1338 Posts Found

The essence of strategy is the close view of distant things and the distant view of close things.

Content: Quotation | Source: Optimize Magazine | Subject: Strategy

A product strategy is much more than a list of specific product actions over time. It is an explicit route-map designed to guide a company in its efforts to develop and market products that build sustainable competitive advantage and meet its growth and profit objectives. A good product strategy maximizes both customer satisfaction and profits – while stating the firm’s priorities so clearly that every … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Author: Jean-Philippe Deschamps | Source: Prism (Arthur D. Little) | Subjects: Management, Strategy

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Contrary to popular belief, most industries evolve slowly and in predictable ways, says strategy expert Anita M. McGahan. Here’s how to align strategy with your “industry trajectory.”

Editor’s Note: the sidebar is more useful than the article…

Content: Article | Author: Anita M. McGahan | Source: Harvard Business School (HBS) Working Knowledge | Subject: Strategy

“The Modern Firm develops conceptual frameworks for analyzing the interrelations between organizational design features, competitive strategy and the business environment. Written in a non-technical language, the book is nevertheless based on rigorous modeling and draws on numerous examples, from the eighteenth century fur trading companies to modern firms such as BP and Nokia. Finally the book explores why these developments are happening now, pointing to … [ Read more ]

Content: Book | Author: John Roberts | Subjects: Organizational Behavior, Strategy

In an uncertain world where competitive advantage is insecure, setting strategy must become an existential exercise.

Editor’s Note: an atypical, but very interesting article…

Content: Article | Author: James Ogilvy | Source: strategy+business | Subjects: Management, Strategy

The…question is where a company should go. “Build on your strengths” is one common answer. But many companies have found that understanding their current core competencies and capabilities helps define constraints but does not provide a road map for the future.

Content: Quotation | Source: Prism (Arthur D. Little) | Subjects: Management, Strategy

We have discovered that a trick to creating a great scorecard is to “rough it in” first, just like building a house. Use the team to create the framework for a great scorecard, like the framing of a house, and then quickly release it to the organization with the request for them to provide the details around the roughed-in scorecard.

In the house metaphor, the scorecard … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Author: Brett Knowles | Source: BetterManagement.com | Subjects: Management, Strategy

As the costs and the risks of acquiring advanced technology have escalated, businesses have come under pressure to increase the value of their technology by accelerating the pace of its development and expanding its profitable application. This pressure is driving major changes in sourcing strategies and activities. Companies are concentrating internal R&D activities on core technologies and competencies while developing relations with external partners to … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Author: Ronald S. Jonash | Source: Prism (Arthur D. Little) | Subjects: Management, Strategy

In highly effective companies there is a commitment to aligning stated beliefs with actual choices. In this article we’ll diagnose problems in the traditional planning process and recommend a positive approach that leaders can take to reduce the gap.

Content: Article | Author: Daniel D. Elash, Ph.D. | Source: CEO Refresher | Subject: Strategy

Most businesspeople intuitively know that the key to successful marketing is having a marketing plan-a blueprint for action. But many companies operate without one, focusing instead on the issues of the moment without committing to a long-term strategy.

A marketing plan does not need to be complex, but it does require several elements to be effective.

Content: Article | Author: Laura Patterson | Source: MarketingProfs | Subjects: Marketing / Sales, Strategy

As is obvious from the title, this is an old article (1992) but of long-lasting value. In it, Arthur D. Little lays out a strategic framework based on their High Performance Business pyramid which essentially looks at strategy as a function of stakeholders, process, resources and organization.

Content: Article | Authors: C. Everett Shorey, Tamara J. Erickson | Source: Prism (Arthur D. Little) | Subject: Strategy

This paper proposes that a Strategy Implementation Monitoring System (SIMS) based on shareholder value, the Balanced Scorecard and ABC/ABM concepts can equip organisations with a complete insight into organisational performance. Such a system could be used as a communication channel between not only strategy formulators and strategy implementers, but also as a communication channel between the executive team and the investors.

Content: Article | Author: Czes Szarycz | Source: BetterManagement.com | Subject: Strategy

Is it always possible to continue to reduce costs and improve efficiency? Some companies seem stuck in a mind-set that says only process excellence will drive their success and that efforts aimed at continuing to drive down costs will create competitive differentiation. Professor Rao examines the limits to this thinking and discusses how diminishing returns, ease of copying and competitive convergence can cause your company’s … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Author: Jay Rao | Source: Babson Insight | Subject: Strategy

Strategy involves choices – the choice of what to do, and the choice of what not to do. The Internet increased both the opportunity and the complexity in strategic decision making; mobility promises – and threatens – to intensify both, particularly as industry and application boundaries become more permeable.

Content: Quotation | Source: strategy+business | Subject: Strategy

The game of value capture is no longer won by finding and protecting a defensible position: It’s won by developing a business system that’s quicker and better at using information, and adapting the system as the industry evolves.

Content: Quotation | Source: strategy+business | Subjects: Business Rules, Strategy

This article introduces a new approach to strategy that is built around the customer. By focusing on what the customer is trying to accomplish, and treating all offerings as solutions to their inherent issues, the new theory advises on positioning relative to the customer, as opposed to positioning relative to the competition. While competition remains a very important factor in strategy, rather than defeating the … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Author: Cristian Mitreanu | Source: BetterManagement.com | Subject: Strategy

We’re not good about thinking about the generation part of wealth creation. Much of what we study is about appropriation, because our typical view is that generation is a one-time event. With most corporations set up for appropriation – capturing the rent – that makes it very difficult if we’re moving into a period where generation will occur over and over.

Content: Quotation | Source: strategy+business | Subjects: Miscellaneous, Strategy

Vision statements come in a variety of shapes and sizes. A corporate vision may include statements about the future business environment, technology, and expected performance. Many express some overall theme, discuss core businesses and resources, and comment on how the company will interact with its key stakeholders. Regardless of length, the best visions establish a clear statement of “what we want to be.” Several in-depth … [ Read more ]

Content: Article | Authors: David C. Shanks, W. Tom Sommerlatte | Source: Prism (Arthur D. Little) | Subject: Strategy

Planning and control processes depress variance in favor of better near-term performance. Performance looks best when variance is limited, but that’s a terrible place to be when things change.

If you’re thinking strategically today, you need some way of keeping uncertainty alive and kicking, of maximizing rather than minimizing variance.

Content: Quotation | Source: strategy+business | Subjects: Planning, Strategy