Driving Value Creation and Identifying Unique Practices

John Hancock's Innovation Council was organized to foster innovation and creativity within its mutual fund business, now known as John Hancock Investments. The first meeting was kicked off with a presentation on Walmart. Sam Walton's strategy of "saving people money so they can live better" has applicability to the mutual fund industry where lower costs and investment performance are important elements to fund shareholders saving for retirement so they too can live better. Some of the examples of the Walmart Effect discussed at the first meeting are: 1. discipline and focus on cost efficiencies and competitiveness, 2. vendor collaboration and development of fully transparent relationships, 3. use of data to manage operations and analyze business performance, 4. sustainability as a business strategy. and 5. oversight of suppliers and factories for adherence with Walmart compliance and ethical standards.