Managing Competitive Strategy - Program Outline

Below is an outline of the Managing Competitive Strategy Executive Program. The program runs over two complete days. The outline excludes cases and group work that is interspersed throughout the program. The texts used in the course include The Essence of Corporate Strategy by Davis and Devinney and Competitive and Corporate Strategy (Irwin, 1997) by Bowman and Faulkner. To examine copies of the lecture materials simply click on the appropriate title.


Introduction to the Seminar

• What is strategy?
• Types of strategy-emergent, opportunistic, etc

• Strategy quality and top team commitment
• Problems with planning processes
• Improving strategic debate

• Strategy as the matching of customer value to business process
• Definition of competencies and competitive advantage
  • Hamel, G. and C. Prahlad, Strategic Intent, Harvard Business Review, May/June 1989.
  • Stalk, G., Evans, P. and L. Shulman, Competing on Capabilities, Harvard Business Review, March/April 1992.

• Porter's 5-forces
• "Rules of engagement"

• Value Chain and Value Constellations
  • Norman, R. and R. Ramirez, From Value Chain to Value Constellation: Designing Interactive Strategy, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 71, July/August 1993. (Summary of Article Available.)
  • Video: Listening to the Customer, Harvard Business Review.

• The relationship between strategy and organisation structure (Click here for a PowerPoint Notes view of the lecture notes that contains additional material)
  • Bowman, C., and S. Carter, Organising for Competitive Advantage, European Management Journal, Vol. 13, No. 4, 1995

• "The culture web"
• Limits to decision making
• Force field analysis
  • Johnson, G., Managing Strategic Change: Strategy, Culture and change, Long Range Planning, Vol. 25, No. 1, 1992. (Summary of Article Available.)

• Synergy and diversification
• Corporate parenting