In my current workscope, I thought I really need to improve my strategy thinking. So i started to search for books which teaches about coming up with good strategies. I was unable to find one which I was looking for until i saw this book in MPH or Times in Changi Airport when I was going to Phuket for a short trip. That has been about 9 months ago.
I must say that after going through about 50 pages, I was kind of disappointed as the author seemed to just want to tell the readers that most companies do not have strategies and just have goals or plans. Anyway, I read on as I can't find another strategy book. Below are just statements from the book or some thing i figured out from reading the book.
1) A good strategy has coherence, coordinating actions, policies and resources so as to accomplish an important end.
2) Strategy is at least as much about what an organization does not do as it is about what it does.
3) Use your strengths to exploit opposition weakness.
4) Once you develop the ability to detect bad strategy, you will dramatically improve your effectiveness at judging, influencing and create strategy.
5) A strategy is a way through a difficulty, an approach to overcome an obstacle, a response to a challenge. If the challenge is not defined, it is difficult or impossible to assess the quality of the strategy. And if you cannot assess a strategy's quality, you cannot reject a bad strategy or improve a good one.
6) Bad strategy is the active for avoidance of the hardwork of crafting a good strategy.
7) The transformational leader a) develops or has a vision b) inspires people to sacrifice (change( for the good of the organization, and c) empowers people to accomplish the vision
8) Strategy is the craft if figuring out which purposes are both worth pursuing and capable of being accomplished.
9) Good strategy is coherent action backed up by an argument, an effective mixture of thought and action with a basic underlying structure. Structure contains:
A) A diagnosis that defines or explains the nature of the challenge
B) A guiding policy for dialing with the challenge
C) A reference of coherent actions that are designed to carry out the guiding policy
10) To concentrate on an objective - to make it a priority - necessarily assumes that many other important things will be taken care of.
11) One of a leader's most powerful tools is the creation of a good proximate objective - one that is close enough at hand to be feasible.
12) A series of chain linked activities are all maintained at a high level of quality, each benefiting from the quality of the other and the whole being resistant to each imitation.
13) A good strategy coordinates policies across activities to focus the competitive punch.
14) A more tightly integrated design is harder to create, narrower in focus, more fragile in use, and less flexible in responding to changes.
15) At the core, strategy is about focus, and most complex organization don't focus their resources. Instead, they pursue multiple goals at once, not concentrating enough resources to achieve a breakthrough in any of them.
16) If a business can produce at a lower cost than its competitors, or if it can deliver more perceived value than its competitors, or a mix of the 2, then you have a competitive advantage.
17) Increasing value requires a strategy for progress on one of the 4 different fronts:
A) Deepening advantages
B)Broadening the extent of advantage
C) Creating higher demand for advantaged product or service
D) Strengthening the isolated mechanisms that block easy replication and imitation by competitors.
18) Deepening advantage
- either increasing value to buyers, reduce cost or both
- improvement come from re-examining the details of how work is done, not just from cost control or incentives.
19) Broadening extent of advantage
- build on strength
20) Creating higher demand
- Higher demand will increase long term profits only if a business already possesses scarce resources that create a stable competitive advantage.
21) Strengthening Isolating Mechanism
- Work on stronger patents, brand name protection and copyrights
- be a moving target for imitators (keep improving)
I quickly went thru the rest of the book as there are too many stories and too few principles to be learned. Of the above 21 points, I hope any reader is able to get something out of it.
Sunday, September 14, 2014
Friday, September 5, 2014
The Leader's Checklist by Michael Useem
I bought this book because of 2 reasons:1) it has only about 100 pages. 2) Its published by Wharton. I find books published by Wharton mostly more credible and easier reads.
There are a few good statements. One which stands out is "Leaders connect, collaborate and coordinate".
There are 15 mission-critical principles:
1) Articulate a Vision. Formulate a clear and persuasive vision and communicate it to all members of the enterprise.
2) Think and Act Strategically. Set forth a pragmatic strategy for achieving that vision both short and long term, and ensure that it is widely understood; consider all players and anticipate reactions and resistance before they are manifest.
3) Honor the Room. Frequently express your confidence in and support for those who work with and for you.
4) Take Charge. Embrace a bias for action, of taking responsibility even if it is not formally delegated, particularly if you are well positioned to make a difference.
5) Act Decisively. Make good and timely decisions and ensure that they are executed.
6) Communicate Persuasively. Communicate in ways that people will not forget; simplicity and clarity of expression help.
7) Motivate the Troops. Appreciate the distinctive intentions that people bring, and then build on those diverse motives to draw the best from each.
8) Embrace the Front Lines. Delegate authority except for strategic decisions, and stay close to the most directly engaged with the work of the enterprise.
9) Build Leadership in Others. Develop leadership throughout the organization.
10) Manage Relations. Build enduring personal ties with those who look to you, and work to harness the feelings and passions of the workplace.
11) Identify Personal Implications. Help everybody appreciate the impact that the vision and strategy are likely to have on their own work and future with the firm.
12) Convey your Character. Through gesture, commentary and accounts, ensure that others appreciate that you are a person of integrity.
13) Dampen over Optimism. Counter the hubris of success, focus the attention on latent threats and unresolved problems, and protect against the tendency for managers to engage in unwarranted risk.
14) Build a Diverse Top Team. Leaders need to take final responsibility, but leaders is also a team sport best played with an able roster of those collectively capable of resolving all the key challenges.
15) Place Common Interest First. In setting strategy, communicating vision, and reaching decisions, common purpose comes first, personal self-interest last.
After reading the book, good thing is it is even shorter than 100 pages, if you do not count the interviews. What I do not like are the only few references which consists of the Chilean mine collapse, NY 911 twin tower collapse, near collapse of AIG and surrender of Confederation Army. Find it too narrow. But overall, it has been a good read.
There are a few good statements. One which stands out is "Leaders connect, collaborate and coordinate".
There are 15 mission-critical principles:
1) Articulate a Vision. Formulate a clear and persuasive vision and communicate it to all members of the enterprise.
2) Think and Act Strategically. Set forth a pragmatic strategy for achieving that vision both short and long term, and ensure that it is widely understood; consider all players and anticipate reactions and resistance before they are manifest.
3) Honor the Room. Frequently express your confidence in and support for those who work with and for you.
4) Take Charge. Embrace a bias for action, of taking responsibility even if it is not formally delegated, particularly if you are well positioned to make a difference.
5) Act Decisively. Make good and timely decisions and ensure that they are executed.
6) Communicate Persuasively. Communicate in ways that people will not forget; simplicity and clarity of expression help.
7) Motivate the Troops. Appreciate the distinctive intentions that people bring, and then build on those diverse motives to draw the best from each.
8) Embrace the Front Lines. Delegate authority except for strategic decisions, and stay close to the most directly engaged with the work of the enterprise.
9) Build Leadership in Others. Develop leadership throughout the organization.
10) Manage Relations. Build enduring personal ties with those who look to you, and work to harness the feelings and passions of the workplace.
11) Identify Personal Implications. Help everybody appreciate the impact that the vision and strategy are likely to have on their own work and future with the firm.
12) Convey your Character. Through gesture, commentary and accounts, ensure that others appreciate that you are a person of integrity.
13) Dampen over Optimism. Counter the hubris of success, focus the attention on latent threats and unresolved problems, and protect against the tendency for managers to engage in unwarranted risk.
14) Build a Diverse Top Team. Leaders need to take final responsibility, but leaders is also a team sport best played with an able roster of those collectively capable of resolving all the key challenges.
15) Place Common Interest First. In setting strategy, communicating vision, and reaching decisions, common purpose comes first, personal self-interest last.
After reading the book, good thing is it is even shorter than 100 pages, if you do not count the interviews. What I do not like are the only few references which consists of the Chilean mine collapse, NY 911 twin tower collapse, near collapse of AIG and surrender of Confederation Army. Find it too narrow. But overall, it has been a good read.
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