Competitive strategy refers to how a company
competes in a particular business (note: overall strategy for diversified firms
is referred to as corporate strategy).Competitive strategy is
concerned with how a company can gain a competitive advantage through a
distinctive way of competing.
Framework Publications
The Five Competitive Forces That Shape Strategy Michael E. Porter Harvard Business Review January 2008 Editor’s Note:In 1979, Harvard Business Review published “How
Competitive Forces Shape Strategy” by a young economist and associate
professor, Michael E. Porter. It was his first HBR article, and it started a
revolution in the strategy field. In subsequent decades, Porter has brought
his signature economic rigor to the study of competitive strategy for
corporations, regions, nations, and, more recently, health care and
philanthropy. “Porter’s five forces” have shaped a generation of academic
research and business practice. With prodding and assistance from Harvard
Business School Professor Jan Rivkin and longtime colleague Joan Magretta,
Porter here reaffirms, updates, and extends the classic work. He also
addresses common misunderstandings, provides practical guidance for users of
the framework, and offers a deeper view of its implications for strategy
today.
"What is Strategy?"
Michael E. Porter Harvard Business Review, November-December 1996.
Today's dynamic markets and technologies have called into question the sustainability of competitive advantage. Under pressure to improve productivity,
quality, and speed, managers have embraced tools such as TQM, benchmarking, and reengineering. Dramatic operational improvements have resulted, but rarely have these gains translated into sustainable profitability. And gradually, the tools have taken the place of strategy. As managers push to improve on all fronts, they move
further away from viable competitive positions. Michael Porter argues that operational effectiveness, although necessary to superior performance, is not sufficient, because its techniques are easy to imitate. In contrast, the essence of strategy is choosing a
unique and valuable position rooted in systems of activities that are much more difficult to match.
Order
article at Harvard Business Online
“The Competitive Advantage of Corporate
Philanthropy”
Michael E. Porter and Mark R. Kramer Harvard Business Review,
December 2002
When it comes to philanthropy, executives increasingly see themselves as caught
between critics demanding ever higher levels of "corporate social
responsibility" and investors applying pressure to maximize short-term
profits. Increasingly, philanthropy is used as a form of public relations or
advertising, promoting a company's image through high-profile sponsorships. But
there is a more truly strategic way to think about philanthropy. Corporations
can use their charitable efforts to improve their competitive context--the
quality of the business environment in the locations where they operate. Using
philanthropy to enhance competitive context aligns social and economic goals and
improves a company's long-term business prospects. Addressing context enables a
company not only to give money but also leverage its capabilities and
relationships in support of charitable causes. Taking this new direction
requires fundamental changes in the way companies approach their contribution
programs. Adopting a context-focused approach requires a far more disciplined
approach than is prevalent today. But it can make a company's philanthropic
activities far more effective.
Order
article at Harvard Business Online
"The Importance of Being Strategic"
Michael E. Porter Balanced Scorecard Report,
May 15, 2002
At the Balanced Scorecard Collaborative's recent North American Summit, Michael
E. Porter, Bishop William Lawrence Professor at Harvard Business School,
addressed the question "Is the world changing too fast for companies to
have a long-term strategy?" "No," said Porter, a preeminent
strategy expert; in the wake of the dot-com shakeout, strategy is more important
than ever. See why he says this, and read the accompanying sidebar, "What
Strategy Isn't."
Order
article at Harvard Business Online
“Competition and Strategy: The Creation of a Group and a Field”
Michael E. Porter and Nicolaj Siggelkow
In The Intellectual Venture Capitalist: John H. McArthur
and the Work of the Harvard Business School, 1980-1995 Thomas K. McCraw and Jeffrey L. Cruikshank, eds.
Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 1999
Conversation
Series with Porter Prize Winners: Canon Lens, Hoya Vision Care,
Mabuchi Motor, Matsui Securities (in Japanese) Weekly
Toyo Keizai, July 2002
“The
Return of Michael Porter”
James Surowiecki Fortune, Business 2.0 February 1999
Reference Chapters in On
Competition
"What is Strategy?"
On Competition,
Chapter 2
Michael E. Porter
Today's dynamic markets and technologies have called into question the
sustainability of competitive advantage. Under pressure to improve productivity,
quality, and speed, managers have embraced tools such as TQM, benchmarking, and
reengineering. Dramatic operational improvements have resulted, but rarely have
these gains translated into sustainable profitability. And gradually, the tools
have taken the place of strategy. As managers push to improve on all fronts,
they move further away from viable competitive positions. Michael Porter argues
that operational effectiveness, although necessary to superior performance, is
not sufficient, because its techniques are easy to imitate. In contrast, the
essence of strategy is choosing a unique and valuable position rooted in systems
of activities that are much more difficult to match.
Recommended Links
ポ―ター賞 Porter Prize
The Porter Prize was established to bestow recognition
on Japanese companies that have achieved and maintained superior profitability
in a particular industry by implementing unique strategies based on innovations
in products, processes, and ways of managing.
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