"What really works?" we wondered. Our curiosity prompted us to undertake a major, multiyear research effort; our findings took us quite by surprise. Most of the management tools and techniques we studied had no direct causal relationship to superior business performance. It doesn't really matter if you implement ERP software or a CRM system; it matters little whether you centralize or decentralize your business. It's much easier to be a tumbler than it is to remain a winner. And so, it seems, there is value in being reminded from time to time what really works. I've been meaning to blog this article, from the July 2003 issue of Harvard Business Review, since its original publication. What Really Works | 
