Paul Brown citing Larry Selden and Ian C. MacMillan from the Harvard Business Review, argues that “a company will report strong sales and earnings, only to have its stocks drop sharply because investors were expecting more.” Brown claims that this is the consequent of “insular R & D labs.” Brown is saying that R & D labs are usually based at company headquarters which are far removed from customers. When there is this barrier between R & D labs and customers, innovation is stunted because current customer expectations are unknown. So, rather than R & D labs driving innovation, customers should determine what products are produced.

Although research and development labs are necessary for product development, Brown, Selden and MacMillan’s ideas address a crucial need for understanding customer expectations. Brown’s research highlights many examples of how customer expectations and customer service is compromised by insular thinking in general. I agree with this claim because it reflects my personal frustrations when dealing with companies.

The article is relevant for any CLIC looking to improve or develop customer service. Brown is essentially recommending that in order to avoid declining stocks after reporting sales and earnings, any business leader ought to go to customers in looking for innovation. So, instead of business leaders telling customers what they want, business leaders ought to ask customers what they want and then produce it.