Putting Leadership in Strategy

Strategy has been narrowed to a competitive game plan, divorcing it from a firms larger sense of purpose. Sustainable competitive advantage is important, but it’s not (in of itself), a Strategy.

Strategy is not just a plan, it’s a way of life for a company. It doesn’t just position a firm in its external landscape, it defines what a firm will bee – what it can be. It’s the CEO’s job to set the strategy, outwit the competition. It’s also his or her greatest opportunity to shape the firm’s future.

In order to claim value – firms must first create value “Brandenburger & Nalebuff”. This requires bring something new to the Arena – some new value proposition, some new product or a new way of delivering a service! Bring something customers want that is different from or better than what others are providing.

Value Related Questions
1. If your company were shuttered, to whom would it matter and why?
2. Which of your customers would miss you the most, and why?
3. How long would it take for another firm to step into that void?

What’s truly distinctive about your value proposition?

Purpose should be at the heart of strategy – it should give direction to every part of the firm – from the cooperate office to the loading dock. It should define the nature of the work what must be done.

“A business has to have a clear purpose. If the purpose is not crystal clear, people in business will not understand what kind of knowledge is critical and what they have to learn in order to improve performance.

A company’s suppose is what makes it distinctive. It what we as a company exist to achieve and what we’re willing and not willing to do to achieve it “ John Browne – former CEO of British Petroleum

An organic conception of strategy recognizes that whatever consitutesstrategic advantage will eventually change.

Leaders need to recognize the difference between defending a firms added valjue as established at aany given moment and ensuring that a fir is adding value over time.

“the need to create and re-create reaons for a company’s continued existience sets the strategies apart from every other individual in the company”