Synopses & Reviews
In this McKinsey Award-winning article, first published in May 1989, Gary Hamel and C.K. Prahalad explain that Western companies have wasted too much time and energy replicating the cost and quality advantages their global competitors already experience. Canon and other world-class competitors have taken a different approach to strategy: one of strategic intent. They begin with a goal that exceeds the company's present grasp and existing resources: "Beat Xerox"; "encircle Caterpillar." Then they rally the organization to close the gap by setting challenges that focus employees' efforts in the near to medium term: "Build a personal copier to sell for $1,000"; "cut product development time by 75%." Year after year, they emphasize competitive innovationbuilding a portfolio of competitive advantages; searching markets for "loose bricks" that rivals have left underdefended; changing the terms of competitive engagement to avoid playing by the leader's rules. The result is a global leadership position and an approach to competition that has reduced larger, stronger Western rivals to playing an endless game of catch-up.
Synopsis
In this article, renowned management experts Gary Hamel and C. K. Prahalad introduce their approach to strategic planning in the face of tough competition. With advice on tailoring your company's strategy and developing the will to win within your firm, this article helps you define a long-term strategy for your organization that captures employees' imaginations and creates a clear path to success.
About the Author
Fortune magazine labels Gary Hamel "the world's leading expert on business strategy." The Economist calls Hamel "the world's reigning strategy guru." Hamel's landmark books, Leading the Revolution and Competing for the Future, have appeared on every management bestseller list and have been translated into more than 20 languages. The Journal of Business Strategy recently listed Hamel as one of the 20th century's 25 most influential business thinkers, along with business pioneers such as Henry Ford and Bill Gates. Over the past twenty years, Hamel has authored 15 articles for the Harvard Business Review, and has also written for the Wall Street Journal, Fortune, The Financial Times and many other business publications around the world.
Since 1983, Hamel has been on the faculty of the London Business School where he is currently Visiting Professor of Strategic and International Management.
For ten years, Hamel served as Chairman of Strategos, a company that helps companies drive "innovation to the core," and has trained tens of thousands of individuals around the world in the art of business innovation. The Strategos approach to innovation has been covered in major business magazines around the world and is the subject of several Harvard Business School case studies.
Hamel received his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan and has held faculty appointments at the U. of M. and Harvard Business School. He is a fellow of the World Economic Forum and serves on the editorial board of the Strategic Management Journal. Hamel lives in Northern California.
C.K. Prahalad is the Paul and Ruth McCracken Distinguished University Professor of Corporate Strategy at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. He has consulted with the top management of many of the world's foremost companies, including CEOs of at least the top 30 of the Fortune 200 firms. His research focuses chiefly on corporate strategy and the role and value added of top management in diversified multinational corporations. His current work addresses a complex emerging market, the world's poor and the innovative business models that will help end world poverty.