Publications

We develop insights that work for our clients. Our approach and recommendations are highly customized and lead to practical actions. Read some of our experts’ perspectives on important issues—for our clients and their industries.

New private equity fund-raising is picking up—but so is the competition
April 16, 2013 | Private Equity | Forbes.com
There is a hint of something new and unfamiliar in the air on the fund-raising front this year. It’s a scent of optimism, and it’s coming from private equity limited partners that are giving off signals that they may be ready to increase new PE commitments enough to jolt fund-raising out of the
A world of difference for private equity
April 11, 2013 | Private Equity | Forbes.com
Private equity investors are bracing for the familiar combustible effects that invariably follow when a plentiful supply of dry powder mixes with record levels of available debt: hot competition to land deals and higher acquisition prices. But as we describe in Bain & Company’s Global Private
UK oil revival beckons as new technology, investors halt decline
April 04, 2013 | Oil and Gas | Reuters | Media mention
Declining returns in Britain's North Sea oil and gas output are set to be reversed by new operators and improved technology. The decline is important for the British government to address, as drop in production has held back GDP growth.
Private equity is back in business
April 04, 2013 | Private Equity | Forbes.com
In the absence of a major economic shock, prospects are good that 2013 will be a better year for private equity than preceding ones.
Success is a simple strategy - Bain Warsaw
April 03, 2013 | Strategy | Rzeczpospolita | Media mention
In an interview with Rzeczpospolita, Chris Zook explains to the three basic factors which impact the growth and development of companies.
The new CIO's quick-start manual
April 03, 2013 | IT | Bain capability brief
For a new CIO, learning to strike the right balance between addressing old problems and creating new capabilities is critical not only to survive but also thrive in a tough, big job. But seasoned veterans, too, can benefit by seeing their IT organization through the eyes of the newcomers they once
Signs point to a private equity revival
April 02, 2013 | Private Equity | Forbes.com
As private equity enters 2013, the industry is poised to benefit from strengthening fundamentals. The clouds of uncertainty about the economic prospects for the key economies where PE is active have begun to lift. Continued record-low interest rates and creditors’ yearning for yield coming off a
Learning how to change with UK shoppers
March 25, 2013 | Consumer Products | Bain report
Today’s UK shoppers show less brand loyalty, take more trips to the store and the number of shoppers trading down has stabilized. Such changes in shopper behavior, detailed in new research by Bain and Kantar Worldpanel, offer new opportunities for brands, such as winning shoppers at the point of
For insurance companies, the day of digital reckoning
March 18, 2013 | Financial Services | Bain Brief
Digital technologies present insurers with a huge opportunity to both reduce cost and engage with customers more effectively. But this is not purely an IT topic, or a social media play or a one-time conversion that can be resolved in short order. It involves all areas of the business, in order to
The renaissance in mergers and acquisitions: What to do with all that cash?
March 13, 2013 | Mergers & Acquisitions | Bain Brief
Abundant capital, strong balance sheets, low interest rates and eight great macro trends will combine to make M&A essential for profitable growth this decade.