Letter N

N
Nearshoring: The practice of outsourcing activities to locations which may not be the cheapest but are reasonably close so that coordination is easier. Eastern Europe is a nearshoring destination for many companies in the US.
(See Offshoring, Outsourcing)

Net Present Value: Net present value (or NPV) is a standard tool used in capital budgeting. According to the NPV method, a potential investment project should be undertaken if the present value of all cash inflows minus the present value of all cash outflows (which equals the net present value) is greater than zero. The discount rate used is the shareholder’s required rate of return. Managers should undertake only those projects that have an NPV > 0. If two projects are mutually exclusive, they should choose the one with the higher NPV.
(See Adjusted Present Value)

Nine-Cell Planning Grid: Developed by General Electric (GE), the Nine cell planning grid to some extent, overcomes the limitations of the BCG matrix. In the GE grid, each business is rated low, medium or high on two major dimensions - Market Attractiveness and Business Strength. There are nine cells into which businesses can be grouped based on these two dimensions.


(See BCG Matrix)

Not-invented-here: The difficulties managers have in accepting an idea or a concept or a product developed by another department/organization. It is a term used to describe a culture that finds it difficult to accept that outsiders can be better or know more.