the global managing partner of IBM's electronics industry consulting practice. His new title at Sony--though grand--describes exactly what Bailey has been known for in his career: fixing the way consumer electronics makers approach the business and help them make money--he even wrote a book about it.
Someone who can transform or kick-start Sony's global business is something the company desperately needs. Stringer has been saying for years he will reinvigorate Sony and figure out a way to get the many different parts scattered around the world to be more tightly integrated. But the results have been dismal: On Thursday, Sony reported its first annual loss in 14 years, to the tune of US$1 billion.
Stringer has reshuffled some executives between its Japanese headquarters and its U.S. electronics division and most recently set out a manifesto of sorts for his company during his keynote speech at the Consumer Electronics Show. In it he said they needed to be focusing on the creation of better networked devices with long-term value and that embrace open standards and green materials.
Bailey has a simpler approach. In his book, "Irresistible! Markets, Models and Meta-Value in Consumer Electronics", he says the key to successful electronics companies involves shepherding innovation and giving customers what they want, from the packaging to advertising.
He has in the past praised Apple's approach to both the computer and consumer electronics markets, and specifically compared it to Sony's. It's a pretty easy bet that Bailey will be pointing out these differences to Sony and trying to steer the Japanese giant toward mimicking some of Cupertino's best practices.
This article was first published as a blog post on CNET News.
Access data anywhere in the private cloud & enable entirely new efficiencies with EMC VPLEX.
Tech Vendor: EMC
Tech Vendor: EMC
Latest Stories
ZDNet Asia Live
US court rejects class action status for Intel antitrust suit http://bit.ly/cWeSQZ
26 minutes ago by MeetAnnMCarron on twitter
US court rejects class action status for Intel antitrust suit http://bit.ly/9mqiJR
26 minutes ago by lifesystem1 on twitterhttp://bit.ly/8v7Ov3 US court rejects class action status for Intel antitrust suit - ZDNet Asia http://is.gd/dSz7R
27 minutes ago by easytweeting on topsy
US court rejects class action status for Intel antitrust suit http://bit.ly/9AbnMF
40 minutes ago by MLMRocketFuel on twitter
Non-green IT products 'marketing suicide': This 50-hectare eco-business park is described as a "living laboratory"... http://bit.ly/aCqko4
44 minutes ago by greenexistence on twitter
great! US court rejects class action status for Intel antitrust suit http://bit.ly/9acwER Good day!
45 minutes ago by bestwinnernet on twitter
Shocked! RT: @danielgoh: Oh really? RT @scoopsg: (zdnetasia) S'pore marketeers not chirping to Twitter's tune http://scoo.ps/dpkySs
48 minutes ago by mitchtan on twitter
Non-green IT products 'marketing suicide': By Munir Kotadia, ZDNet Australia on July 30, 2010 (8 minutes ago) Vend... http://bit.ly/aCqko4
59 minutes ago by OutsourceMethod on twitter
sg marketeers not chirping to twitter's tune http://bit.ly/aRAa1Y - baby steps baby steps
1 hour 12 minutes ago by sashizoso on twitter
Non-green IT products 'marketing suicide': This 50-hectare eco-business park is described as a "living laboratory"... http://bit.ly/cEkDUD
1 hour 12 minutes ago by BlissfulSeed on twitterNon-green IT products 'marketing suicide': At the same time, it seems vendors see green technology as a very high ... http://bit.ly/aCqko4
1 hour 27 minutes ago by greentreats on topsy
Oh really? RT @scoopsg: (zdnetasia) S'pore marketeers not chirping to Twitter's tune http://scoo.ps/dpkySs
1 hour 40 minutes ago by danielgoh on twitter
@mrcolinlim but of course for more tech updates you can always visit zdnetasia.com
2 hours 5 minutes ago by t_phuck on twitterRT @zdnetasia: Searchable Facebook user data posted to Pirate Bay http://bit.ly/ciJQxY
2 hours 24 minutes ago by phyllis777loves on topsyin the mean time, if you need to find PDF eBooks, you may use http://www.findpdf.us/
5 hours 3 minutes ago by findpdf on Researchers find workaround for Adobe PDF fixJust want to say what a great blog you got here! My appreciation of your work, cause i am an IT student also. Try this one too, http://w...
5 hours 11 minutes ago by winsource on Making the case for Filipino IT entrepreneurshipHi, We have ton of HP empty cartridges. Could you collect them in our office??
Thanks
Thanks Kenneth, for your insights. Good to know people out there can see the issue for what it is, and to do so impassively, that is. ...
2 days 9 minutes ago by yedwin on iPhone 4 shows prudence in procrastinationWhile I agree that the issues with the device have raised many an eyebrow, I think it's unwise to forget that many phone reviews have...
2 days 21 minutes ago by kennethkoh on iPhone 4 shows prudence in procrastinationThe online apple store http://store.apple.com/ is not available now. Maybe it's updating the pricing ;)
2 days 19 minutes ago by mingnow on iPhone 4 to ring in Singapore on FridayAfter an awful silence, finally the prices are out..
3 days 14 minutes ago by melvinchia on iPhone 4 to ring in Singapore on FridayGlad you discovered the Xfce 4.6 magic. Its other endearing feature is its phenomenal configurability. You can make the desktop look and ...
3 days 21 minutes ago by gnome_refugee on Smitten with Xfce 4yep, tried them all and xfce with compiz/emerald instead of fvwm is by far the best experience I've had. If you didn't know ther...
3 days 19 minutes ago by ggolemg on Smitten with Xfce 4@mingnow: why do you think so? How do you think the FOSS community could tackle this issue? I'm involved in a lot of efforts to get t...
3 days 25 minutes ago by fredericmuller on Taobao initiates Chinese open source revolutionGeez. I would think giving free books and getting kids to school would be a better place to start.
3 days 33 minutes ago by mingnow on India's US$35 tablet--how low can it go?I think it's great the that country with the biggest internet population is finally contributing back to the open-source world. I thi...
4 days 19 minutes ago by mingnow on Taobao initiates Chinese open source revolutionhey.there Im Wendy from a PR Agency.I find your blog interesting and well written.In days to come,we would hold an event. Therefore We ...
4 days 50 minutes ago by wendy on iPhone 4 shows prudence in procrastinationIt could be done without all these. Just use the opacity addon of Compiz.
4 days 14 minutes ago by hariks0 on How to get RGBA support in UbuntuKeep Up With ZDNet Asia
Facebook 
RSS Feeds 
Newsletters 
Twitter Inside ZDNet Asia
Sponsored
Stop Waiting Start Switching to Juniper
Free Gartner Report shows it reduces costs and increases efficiency
What makes a hospital a smart hospital?
Download your copy of 'The Smart Hospital' Resource Kit to learn more
2010 IT Salary & Skills Report
Find out the salary range of IT professionals. Join activeTechPros for free access to the report.
