Instructors’ Manual to Accompany Contemporary Strategy Analysis (9th edn. Wiley, 2016)
CHAPTER 1. THE CONCEPT OF STRATEGY
Introduction
For my first class in a core course in strategic management, I have two major goals:
• To convey an appreciation of what strategy is—both in a business context and in other
and capabilities).
The principal themes I stress in introducing the course in strategy management are:
• The contribution of strategy to the success of organizations (and individuals, too).
• The role of strategy—especially in providing direction and integration to the activities and
decisions of the firm.
Class Outline
Even with the first class, I find it useful to kick off with a case discussion. Given that getting students to
prepare a case before the first class is often difficult. Hence, I choose for case discussion either a person
or company that students are familiar with (such that a productive class discussion is possible without any
prior preparation) or a written case that is short and simple.
In recent years I have used the following cases to kick-off my strategy course:
• Madonna. A written version of this case was included in earlier editions of Contemporary
Similar factors are evident in the much more recent career of Lady Gaga: career commitment, stunning
visual imagery, a capacity to attract popular and media attention, and highly creative and theatrical video
and live performances. The key differences are that Lady Gaga’s images are more radical and are changed
on a much speedier cycle that those of Madonna—Lady Gaga’s every appearance is an opportunity for a
new, usually outrageous, style. Second, Lady Gaga has fostered a different relatioinship with her fans
than Madonna, using the faux-intimacy of social media and identification with teenage angst to build a
loyal following.
I then shift to resources and capabilities by asking the question: “Is Madonna/Lady Gaga talented?”
Discussion of their capabilities as singers, musicians, songwriters, and dancers usually reveal that the key
talents of both are as self-promotion, image design, communication, and marketing. Similarly, both draw
upon a team of talented specialists to complement their own resources and capabilities.
This discussion typically results in a board filled with a variety of different observations. I group these
into four categories:
• Clear, consistent, long-term goals
I ask: “Do these different components of the success of Madonna/Lady Gaga constitute a strategy?” In
neither of these individuals is there any evidence of any preconceived plan—both have pursued careers
characterized by flexibility and opportunism. Yet, amidst these rich and fast-changing careers, common
patterns and themes are discernible:
• Effectiveness in identifying emerging trends in music and popular culture and building them into
I then go on to draw upon the issues raised in the discussion to develop some general themes concerning
the nature of business strategy and the overall framework for strategy analysis:
• The nature of strategy in a turbulent environment—it’s not about detailed planning; it’s about
consistency of decisions, clarity of direction, and focus upon the sources of success
planning. Hence, I find it useful to review the evolution of strategic management thought and
practice since the practice of “long–range planning” emerged in the late 1950s (see Figure 1.3).
• The process of making strategy. If strategy is not about basing detailed plans on medium-term
forecasts, how should companies formulate their strategy? The debate between the “design
school” and the “process school” provides an interesting way into this.
Alternatively, I use my case “Tough Mudder Inc.: The Business of Mud Runs” as an introductory case.
My approach is teaching this case is outlined in the accompanying teaching note to the case. The case is
useful in illuminating the same set of issues listed in the previous paragraph.
Other cases to use with Chapter 1
Apart from my Madonna case, several cases have been used by different instructors to accompany the
introductory chapter of the book. The critical factor is not so much the precise content of the case as the
role of the instructor in drawing out the main issues concerning the nature of business strategy and
Starbucks Corporation, May 2015 (R. M. Grant, Contemporary Strategy Analysis: Text and cases, 9th
edn, Wiley, 2016).
Howard Schultz’s leadership of Starbucks from a single Seattle coffee shop to a global chain of over
business environment that Starbucks faces.
Doing A Dyson: Case [A] (Imperial College, ECCH Case No. 599-051-1).
James Dyson’s bag-less vacuum cleaner is a stirring tale of the trials and triumph of a determined and
stubborn British inventor and entrepreneur. The case offers an opportunity to explore the role of strategy
The case traces Nestlé’s development of its Nespresso coffee system in a separate business unit using a
strategy that is a radical departure from that of most of Nestlé’s businesses. The case requires students to
identify and describe Nespresso’s strategy; to consider its fit, both externally with the market and
internally with Nestlé’s resources, capabilities and organizational structure and systems. It also introduces
ideas of strategy as innovation.
Chapter 1 of Contemporary Strategy Analysis discusses the debate between the “rational design” and
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“Madonna: Sustaining Success in a Fast Moving Business” (in R. M. Grant, Contemporary Strategy Analysis: