There are now at least 10 different schools of thought on strategy and more than a dozen common definitions of the term. To clarify and deepen our understanding of corporate strategy, the author offers general guidelines that set the boundaries of the discipline to facilitate future executive decisions. The author argues that the strategy has three objectives: the creation of value, process of imitation, and the formation of the perimeter. The ability to support the creation of value, whether from the point of view of the customer or a shareholder, is the ultimate goal of any strategy. Concepts such as benchmarking, differentiation, core competencies, unique resources, institutionalism, and competitive rivalry are all connected with the ability to prevent the implementation or use imitation. The decision to diversify, outsourcing, vertical integration, internationalization, and the positioning of all search-related beneficial perimeter. "Hide
by Frederick Frery Source: MIT Sloan Management Review 7 pages. Publication Date: 01 Oct 2006. Prod. #: SMR227-PDF-ENG
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