Playing to Win: 7. Think Through Strategy

Description

Play to Win: How Strategy Really Works is an 8-chapter books published in 2013 by Harvard Business Review Press and written by former Procter & Gamble CEO A.G. Lafley and Rotman School of Management Dean Roger L. Martin. The authors present a framework for creating strategy based on a decade of work at P&G. The framework is a strategic choice cascade, made up of 5 decision points that apply to companies of all sizes and in all markets. The model guides leaders in making choices around a winning aspiration, where to play, how to win, core capabilities, and management systems and is enriched by using the context of P&G's experience. The authors provide perspectives on how to put the framework into practice, offering practical tips and personal insights. In Chapter 7, Think Through Strategy (23 pages), the authors provide guidance on how to organize strategic thinking and synthesize complex data. They offer a framework, called the "strategic logic flow," which identifies four major dimensions for leaders to consider-the industry, the customers, a company's relative position, and the competition-and then present seven questions that systematically evaluate these four dimensions. The strategic logic flow allows management to identify key areas of analysis to generate competitive advantage. The authors explain the seven questions using examples from many of P&G's business units. The chapter includes the essay "The Long Road to the Logic Flow."

Keywords

Competitive advantage Growth strategy Strategy management