Perspectives on Strategy from The Boston Consulting Group [Hardcover]

 

 

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This book offers still another example of articles published years ago (in this instance, 1998) whose key insights remain relevant. It is dedicated to Bruce Doolin Henderson (1915-1992) who founded the Boston Consulting Group and served as its president and CEO for several decades. Henderson also wrote the introductory essay, "Strategic and Natural Competition," and a number of others throughout this anthology. Each of the articles appeared in BCG's "Perspectives" publication, and offers a concise analysis designed to help stimulate senior management thinking on a range of business topics. Henderson once observed that he wanted their impact to resemble "a punch between the eyes." The co-editors of Perspectives on Strategy are Carl Stern and George Stalk who also contribute articles.

It remains for each reader to select those articles of greatest interest and value to her or him. Here are excerpts from three I especially enjoyed:

"Companies like Wal-Mart, Honda, Canon, The Limited, or Banc One have learned this lesson [i.e. to identify and develop the hard-to-imitate organizational capabilities that distinguish a company from its competitors in the eyes of customers]. Their experience and that of other successful companies suggests four basic principles of capabilities-based competition:

"1. The building blocks of corporate strategy are not products and markets but business processes.

"2. Competitive success depends on transforming a company's key processes into strategic capabilities that consistently provide superior value to the customer.

"3. Companies create these capabilities by making strategic investments in a support infrastructure that links together and transcends traditional SBUs and functions.

"4. Because capabilities necessarily cross functions, the champion of a capabilities-based strategy is the CEO." (`Competing on Capabilities: The New Rules of Corporate Strategy,' George Stalk, Jr., Philip B. Evans, and Lawrence E. Shulman, 1992)

* * * * *

"Don't relay on asking customers what they want. They almost never really know. It's the rare individual who can predict his or her own behavior or understand the inchoate emotions that motivate action. And few customers can forecast the premium they'll be willing to pay for a unique new value proposition.

"What they can do is articulate their dissatisfactions. Let these dissatisfactions guide you to the most promising cells of the opportunity cube. What matters most are not so much the specific deficiencies of existing products as the broad customer dissatisfactions - for example, frustrations born of time scarcity, inconvenience, or unfulfilled yearnings for affiliation." (`From the Insight Out,' Michael J. Silverstein, 1995)

* * * * *

"Corporate strategy is more than the summation of individual business strategies. Corporate strategy must provide for tomorrow's success as well as today's. For this reason the corporate organization is different from each business organization [in that it] requires a unifying theme that highlights where the overall company is and what the next strategic challenge will be...

"Successful business units pass through four phases in their development toward maturity. [i.e. Creation in terms of finding the opportunity, Growth in terms of making it real, Advantage in terms of gaining/sustaining a competitive advantage, and Efficiency in terms of tying it down]. Each phase is fundamentally different from the others in orientation [and execution]." (`Sustained Success,' Alana J. Zakon and Richard K. Lochridge, 1984)

Although their publication dates may suggest that material provided in these and other articles is obsolete, in fact the key concepts are still relevant because their authors possess exceptional analytical skills as well as a broad base of real-world experience. I also appreciate their superb writing skills when providing a wealth of information and insights with commendable brevity. However, other readers may prefer the more recently published The Boston Consulting Group on Strategy co-edited by Carl Stern and Michael Deimler (2006).

Those who share my high regard for this volume are urged to check out two volumes in the "Harvard Business Review on..." series, on Strategy and on Advances in Strategy, as well as David Dranove and Sonia Marciano's Kellogg on Strategy, Wharton on Competitive Strategy co-edited by George S. Day and David J. Reibstein, and The INSEAD-Wharton Alliance on Globalizing: Strategies for Building Successful Global Businesses co-edited by Hubert Gatignon and John R. Kimberly.

When I buy this book I expect to learn more about strategy, business and enterprises, and I must say I get it.

There is a good description of some difficult concepts, and I fine approach to competetive entreprises rules. It is not the definitive book about it, but there is no definitive book for this.

It is rigth that this is not a new book, and some of the articles are old ones (from 1960's and 70's) but If you are not an expert and you look for a complete review, you get your money back.

And for last, I must confess that I like the content.

This book is excellent - if you understand the mathematical logic behind the BCG-Approach. Most BCG-Theories are based on the formual:
Strategy = Microeconomics + System Dynamics Models
Therefore you should be able to understand differential equations.

Example: The 'experience curve' does not project a decline in 'accounting costs' but in microeconomic costs, that means inflation adjusted marginal cash flows.

If you translate the experience curve effect into a mathematical formula, the result is a first order differential equation . or stated in other terms - a systems dynamics model for a dynamic 'Cournot-Nash-Equlibruum', not the comparative-static Cournot-Nash-Equilibruum, that most textbooks on microeconomics teach..

The Logic behind the BCG approach is brilliant,but unfortunately they do not reveal their mahematical formulas and therefore many people misunderstand their approach.

I managed to discover their mathematical formulas - and I know what I'm saying, if i tell you, that it takes you a dozen pages full of mathematical terms of the highest order to understand the economic logic behind a 'simple' concept like the experience curve.

They can improve the book, if they reveal the mathematical lgic behind their approaches.

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4.0 out of 5 stars Good Brain-Twister - BCG should reveal mathematical concepts
This book is excellent - if you understand the mathematical logic behind the BCG-Approach. Most BCG-Theories are based on the formual:
Strategy = Microeconomics + System... Read more

Published on Oct 10 2001 by Markus Breuer

4.0 out of 5 stars Consult this!
Hello,

This is a great collection of short articles from one of the most influential business consulting companies of all times. Read more

Published on Feb 6 2001 by Martyn Richard Jones

2.0 out of 5 stars An compilation of mostly outdated papers
This was a disappointing bought. I was looking for alive ideas and what I found out was a collection of outdated papers mainly on experience curve. Read more

Published on Aug 6 2000 by José A. Sánchez Villanueva

3.0 out of 5 stars CONSULTING HISTORY, 1968-1997, ala BCG
The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) is an innovator in business strategy worldwide. In fact, BCG and its founder, Bruce D. Read more

Published on Nov 30 1999 by Azlan Adnan

1.0 out of 5 stars The material in this book is severely outdated
Don't buy this book unless it is for nostalgic reasons. As a guide for decision-making and policy-setting it is hopelessly outdated. Read more

Published on Aug 30 1999 by jankensgard

4.0 out of 5 stars Very useful
This book provided excellent insight into BCG's management thinking. Another good insider's view on BCG on found was the "Vault Reports Guide to Boston Consulting... Read more

Published on April 10 1999

5.0 out of 5 stars A wealth of the most influential ideas in strategy, all here
I have found this book a great addition to my business library. One can pick it up and read brief essays on a wide variety of strategy topics. Read more

Published on April 3 1999

4.0 out of 5 stars A good historical recap on BCG greatest hits
If you want to know where a lot of the actual strategy jargon came from, this is the place. You will learn the origin and the original meaning of "cash cow",... Read more

Published on July 16 1998

5.0 out of 5 stars STRAIGHTFORWARD AND TO THE POINT
Although most of the writings are old, they are still facinating and revealing. Bruce Henderson is clear, concise, and to the point. Read more

Published on Jun 15 1998 by rrousta@ccinet.ab.ca

3.0 out of 5 stars If you've already read Bruce Henderson ....
I was a little disappointed in this book. It is a rehash of much of Bruce Henderson's thoughts on business strategy. Read more

Published on May 3 1998

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