MIT Sloan Management Review Article on Engineer Your Own Luck

Companies that modularize and externalize their best capabilities are in a strong position to seize unexpected opportunities.

Prediction is hard. The longer the time range — six months, three years, a decade — the less reliable any forecasting becomes. And yet, some companies prosper through extreme uncertainties.

Consider cosmetics giant L’Oréal. When COVID-19 unexpectedly struck the world, consumers rapidly shifted to online platforms. Many companies were unprepared, but L’Oréal quickly adjusted, ramping up digital efforts to offer beauty products and services online. Use of its virtual try-on technology increased by a factor of five, and conversion rates from virtual try-ons tripled. This pivot not only supported consumers but also aided retailers such as Amazon and Sephora, which adopted the technology for their sales of L’Oreal products. In addition, the digital team added functionality that allowed beauty influencers to host livestreaming events on L’Oreal’s own website.

About the Author

Mark J. Greeven is a professor of innovation and strategy at IMD Business School. Howard Yu is the Lego Professor of Management and Innovation at IMD Business School and leads IMD’s Center for Future Readiness. Jialu Shan is an associate research director at the Center for Future Readiness at IMD Business School.

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