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Textbook:

Hill, C., Jones, G., & Schilling, M. (2015). Strategic Management Theory: An Integrated Approach. Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning. 

The importance of defining a company’s business accurately and thoroughly is presented as a critical component of developing strategy. They also identify steps that can be taken at the functional level to improve a company’s efficiency, product quality, ability to innovate, and responsiveness to customers; in short, it’s about how to build competitive advantage.

• Chapter 4: Building Competitive Advantage Through Functional-Level Strategy.

Articles, Websites, and Videos:

This article gives an excellent account of what can happen when a company changes its strategic focus and intent. In Toyota’s case growth became the preeminent goal and was achieved at the expense of the company’s former core values; these values were then recognized as the cornerstones of the company’s success.

• Maynard, M. & Tabuchijan, H. (2010). Rapid growth has its perils, Toyota learns. New York Times.

Watch Video The Importance of Urgency Duration: (10:42) User: harvardbusiness – Added: 9/8/08 YouTube URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zD8xKv2ur_s
In this video, Kotter shows the importance of acting when the time is right and the dangers of misunderstanding strategic timing.

What does it take to keep a company “on the edge”? And, is that always the right place to be? Back up your assertions with resources and readings from the course, and your own research.  Please comment on the readings and videos as they relate to your impressions on the topic of “Strategy.”