Some of the best learning happens when you read stories about real people and real companies. Read them for ideas, for lessons, and inspiration. This week’s stories and strategies from real life are about CEMEX, Studio Dental, Open English, IBM, and Curriculum Associates.

From Thomas A. Stewart: CEMEX’s Strategic Mix

“This Mexican cement company redefined itself as a global solutions provider with the critical capabilities to match.”

From Caroline McMillan Portillo: The Uber of dentistry: Studio Dental takes its show on the road

“Dr. Sara Creighton did the exact opposite of what dentists do when building a practice: She sold her established brick-and-mortar business in 2013 to start a new one — in a trailer on wheels.”

From Nancy Dahlberg: Open English sets out to conquer U.S. Hispanic market

“About 300,000 students across the Americas have taken classes from Open English, an online English-language school based in Miami. In the last eight years, the venture-backed company has conquered Latin America, and now it is officially entering a market very close to home: The U.S. Hispanic market.”

From Monica Langley: Behind Ginni Rometty’s Plan to Reboot IBM

“Big Blue’s CEO pushes it toward analytics, mobile, cloud computing.”

From Steve Blue: How a mature company tripled in size in just three years

“Frank Ferguson, founder and chairman of Curriculum Associates, is driven to making classrooms better places for students and teachers. Rob Waldron, the company’s CEO, shares Frank’s mission and together they have a long-term focus for their company.”