Most Americans have a faulty strategic vision. Instead of seeing the three primary strategic colors, they only perceive two of them: premium and cost leadership. Differentiation is mistaken with premium and low cost is confused with cost-volume leadership. There is a general consensus to consider that there are two…
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One pillar of the traditional strategic thinking is falling apart. Decision-makers who still adhere to the old paradigm will be losing valuable growth opportunities. Since Porter’s seminal work in the 80’s, firms are supposed to choose sides: either differentiation or cost leadership. If they fail to do, they may…
La démarche ALAMO est une méthode simple pour créer des conditions propices à la performance. De nombreuses enquêtes révèlent que la majorité des collaborateurs ne se sentent pas engagés dans leur travail[1]. La notion d’engagement se distingue de celle de satisfaction au travail et englobe différentes attitudes d’ardeur, d’enthousiasme, de…
World Chess Champion Gary Kasparov on thinking 15 moves in advance, confusing your opponent and taking risk. “It takes more than logic to be great chess-player. Intuition is the defining quality of a great chess player. That’s because chess is a mathematically infinite game. Inevitably you reach a point when…
Irrelevant attributes create a strong competitive advantage in crowded markets. Research has demonstrated that this advantage is sustained, even when customers acknowledge that the attribute is irrelevant. The rrelevant attribute works because it helps make the product unique and simplify the decision making process. Moral of the story: instead of…
Google’s Hiring Dos and Don’ts Hire people who are smarter and more knowledgeable than you are Don’t hire people you can’t learn from or be challenged by. Hire people who will add value to the product and our culture. Don’t hire people who won’t contribute well to do both. Hire…
The twelve plagues of established enterprises Most companies lose their start-up mindset as they become bigger. However a few remarkable companies, like Google or Cisco, have maintained the speed, the ability to take risks, the openness that characterize young businesses. In order to stay agile, the CEOs of these companies…
How to sharpen and consolidate your differentiation? Differentiation is one of the most sought after generic strategy. It consists in delivering greater value, that customers are willing to purchase at a premium price. Well conducted differentiation strategies translate into superior financial performance, as iconic companies like Coca-Cola or Apple exemplify….
Start asking yourself how you can help people have an important job done, how you can help them with a major problem that is inadequately solved by current solutions, how you can help them overcome one the most common obstacles they are likely to face: lack of wealth, time, skill…