Instructors’ Manual to Accompany Contemporary Strategy Analysis (10th edn. Wiley, 2019)
CHAPTER 1. THE CONCEPT OF STRATEGY
Introduction
For my first class in a core course in strategic management, I have two major goals:
To convey an appreciation of what strategy is—both in a business context and in other
competitive arenas (sport, politics, warfare).
To introduce the basic framework for strategy analysis – in terms of external analysis
(the analysis of industry and competition) and internal analysis (primarily the analysis of
resources and capabilities).
The main themes I emphasize are:
How strategy can contribute to the success of organizations and individuals;
The role of strategy as a link between the firm and its environment—which provides the
basic framework for strategy analysis;
How our understanding of strategic management has evolved over time;
How to identify and describe the strategy of a firm;
How strategy is made within organizations;
The distinctive features of strategic management among not-for-profit organizations.
Class Outline
Even with the first class, I like to set the tone for the course by including a case discussion.
Getting students to prepare a case before the first class is often difficult--hence, I choose a
company (or individual) that students are familiar with, or one whose essence can be
communicated in a short video.
Cases I have used for my first session include:
Lady Gaga and the Haus of Gaga. Her career is discussed in Strategy Capsule 1.2 of
Chapter 1. Again, a music video offers a useful basis for discussing her image, her
“product”, and her capabilities.
Queen Elizabeth II and the House of Windsor. Her career is discussed in Strategy Capsule
1.1 of Chapter 1. Extracts from the Netflix series The Queen can be used to illustrate her
role and her personal style.
Tough Mudder Inc.: Building Leadership in Mud Runs. Case 1 in Contemporary Strategy
Analysis: Text and Cases (10e).
Copyright © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 1
, Starbucks Corporation, March 2018. Case 9 in Contemporary Strategy Analysis: Text and
Cases (10e).
In each of these cases, I follow a similar approach. I begin by asking: “What is the strategy of the
organization/individual?” Then: “Why has the strategy been successful?”
What is the strategy? Offers the opportunity to establish the nature of strategy in terms of
competitive positioning and as a direction for development. In terms of positioning, the issues
are: Where are we competing? and How are we competing?
Why has the strategy been successful? Allows us to address issues of fit: fit with the external
environment, fit with internal resources and capabilities, and fit in terms of coherence among
the components of the strategy.
I typically allow the discussion to range freely, to encourage the participation of students and
also to convey the notion that our class sessions are a joint venture in which leadership doesn’t
come exclusively from me.
At the same time, it is useful to reserve plenty of time to enlarge upon and reinforce key issues
that (hopefully) have emerged from the discussion. And, if they haven’t emerged, they can be
introduced.
Two issues take center stage:
1. The nature of strategy. In none of the four cases I use did strategy exist as a detailed
plan. Indeed, for Lady Gaga and Queen Elizabeth, it is doubtful whether there was a
conscious appreciation of strategy, even at a cognitive level. For Tough Mudder and
Starbucks, the founders (Will Dean and Howard Schultz) articulated the strategies of
their organizations through principles, guidelines, and aspirations rather than through
an agenda of specific actions.
This takes us to Mintzberg’s distinction between intended and emergent strategies. For
Tough Mudder and Starbucks, their realized strategies have been guided by the
intended strategies developed by their founders (and senior colleagues). For Lady Gaga
and Queen Elizabeth, their strategies seem to be largely emergent: they are discernible
ex post as a pattern within a stream of decisions and actions.
2. Appraising strategy: the notion of strategic fit. In my discussion of Queen Elizabeth and
Lady Gaga (see chapter 1 of Contemporary Strategy Analysis), I show how their career
success is based upon:
Clear, consistent, long-term goals;
Profound understanding of the business environment;
Appreciation of resource and capabilities;
Effective implementation.
Copyright © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2
, These four components form the basis of the strategy framework shown in Figure 1.1 of
Chapter 1. They are also the primary modules of our strategy analysis, namely: goals and
performance, industry and competitive analysis, the analysis of resources and capabilities, and
strategy implementation (organizational structure and management systems).
Hence, in evaluating a firm’s strategy, the central issue is fit—particularly with its competitive
environment and with its resources and capabilities.
In addition, strategic fit encompasses the internal coherence of a firm’s strategy—how well the
individual decisions and actions of the firm complement one another. The elements of strategy
and their interrelationships can be displayed as an activity system. For an example, see Chapter
1, Figure 1.3 which depicts Ryanair’s activity system.
I conclude the class by bringing the discussion back to individual strategy—specifically the
strategic decisions students face for their future careers. I invite them to consider (a) whether
they have strategies, (b) whether these strategies are implicit or explicit, and (c) how they
might apply the ideas and framework outlined in the class (and in Chapter 1 of the book) to
developing a career strategy. As an example of the application of strategy to managing one’s
own life, I draw upon Stephen Covey’s Seven Successful Habits of Highly Effective People,
inviting students to participate in the exercise he outlines at the beginning of the chapter on
Habit #2: “Starting with the End in Mind.” This exercise involves imagining one is attending
one’s own funeral and considering what you would like the different speakers at the funeral to
say about you and your life.
Copyright © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 3
CHAPTER 1. THE CONCEPT OF STRATEGY
Introduction
For my first class in a core course in strategic management, I have two major goals:
To convey an appreciation of what strategy is—both in a business context and in other
competitive arenas (sport, politics, warfare).
To introduce the basic framework for strategy analysis – in terms of external analysis
(the analysis of industry and competition) and internal analysis (primarily the analysis of
resources and capabilities).
The main themes I emphasize are:
How strategy can contribute to the success of organizations and individuals;
The role of strategy as a link between the firm and its environment—which provides the
basic framework for strategy analysis;
How our understanding of strategic management has evolved over time;
How to identify and describe the strategy of a firm;
How strategy is made within organizations;
The distinctive features of strategic management among not-for-profit organizations.
Class Outline
Even with the first class, I like to set the tone for the course by including a case discussion.
Getting students to prepare a case before the first class is often difficult--hence, I choose a
company (or individual) that students are familiar with, or one whose essence can be
communicated in a short video.
Cases I have used for my first session include:
Lady Gaga and the Haus of Gaga. Her career is discussed in Strategy Capsule 1.2 of
Chapter 1. Again, a music video offers a useful basis for discussing her image, her
“product”, and her capabilities.
Queen Elizabeth II and the House of Windsor. Her career is discussed in Strategy Capsule
1.1 of Chapter 1. Extracts from the Netflix series The Queen can be used to illustrate her
role and her personal style.
Tough Mudder Inc.: Building Leadership in Mud Runs. Case 1 in Contemporary Strategy
Analysis: Text and Cases (10e).
Copyright © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 1
, Starbucks Corporation, March 2018. Case 9 in Contemporary Strategy Analysis: Text and
Cases (10e).
In each of these cases, I follow a similar approach. I begin by asking: “What is the strategy of the
organization/individual?” Then: “Why has the strategy been successful?”
What is the strategy? Offers the opportunity to establish the nature of strategy in terms of
competitive positioning and as a direction for development. In terms of positioning, the issues
are: Where are we competing? and How are we competing?
Why has the strategy been successful? Allows us to address issues of fit: fit with the external
environment, fit with internal resources and capabilities, and fit in terms of coherence among
the components of the strategy.
I typically allow the discussion to range freely, to encourage the participation of students and
also to convey the notion that our class sessions are a joint venture in which leadership doesn’t
come exclusively from me.
At the same time, it is useful to reserve plenty of time to enlarge upon and reinforce key issues
that (hopefully) have emerged from the discussion. And, if they haven’t emerged, they can be
introduced.
Two issues take center stage:
1. The nature of strategy. In none of the four cases I use did strategy exist as a detailed
plan. Indeed, for Lady Gaga and Queen Elizabeth, it is doubtful whether there was a
conscious appreciation of strategy, even at a cognitive level. For Tough Mudder and
Starbucks, the founders (Will Dean and Howard Schultz) articulated the strategies of
their organizations through principles, guidelines, and aspirations rather than through
an agenda of specific actions.
This takes us to Mintzberg’s distinction between intended and emergent strategies. For
Tough Mudder and Starbucks, their realized strategies have been guided by the
intended strategies developed by their founders (and senior colleagues). For Lady Gaga
and Queen Elizabeth, their strategies seem to be largely emergent: they are discernible
ex post as a pattern within a stream of decisions and actions.
2. Appraising strategy: the notion of strategic fit. In my discussion of Queen Elizabeth and
Lady Gaga (see chapter 1 of Contemporary Strategy Analysis), I show how their career
success is based upon:
Clear, consistent, long-term goals;
Profound understanding of the business environment;
Appreciation of resource and capabilities;
Effective implementation.
Copyright © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2
, These four components form the basis of the strategy framework shown in Figure 1.1 of
Chapter 1. They are also the primary modules of our strategy analysis, namely: goals and
performance, industry and competitive analysis, the analysis of resources and capabilities, and
strategy implementation (organizational structure and management systems).
Hence, in evaluating a firm’s strategy, the central issue is fit—particularly with its competitive
environment and with its resources and capabilities.
In addition, strategic fit encompasses the internal coherence of a firm’s strategy—how well the
individual decisions and actions of the firm complement one another. The elements of strategy
and their interrelationships can be displayed as an activity system. For an example, see Chapter
1, Figure 1.3 which depicts Ryanair’s activity system.
I conclude the class by bringing the discussion back to individual strategy—specifically the
strategic decisions students face for their future careers. I invite them to consider (a) whether
they have strategies, (b) whether these strategies are implicit or explicit, and (c) how they
might apply the ideas and framework outlined in the class (and in Chapter 1 of the book) to
developing a career strategy. As an example of the application of strategy to managing one’s
own life, I draw upon Stephen Covey’s Seven Successful Habits of Highly Effective People,
inviting students to participate in the exercise he outlines at the beginning of the chapter on
Habit #2: “Starting with the End in Mind.” This exercise involves imagining one is attending
one’s own funeral and considering what you would like the different speakers at the funeral to
say about you and your life.
Copyright © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 3
