Better, Simpler Strategy - by Felix Oberholzer-Gee (Hardcover)

About the Book

"The list of potential threats and strategic challenges seems to be growing exponentially. At the same time, the laborious processes used by many firms to develop a workable strategy often feel overly bureaucratic and behind the curve. There is no question that strategic decision-making has become more challenging and complex. In fact, many companies seem to have given up on strategy altogether. In Better, Simpler Strategy, Harvard Business School professor Felix Oberholzer-Gee provides executives with a simple tool to cut through technological complexity and market uncertainties. The Value Stick, based on proven economic mechanics, is an extraordinarily powerful tool that helps executives decide where to focus their attention and how to deepen their firm's competitive advantage. How does the Value Stick work? It provides a way of measuring two fundamental forces that lead to value creation and capture-the customer's willingness to pay and the employee's willingness to sell their services to the firm"--

Book Synopsis

Named one of the best strategy books of 2021 by strategy+business

Get to better, more effective strategy.

In nearly every business segment and corner of the world economy, the most successful companies dramatically outperform their rivals. What is their secret? In Better, Simpler Strategy, Harvard Business School professor Felix Oberholzer-Gee shows how these companies achieve more by doing less. At a time when rapid technological change and global competition conspire to upend traditional ways of doing business, these companies pursue radically simplified strategies. At a time when many managers struggle not to drown in vast seas of projects and initiatives, these businesses follow simple rules that help them select the few ideas that truly make a difference.

Better, Simpler Strategy provides readers with a simple tool, the value stick, which every organization can use to make its strategy more effective and easier to execute. Based on proven financial mechanics, the value stick helps executives decide where to focus their attention and how to deepen the competitive advantage of their business.

How does the value stick work? It provides a way of measuring the two fundamental forces that lead to value creation and increased financial success--the customer's willingness-to-pay and the employee's willingness-to-sell their services to the business. Companies that win, Oberholzer-Gee shows, create value for customers by raising their willingness-to-pay, and they provide value for talent by lowering their willingness-to-sell. The approach, proven in practice, is entirely data driven and uniquely suited to be cascaded throughout the organization.

With many useful visuals and examples across industries and geographies, Better, Simpler Strategy explains how these two key measures enable firms to gauge and improve their strategies and operations. Based on the author's sought-after strategy course, this book is your must-have guide for making better strategic decisions.

Review Quotes

Named one of "The 10 Best Business Books of 2021" by Forbes

"This book lives up to the promise of its title by distilling strategy into a beautifully simple premise..." -- strategy+business

Advance Praise for Better, Simpler Strategy:

"In our fast-evolving and complex world, it's crucial to mobilize our teams with a clear and compelling strategy. In this enlightening and practical book, Oberholzer-Gee leads you to design a simple strategy statement and helps you understand how to maximize the gap between willingness-to-pay and willingness-to-sell." -- Florent Menegaux, CEO, Michelin

"Simplicity is a virtue, and Better, Simpler Strategy cuts through the jargon of business to provide an invaluable first-principles strategic guide. Illustrated by a wealth of in-depth examples, this book puts forward a new value-based framework for coming up with breakthrough strategies." -- Adam Brandenburger, J.P. Valles Professor, NYU Stern School of Business; coauthor, Co-opetition

"The value stick is an incredible tool based on Oberholzer-Gee's twenty years of research and practice in the field of strategy. It reveals the essence of strategic issues in a simple and intuitive manner, making formerly complex and difficult strategic decisions easy and effective." -- Liu Xiaoyan, CEO, E Fund Management, China's largest fund manager

"Strategy is an art and a science, and often a mystery. Better, Simpler Strategy demystifies value creation, making strategy accessible and exceptional performance achievable to all levels of leaders." -- Aman Bhutani, CEO, GoDaddy

"Oberholzer-Gee expertly distills the complex topic of strategy down to the simplicity of the value stick, using hard data and real-life examples that bring the pitfalls and opportunities of a bad or good strategy to life. This book will change the way you think about strategy and competition." -- Helen Riley, CFO, Google X

About the Author

Felix Oberholzer-Gee is the Andreas Andresen Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School. An award-winning instructor, his academic work has been published in the very best peer-reviewed journals of his profession. He currently teaches competitive strategy in executive education programs such as the Harvard General Management Program. He also serves as faculty chair of the Senior Executive Leadership Program for China and the Driving Digital Strategy program. He is a cohost of the popular HBR Presents podcast After Hours.

You can find Felix Oberholzer-Gee at:
hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/profile.aspx?facId=251462
linkedin.com/in/felix-oberholzer-gee-16424b4/