The Lean CEO: Leading the Way to World-Class Excellence

CHAPTER 10

INTEGRATING A DIVERSIFIED CORPORATION

For investors seeking to hedge their bets in uncertain times, the diversified corporation—one composed of multiple businesses—is a plausible option. Although there is no safe harbor in a crisis such as the Great Recession of 2009, corporations such as GE, Hitachi, and Siemens have utilized multisector exposure to give their shareholders a reasonable degree of long-term stability.

 The best diversifieds, however, are more than portfolios of businesses; they combine the benefits of diversity with economies of scale in areas such as procurement, infrastructure, the supply chain, human resources, and ...