The purpose of this book is to understand strategy from a business model perspective. What does that mean? It means that managers have to think rigorously about their value proposition and their revenue and cost model before thinking of a strategy. The business landscape calls for challenging assumptions continuously. What is the difference between a business model and a strategy? A business model is how a company operates and a strategy is how a company competes. When the basis of competition changes because a new model changes the economics in the industry (i. e. publishing & book retailing) business models need to be adjusted and then the strategy realigned. This book adds a level (to the traditional strategic management process) that is more consistent with current 'real-world' practices in strategic thinking and analysis. It takes the students deeper into the intricacies of what constitutes a business model and how current strategy revolves around it. It is based on the premise that strategies cannot be formulated without first understanding the fundamental elements of a business model. Why modules? The module approach breaks down the breadth of information provided in traditional strategy textbooks into manageable modules as learning projects. It focuses on 7 key strategy impact areas as levels of analysis. It requires individual, team and class exercises for each module, which culminates into a consulting assignment in Module 7. It offers 7 modules of 2 weeks each. The first week of the module focuses on readings, cases, and individual and class exercises. The second week is the application week with team exercises where students engage in active research and develop mini-case papers.
About the Author
Francine Newth Providence, RI; Associate Professor; Providence College.
