Vendor
	Mohrbooks Literary Agency Sebastian Ritscher
Original language
English
Categories
Political economy

GOOD STRATEGY, BAD STRATEGY

Richard P. Rumelt

The Differnece and Why It Matters

Good Strategy/Bad Strategy clarifies the muddled thinking underlying too many strategies and provides a clear way to create and implement a powerful action-oriented strategy for the real world.

Developing and implementing a strategy is the central task of a leader. A good strategy is a specific and coherent response to - and approach for - overcoming the obstacles to progress. A good strategy works by harnessing and applying power where it will have the greatest effect. Yet, Rumelt shows that there has been a growing and unfortunate tendency to equate Mom-and-apple-pie values, fluffy packages of buzzwords, motivational slogans, and financial goals with "strategy."

In Good Strategy/Bad Strategy, he debunks these elements of "bad strategy" and awakens an understanding of the power of a "good strategy." He introduces nine sources of power - ranging from using leverage to effectively focusing on growth - that are eye-opening yet pragmatic tools that can easily be put to work on Monday morning, and uses fascinating examples from business, nonprofit, and military affairs to bring its original and pragmatic ideas to life. The detailed examples range from Apple to General Motors, from the two Iraq wars to Afghanistan, from a small local market to Wal-Mart, from Nvidia to Silicon Graphics, from the Getty Trust to the Los Angeles Unified School District, from Cisco Systems to Paccar, and from Global Crossing to the 200708 financial crisis.

Reflecting an astonishing grasp and integration of economics, finance, technology, history, and the brilliance and foibles of the human character, Good Strategy/Bad Strategy stems from Rumelt's decades of digging beyond the superficial to address hard questions with honesty and integrity.

This witty and opinionated book is filled with new ideas and fascinating stories about the central task of managers in business, government, education, charitable organizations, and the arts: creating and implementing a strategy. Rumelt demystifies and debunks the visions, motivational schemes, and financial goals touted as strategy, while awakening an appreciation of the power of "real" strategies.

RICHARD RUMELT received his doctoral degree from Harvard and holds the Harry and Elsa Kunin Chair at the UCLA Anderson School of Management. He is one of the world's most sought-after educators on strategy and general management and is a consultant to small firms such as the Samuel Goldwyn Company and giants such as Shell International, as well as to organizations in the educational and not-for-profit worlds.

Available products
Book Published 2011-07-19 by Currency
Book Published 2011-07-19 by Currency

Comments

The whole middle section, about sources of power, is valuable - particularly the explication of the limitations and nuances of competitive advantage.

Clearly written, thoughtful... This book is painful therapy but a necessary read nonetheless.

So much that's said and written about strategy is - from my point of view - complete junk, that I get excited when I hear someone focusing on strategy in a coherent and useful way... A very good book.

Represents the latest thinking in strategy and is peppered with many current real world examples. Good Strategy/Bad Strategy has much to offer and has every chance of becoming a business classic.

...Brilliant... a milestone in both the theory and practice of strategy... Vivid examples from the contemporary business world and global history that clearly show how to recognize the good, reject the bad, and make good strategy a living force in your organization.

...Rumelt writes with great verve and pulls no punches as he pinpoints such strategy "sins" as fluff, blue sky objectives, and not facing the problem.

...Richly illustrated and persuasively argued... the playbook for anybody in a leadership position who must think and act strategically.

This is the first book on strategy I have read that I have found difficult to put down.

The most interesting business book of 2011.

The year's best and most original addition to the strategy bookshelf.

Drawing on a wealth of examples, Rumelt identifies the critical features that distinguish powerful strategies from wimpy ones - and offers a cache of advice on how to build a strategy that is actually worthy of the name. If you're certain your company is already poised to out-perform its rivals and out-run the future, don't buy this book. If, on the other hand, you have a sliver of doubt, pick it up pronto!

...Penetrating insights provide new and powerful ways for leaders to tackle the obstacles they face. The concepts of "the kernel" and "the proximate objective" are blockbusters. This is the new must-have book for everyone who leads an organization in business, government, or in-between."