Real-world strategic management practice in an interactive micro-case format The Strategy Pathfinder presents an innovative, dynamic guide to strategic thinking and practice. Using real-world case examples from companies like Apple, the BBC, Hyundai, LEGO, McDonalds, Nike and SpaceX to illustrate critical concepts, this book enables readers to actively participate in real-world strategy dilemmas and create their own solutions. Strategy Pathfinder’s ‘live’ micro-cases provoke discussion about business models, value creation, new ventures and more, while its complimentary instructional content introduces you to the best ‘classic’ and new tools of strategic management. Rather than passively reproducing past and current ideas, Strategy Pathfinder encourages strategic thinkers to learn by doing. The book is designed to help the reader to develop a clear understanding of key concepts while shifting your thought processes towards real strategic action and innovation by enabling you to: Use strategy theories and frameworks to engage in analytical and creative discussions about key strategic issues facing real companies today Form strategic views for yourself, and test them against the views of others Effectively make and communicate recommendations based on solid strategic analysis that stand up to scrutiny from multiple stakeholders Become an active producer of new strategic ideas rather than a passive receiver of past wisdom This third edition has been updated with new chapters and cases to reflect the latest, cutting-edge issues in strategic thinking and practice. And the updated companion website offers students, instructors and managers more resources to facilitate understanding, interaction and innovation. As an active learning experience, The Strategy Pathfinder 3rd Edition engages the reader in the work of strategy practitioners. By arming you with the empirical research you need, and the best strategic management theories and frameworks to better analyse situations you're likely to encounter or already facing in your career, The Strategy Pathfinder teaches you how to improve your strategic thinking and practice, and develop your own strategic pathways for the future.

"This book explores areas such as strategy development, service contracts, human capital management, leadership, management, marketing, e-government, and e-commerce"--Provided by publisher.

Phua focuses on applying the best of corporate strategy and innovation tools and praxis into the policy process with the aim of devising a coherent policy strategy–innovation framework and process. Government and business strategies differ in their operating assumptions and variables, but the strategy process is more similar than is often perceived. Phua debunks the government versus business dichotomy and demonstrates the potential for cross-learning between both domains. Readers will benefit the most by reading this book in tandem with Phua’s other works on strategy also featured in this series. This book is an essential primer for academics, practitioners and learners of public policy, strategy, innovation and applied problem-solving.

People tend to think of creativity and strategy as opposites. This book argues that they are far more similar than we might expect. More than this, actively aligning creative and strategic thinking in any enterprise can enable more effective innovation, entrepreneurship, leadership and organizing for the future. By considering strategy as a creative process (and vice versa), the authors define ‘creative strategy’ as a mindset which switches between opposing processes and characteristics, and which drives every aspect of the business. The authors draw experiences and cases from across this false divide – from the music industry, sports, fashion, Shakespearean theatre companies, creative and media organizations and dance, as well as what we might regard as more mundane providers of mainstream products and services – to uncover the creative connections behind successful strategy. “Creative Strategy is a talisman for those looking to take a new path” Matt Hardisty, Strategy Director, Mother Advertising “It has been said that business is a hybrid of dancing and calculation – the former incorporating the creative within a firm, the latter the strategic. Bilton and Cummings show how these apparently contradictory processes can be integrated. Their insights about how firms can ‘create to strategize’ and ‘strategize to create’ are informative for managers and management scholars alike.” Jay Barney, Professor and Chase Chair of Strategic Management, Fisher College of Business, The Ohio State University “In today’s world, new thinking – creativity – is required to tackle long-standing problems or address new opportunities. The trouble is few organizations understand how to foster and apply creativity, at least in any consistent manner. This book provides new insights into just how that can be done. It moves creativity from being just the occasional, and fortuitous, flash of inspiration, to being an embedded feature of the way the organization is run.” Sir George Cox, Author of the Cox Review of Creativity in Business for HM Govt., Past Chair of the Design Council

The Strategy Pathfinder is built around micro-cases of real-life problems faced by companies and executives. These micro-cases help readers to engage with the kinds of situations they will encounter in their working lives while provoking discussions about key theoretical themes. Original presentation and design makes this an essential companion for both the business-school classroom and the executive briefcase. The book also brings experienced and potential executives alike an instant guide to the concepts and techniques they need to know.· The Strategy Pathfinder User s Guide· Strategic Pathways· The Strategy Paths Combined· Macro-Shocks· Movers & Shakers· Industry Terrain· The Big Picture· Perfect Positioning· Living Strategy· Corporate Character· Crossing Borders· Guiding Change· Sustain Ability· Maverick Strategies

A more sustainable business is a more profitable one. Financial Times Briefing on Sustainable Business is your practical and accessible guide to transforming the way you do business, to the gain of both the environment and your bottom line. It will show you what youneed to do to develop a sound, authentic and most of all profitable approach to environmental sustainability.The unique structure of the book will ensure that you get the targeted advice you need. Financial Times Briefings are designed to give busy decision-makers the answers to pressing issues that require hard measurable results

Dozens of lively international case studies that help readers put core marketing principles in a real-world context From market research to positioning and brand management to customer relations, marketing is the engine that drives innovation and growth in the modern business organization. This latest addition to the acclaimed Pathfinder series, like its popular predecessor, The Strategy Pathfinder, features a unique blend of core concepts and brief, international case studies. A refreshing contrast to traditional marketing texts and references, which tend to be prescriptive and directive, The Marketing Pathfinder offers professionals and marketing students alike an effective way to contextualize the marketing decisions they'll make in the real world of business. Not another one-size-fits-all marketing toolkit, The Marketing Pathfinder functions as a dynamic, interactive resource Each chapter presents a set of core concepts, frameworks, and tools, followed by five or more short, lively international case studies illustrating how the concepts and tools can be applied in the real world The case studies are specifically designed to encourage readers to pursue additional independent research and to encourage them to articulate and defend their decisions Throughout, the emphasis is on the reader as a marketing professional in the thick of it and responsible for the decisions they make

Pragmatism is enjoying a renaissance in management studies and the social sciences. Once written off as amoral, relativist and opposed to the ideals of Truth, Reason and Progress, it is now regaining influence in public policy, international relations and business strategy. But what can pragmatism teach us about strategy? How can pragmatic strategies help businesses to succeed? This innovative book presents a pragmatic framework for shaping and solving strategic problems in a practical, creative, ethical and finely balanced manner. To achieve this, the authors draw from Confucian teaching, American pragmatism and Aristotelian practical wisdom, as well as business cases across industries and nations, particularly from emerging economies. With significant theoretical depth, direct practical implication and profound cultural sensitivity, the book is useful for executive managers, public administrators, strategy researchers and advanced students in the search for pragmatic strategies in an interconnected, fast-moving world.

The field of strategic management has developed significantly since its birth from "business policy" and "business planning" in the 1960s. Pioneering studies were essentially normative, prescriptive, and often based on in-depth case studies. The evolution of strategic management into a respected field of academic study resulted from the adoption of research methods previously employed in economics. Today, research in strategic management is likely to employ a mixture of methods borrowed from related and unrelated disciplines, such as politcal sciences, psychology, neuroscience, and behavioral economics, which can be confusing to researchers new to the field. This book provides the reader with a broad introduction to the array of qualitative and quantitative research methods required to investigate strategic management. Throughout the book, strong emphasis is placed on practical applications that transcend the mere analysis of the theoretical roots of single research methods. The underlying result is a book that encourages and aids readers to "learn by doing" – in applying the implications of each chapter to their own research. This text is vital reading for postgraduate students and researchers focused on business strategy.

This new edition of the popular The Strategy Pathfinder updates the micro-cases of real-life problems faced by companies and executives. These micro-cases help readers to engage with the kinds of situations they will encounter in their working lives while provoking discussions about key theoretical themes. Original presentation and design makes this an essential companion for both the business-school classroom and the executive briefcase. The Strategy Pathfinder brings experienced and potential executives alike an instant guide to the concepts and techniques they need to know. An innovative introduction to strategy. Makes readers active “producers” of strategy, rather than passive recipients of received wisdom. Presents essential pathways through the strategy jungle. Each case provokes discussion about a key theoretical theme. Encourages readers to form a view themselves, and then test it against the views of others, before offering recommendations about how best to proceed. Cases are drawn from Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe and Oceania. Supported by online lecturer supplements.