Porter knows best..
Strategy pope, business guru, gifted scientist. The mention of Michael Porter and his research, still generates universal admiration, although his most famous theories date back to the 1980s. His theories and models continue to be taught at virtually every business school around the globe.
Even though many of Porter's famous insights date back to the 1980s and globalization has since then made the world a different (market)place, his findings are still on most entrepreneurs' minds when it comes to crucial business decisions. His "five forces” have shaped a generation of academic research and business practice, and in 2006, the Harvard Professor was voted among the five most influential business and management gurus of our time
A current survey on behalf of Roland Berger Strategy Consultants among 71 chief strategists of the biggest and most influential German companies shows that virtually all (99 percent) use Porter's "five forces" to define their strategies, at least to a certain extent. Porter postulates that these five forces – supplier power, buyer power, competitive rivalry, the threat of substitution (of a product or service) and the threat of new entries into the market – determine a company's strategic position and competitive power.
Even though many of Porter's famous insights date back to the 1980s and globalization has since then made the world a different (market)place, his findings are still on most entrepreneurs' minds when it comes to crucial business decisions. His "five forces” have shaped a generation of academic research and business practice, and in 2006, the Harvard Professor was voted among the five most influential business and management gurus of our time
A current survey on behalf of Roland Berger Strategy Consultants among 71 chief strategists of the biggest and most influential German companies shows that virtually all (99 percent) use Porter's "five forces" to define their strategies, at least to a certain extent. Porter postulates that these five forces – supplier power, buyer power, competitive rivalry, the threat of substitution (of a product or service) and the threat of new entries into the market – determine a company's strategic position and competitive power.
Michael Porter
Slightly less ubiquitous but still hugely popular is Porter's "value chain" concept. Eight out of ten German chief strategists make use of this model, which helps to analyze activities through which firms can create value and competitive advantage by viewing the internal operations of companies as a chain of value-creating activities. The cluster concept is third on the list of "Top executives' Porter favorites": Almost 60 percent rely on it when pondering investment decisions, because clusters are the result of improved business conditions and point to worthy investment opportunities.
Porter, who in the late 1990s turned his academic attention to health care and corporate social responsibility issues, also succeeded in raising awareness for the interplay of strategy and society among managers: For 93 percent of the respondents, Corporate Social Responsibility is a definite strategic topic for their company.
Those that question his relevance following the emergence of new theories and game plans, are proven wrong by these opinions. Almost 30 years after his first seminal contribution, Michael Porter's findings continue to yield remarkable insights into the nature of competition and strategy. "Competitive Strategy", his first book-length publication on strategy, is now in its 63rd edition and was translated into 19 languages. And an updated version of his article, 'The Five Competitive Forces That Shape Strategy,' was published in the Harvard Business Review's January 2008 issue.
If you have questions or comments, please do not hesitate to contact us:
Porter, who in the late 1990s turned his academic attention to health care and corporate social responsibility issues, also succeeded in raising awareness for the interplay of strategy and society among managers: For 93 percent of the respondents, Corporate Social Responsibility is a definite strategic topic for their company.
Those that question his relevance following the emergence of new theories and game plans, are proven wrong by these opinions. Almost 30 years after his first seminal contribution, Michael Porter's findings continue to yield remarkable insights into the nature of competition and strategy. "Competitive Strategy", his first book-length publication on strategy, is now in its 63rd edition and was translated into 19 languages. And an updated version of his article, 'The Five Competitive Forces That Shape Strategy,' was published in the Harvard Business Review's January 2008 issue.
If you have questions or comments, please do not hesitate to contact us:
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