Rethinking Competitive Advantage
New Rules for the Digital Age
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- £9.99
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- £9.99
Publisher Description
From the million-copy-bestselling author of Execution
'Ingenious . . . An insightful and practical guide for leaders and practitioners at every level.' Forbes
Welcome to the age of big tech. The old rules no longer apply.
How do companies build a competitive advantage in the digital age? In this lively, accessible guide, Ram Charan - million-copy-bestselling author and advisor to some of the world's top CEOs - reveals that the tech giants have radically rewritten the rules of business. If you want to win, you need to learn to play a new game.
Delving into the inner workings of the likes of Netflix, Amazon and Alibaba, Charan uncovers the six rules that the digital giants use to stay ahead: from their emphasis on creating corporate 'ecosystems', to the way they approach team organisation and moneymaking. And he outlines how to use these rules to transform your business, starting today.
'One of the world's preeminent counselors to CEOs.' Harvard Business Review
'The most influential consultant alive.' Fortune
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
According to this thin treatise from business adviser Charan (The High Potential Leader), the main takeaway from the success of today's tech giants isn't how they use data and algorithms but their policy of continuous innovation on behalf of the consumer. In discussing Google, Apple, and Alibaba, among others, he gives some thought to how readers can push their own companies whether digital enthusiasts or skeptics in the same direction. To that end, he suggests companies should follow six rules, all revolving around thinking big, being digital, and understanding and building on a viable and fast-growing commercial niche. Charan's main example is Netflix, a company that drastically transformed itself to take advantage of the new opportunity presented by streaming, but he also discusses other major business moves, like Walmart's purchase of Jet.com, and delves into how companies like Google shook up hiring practices in order to build top-flight workforces. Unfortunately, the advice is not particularly concrete and borders on offhanded his suggestions to leaders on finding big ideas is to "discuss with your team" and "identify emerging trends that are likely to be sustained for the next... 10 years." While the high-level view of successful companies is intriguing and inspiring, the generic advice is likely to be met with an if-it-were-only-so-easy eye roll.