Institute For Strategy And Competitiveness

The Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness is a nonprofit research, education, and policy organization founded by Michael Porter and based at Harvard Business School in Boston, Massachusetts. Our mission is to advance scholarship; develop practical, research-based frameworks; and educate and advise leaders and policymakers.

RECENT Publications

What 21st Century Health Care Should Learn from 20th Century Business

Health care today has a complexity problem. Progress has produced major medical advances, but health care’s traditional organizational structure is buckling. The result: Clinicians have trouble collaborating. Patients have trouble navigating the system. And leaders have trouble leading.

Hospital-based ACOs Face Challenges in Tracking Performance Indicators

Given that accountable care organizations (ACOs) have not achieved the degree of cost reductions and quality improvements initially hoped for, we sought to better understand the underlying reasons for their limited success.

Why Politics Is Failing America

Beware the political–industrial complex. They rig the game for their benefit. The public interest is the loser. Here’s how to fix it.
See also Why It’s Time to Break Up America’s Most Powerful Duopoly & Why Competition in the Politics Industry is Failing America

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Recent & Upcoming Events

ICHOM 2019 Conference: Redefining value through patient-centered outcomes

Rotterdam, Netherlands | May 2-3, 2019 Join value-innovators and global leaders from across the health care spectrum at ICHOM's annual conference. More information can be found here

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In the news

ICIC boosts economic life in inner cities

Boston Herald, July 10, 2018

Diagnosing the thriving Swamp that's failing America

Axios, February 3, 2018

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U.S. Cluster Mapping Portal

"Mapping a nation of regional clusters" Newly launched in September 2014

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Essential Reading

In health care, the days of business as usual are over. Around the world, every health care system is struggling with rising costs and uneven quality despite the hard work of well-intentioned, well-trained clinicians. Health care leaders and policy makers have tried countless incremental fixes—attacking fraud, reducing errors, enforcing practice guidelines, making patients better “consumers,” implementing electronic medical records—but none have had much impact. It’s time for a fundamentally new strategy.

The Strategy That Will Fix Health Care

Competitive advantage. The value chain. Five forces. Industry structure. Differentiation. Relative cost. If you want to understand how companies achieve and sustain competitive success, Michael Porter's frameworks are the foundation. But while everyone in business may know Porter's name, many managers misunderstand and misuse his concepts. Understanding Michael Porter sets the record straight, providing a concise, accessible summary of Porter's revolutionary thinking.

Understanding Michael Porter

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Essential Reading