25 Need-To-Know Strategy Tools

Vaughan Evans is an independent strategy consultant  with a background in industry economics. He worked at management and technology consultants Arthur D. Little and at investment bank Bankers Trust. Vaughan graduated from Cambridge and has a Sloan Fellowship with distinction from London Business School. He is the author of four previous books, including the best-selling Financial Times Essential Guide to Writing a Business Plan.

“Amid all the dross of managerial writing, Vaughan Evans has once again done an outstanding job in sifting for gold. Carefully selected and succinctly described, with a view to both explanatory power and their applicability in practice, these tools are indispensable for anyone considering the future of their business.”Dominic Houlder, Adjunct Professor in Strategy and Entrepreneurship, London Business School  “This is a highly practical, punchy and brilliantly written guide to strategy development.  It is perfect for managers of large and small businesses who need to make big decisions, but have limited time for long tomes on business theory.  An excellent read.”Charles Ind, Managing Partner, Bowmark Capital LLP  "I wish I had written this book: extremely practical and clear, but full of rich content.  It is a terrific compendium of all the major strategy tools, brought to life with great examples.  Definitely the best strategy book around for people who think they can't read strategy books."Marcus Alexander, Strategy Professor, London Business School  "This book does a superb job demystifying strategy and bringing it within the reach of anyone who takes the time to read it and apply the tools.  Strategy made simple."Jeff van der Eems, Chief Executive Officer, United Biscuits International  “An excellent guide to setting strategy for businesses large and small. I particularly liked the focus on really understanding the sources of sustainable competitive advantage in the key areas of a business. The techniques described for achieving this, combined with the recommended emphasis on detailed quantitative analysis, will be of great benefit to any enterprise.Adrian Beecroft, Chairman, Dawn Capital and former Chief Investment Officer, Apax Partners  "A compulsory read for every leader, wherever they sit in a firm. These are 25 need-to-know tools to help them devise robust plans to get the business from A to B and help win the commitment of their teams."Ian Armitage, former Managing Partner, HgCapital  “Of all the books on business strategy, this is the most concise, lucid and elegantly structured statement of the current state of knowledge.  Brilliant, and beautifully written.”Jules Goddard, Fellow, London Business School  “Here are the main strategy tools, elegantly and vividly described, with the bonus of an often intriguing real life example placed alongside each one, from Samuel Adams to Zara, Marvel to Madonna.  Perfect reading for the long distance journey.”Stephen Lawrence, Chief Executive, Protocol Education Ltd and former Managing Director, Arthur D. Little  “A concise distillation of the writer’s deep knowledge of strategic thinking, distilled into a highly readable format. Even the busiest executive should find time to read these excellent 25 pointers.” Vince O'Brien, Director, Montagu Private Equity LLP  “Like economists, no two business strategists will come up with the same list of 25 most important strategy tools.  But Evans makes his case well and sets out his selection lucidly.  And the ratio of one case study per tool adds both relevance and zip to the book.  A terrific read.”Christine Harvey, former Director of Business Analysis and Planning, GlaxoSmithKline R&D  “This book offers a refreshing insight into the core strategy tools.  Compelling reading for all.”Mike Garland, Head

• About the author Publisher's acknowledgements Introduction Top 10 Dos and Don’ts of Strategy Development 1.    Identifying key segments:  Using it: IBM 2.    Setting long-term goals:  Using it: Virgin Galactic 3.    Setting SMART objectives:    Using it: the BBC 4.    Core Ideology (Collins and Porras):    Using it: Sony 5.    The HOOF approach to demand forecasting (Evans):    Using it: Apps 6.    The five forces (Porter):    Using it: Blockbuster 7.    Rating competitive position:    Using it: Samuel Adams 8.    The resource and capability strengths/importance matrix (Grant):    Using it: Virgin Group 9.    The value chain (Porter):    Using it: Zara 10.  The product/market matrix (Ansoff):    Using it: Virgin Cola 11.  The attractiveness/advantage matrix (GE/McKinsey):    Using it: Extramural Ltd 12.  The growth/share matrix (BCG):    Using it: Extramural Ltd 13.  Three generic strategies (Porter):    Using it: Southwest Airlines 14.  The experience curve (BCG):    Using it: Energy technologies 15.  Blue ocean strategy (Kim and Mauborgne):    Using it: Cirque du Soleil 16.  Optimising the corporate portfolio:    Using it: Extramural Ltd 17.  Creating value through mergers, acquisitions and alliances:    Using it: Lloyds Banking Group 18.  Creating parenting value (Goold, Campbell and Alexander):    Using it: Oil company mineral resources 19.  Core competences (Hamel and Prahalad):    Using it: Red Bull 20.  Deliberate and Emergent Strategy (Mintzberg):    Using it: Facebook 21.  Profit from the core (Zook):    Using it: Marvel Entertainment 22.  Disruptive technologies (Christensen):    Using it: Toyota 23.  Good strategy, bad strategy (Rumelt):    Using it: Wal-Mart 24.  Innovation hot spots (Gratton):    Using it: Linux 25.  The Suns & Clouds Chart (Evans):    Using it: Madonna Conclusion 10 Useful Strategy Books to Read Next Glossary of terms References and Further Reading Index