The Craft of Strategy Formation: Translating Business Issues into Actionable Strategies

Do the top strategy consultants have a patented model that they use to help their clients set up a business strategy? The answer is no – such a marvellous, secret model does not exist. But the approach of these consultants is totally different from that of the strategy departments in companies or that of business schools. Their approach is not secret – it is described in a blow–by–blow account in this book.
The book explains for the first time how the leading strategy consultants work. It shows how they set to work in an organization that they do not know, how they bring the truth to light, how they work together with the organization to give shape to the future and how they turn cynics into enthusiasts. This is not a book filled with strategic frameworks – no 7S models, no SWOT analyses, no new theories about the core competences of the organization. This is a handbook for managers and MBA students and graduates who need to solve a problem in a short time and arrive quickly at a usable end product.
The Craft of Strategy Formation describes the approach week by week. It gives practical examples, details a case study throughout the book, warns against pitfalls and explodes myths. Read in this book:Why creating a strategy is more than just ‘a bit of logical thinking’, and how it is that even 10 sharp minds cannot arrive at useful insights ‘just like that’Why you do not always have to have a vision, and how you can have ideas without being creativeWhat the difference is between a helpful and an unhelpful research question, and between a completely wrong and a more or less correct resultWhat the strategic difference is between a hat and a walking stickHow you can learn about your competitor without using industrial espionageWhat the most frequent mistakes are in a financial model and when a financial model is meaninglessHow to make sure that your results do not end up just being shoved into a drawer


Spis treści:
Preface.
Introduction.
What is this book all about?
Introduction to the Allware case study.
Part I – The preparation phase.
Introduction.
1 Days 1 to 5 – We create a question out of a concern.
2 Days 6 and 7 – We set up a project organisation.
3 Day 8 – We structure the question.
4 Day 9 – We formulate hypotheses.
5 Day 10 – We make a work plan.
6 Allware: the first two weeks.
Part II – The analysis phase.
Introduction.
7 Days 11 and 12 – We develop the analyses further.
8 Days 13 to 17 – We collect data.
9 Days 18 to 42 – We carry out the analyses.
10 Days 43 to 45 – We present the conclusions.
11 Allware: on with the analysis.
Part III – The selection phase.
Introduction.
12 Day 46 – We put forward some business options.
13 Day 47 – We draw up scenarios.
14 Days 48 to 57 – We model the results.
15 Days 58 to 60 – We choose the strategic direction.
16 Days 61 to 65 – We write the strategic plan.
17 Allware: make a choice and carry on.
Part IV – The implementation phase.
Introduction.
18 Set up an organisation to implement the strategy.
19 Draw up the implementation plan.
20 Direct progress.
Afterword.
Profile of OC&C Strategy Consultants.
Index.

Nota biograficzna:
Eric Wiebes started his career in the oil industry. He became a strategy consultant in 1990 and a partner at OC&C Strategy Consultants in 1996, advising both corporate clients and national governments on an array of strategic issues. Today, Eric works for the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs.
Marc Baaij is an associate professor of strategic management at the Rotterdam School of Managemen t (RSM) of the Erasmus University Rotterdam in the Netherlands. Before joining RSM, Marc worked in the industry and in strategy consultancy. Marc teaches strategy formation to graduate students as well as executives.
Bas Keibek became a strategy consultant in 1995 and since then has assisted a diverse spectrum of corporate clients in meeting strategic challenges. Additionally, Bas, a partner of OC&C since 2002, has extensive experience in evaluating potential acquisitions for private equity clients. Prior to joining OC&C he worked in the UK offshore oil industry.
Pieter Witteveen launched OC&C in the Netherlands in 1992. His consulting experience covers a wide range of issues, such as strategic positioning, acquisitions, restructuring and portfolio strategy, for clients in virtually all sectors of business. His career before OC&C includes many years in strategy consulting and several managerial positions.


Okładka tylna:
Do the top strategy consultants have a patented model that they use to help their clients set up a business strategy? The answer is no – such a marvellous, secret model does not exist. But the approach of these consultants is totally different from that of the strategy departments in companies or that of business schools. Their approach is not secret – it is described in a blow–by–blow account in this book.
The book explains for the first time how the leading strategy consultants work. It shows how they set to work in an organization that they do not know, how they bring the truth to light, how they work together with the organization to give shape to the future and how they turn cynics into enthusiasts. This is not a book filled with strategic frameworks – no 7S models, no SWOT analyses, no new theories about the core competences of the organization. This is a handbook for managers and MBA students and graduates who need to solve a problem in a short time and arrive quickly at a usable end product.
The Craft of Strategy Formation describes the approach week by week. It gives practical examples, details a case study throughout the book, warns against pitfalls and explodes myths. Read in this book:Why creating a strategy is more than just ‘a bit of logical thinking’, and how it is that even 10 sharp minds cannot arrive at useful insights ‘just like that’Why you do not always have to have a vision, and how you can have ideas without being creativeWhat the difference is between a helpful and an unhelpful research question, and between a completely wrong and a more or less correct resultWhat the strategic difference is between a hat and a walking stickHow you can learn about your competitor without using industrial espionageWhat the most frequent mistakes are in a financial model and when a financial model is meaninglessHow to make sure that your results do not end up just being shoved into a drawer