Beyond Competitive Advantage
In a context of perpetual change, the best way to maintain sustainable growth is to define clear company guidelines and stick to them.
Author(s): Todd Zenger
Publisher: Harvard Business Review Press
Date of publication: 2016
Manageris opinion
Maintaining sustainable growth is a headache for business leaders. Should they give priority to speed of reaction and seize opportunities as soon as they emerge, in hopes of benefitting from a first-mover advantage? Or is it better to stick to company guidelines to favor consistency, even if this means missing out on opportunities? Citing the examples of Disney, Apple and Cemex, Todd Zenger clearly argues in favor of the latter option. In an increasingly changing economic, technological and social environment, he explains, competitive advantages are necessarily fleeting. Attempting to secure these advantages often exhausts companies and wastes their scarce resources rather than generating lasting growth. In the long run, the most successful players are those that establish clear guidelines and stick to them.
A clear and convincing presentation.
See also
Base your strategy on your distinctive capabilities
The race for competitive advantage often leads to endless escalation. How can you break this cycle? One solution is to refocus your strategy on the specific capabilities that strongly differentiate your company.