Reading 01: What is business strategy?
Fit drives both competitive advantage and sustainability:
- There are 3 strategic fits (how activities relate to each other and company positions in market): first order, second order, third order. This creates COMPETITIVE
ADVANTAGE and SUPERIOR PROFITABILITY
- First order: consistency between each activity and strategy. Competition advantages can not cancel each other out. Easier to communicate to customers through
single mindedness.
- Second order: activities are reinforcing. Value of individual activities can not be separated from whole.
- Third order: Beyond reinforcement to optimizing effort. Coordination and info exchange across activities eliminates redundancy and minimizes wasted effort.
- Strategic fits not only helps with competitive advantage but sustainability of it (hard to copy an interlocked system of activities)
Common pitfalls:
- when operating far from productivity frontier, there will be unnecessary trade offs
- Pursuing an OE has been the focus since it’s easier (tangible, measurable) and superior profitability may be hard to achieve
- Realities may work against strategy. Making no choice may be better than making the wrong one when dealing with trade offs
- Growth trap: trade offs and limits seem to limit growth which tempts managers to surpass limits. This can lead to inconsistencies and detrimental
compromises though.
- Strategy is about creating a position, making new trade offs and leveraging them to fit among activities to create a sustainable advantage
Reading 02: The Imperatives for Automation Success
- McKinsey identifies seven imperatives for automation success, which include identifying automation opportunities, building a strong business case, choosing
the right technology, planning for change management, fostering a culture of experimentation, developing the right skills, and monitoring and measuring
performance.
- Successful automation initiatives require a systematic approach that takes into account the specific needs and goals of the organization, as well as the
potential impact of automation on employees and customers.
- By following these imperatives, organizations can achieve a successful automation strategy that delivers significant benefits, including increased efficiency,
improved customer experience, and the ability to create new products and services.
**TLDR: 7 strategies for automation success, systematic approach, deliver significant benefits**
Reading 03: Future Proofing the Supply Chain
- McKinsey identifies key trends shaping the future of supply chain management
- Organizations need a holistic approach to future-proof their supply chains
- Actions include investing in advanced analytics and automation, building sustainable and resilient supply chains, and fostering more collaborative
relationships with suppliers and customers.
**TLDR: key trends of increasing automation, sustainability, greater agility and resilience in the face of disruption. businesses need holistic approach and
build capabilities across entire supply chain, investing in advanced analytics, more sustainable supply chains**
Reading 04: Scaling Green Business
- McKinsey identifies several challenges that green businesses face when trying to scale up, including the high cost of technology and infrastructure, the need
for government policy support, and the difficulty of finding skilled talent.
- To overcome these challenges, green businesses need to focus on developing a strong value proposition that appeals to customers, investors, and policymakers
alike, as well as building partnerships and collaborations that can help them access the resources they need to scale.
- McKinsey also highlights the importance of adopting a data-driven approach that allows green businesses to measure and optimize their environmental impact,
as well as building a strong culture and purpose that inspires employees and stakeholders to support the organization's mission.
**TLDR: challenges of scaling green businesses include developing strong value proposition, building partnerships and collaborations for resources. data-driven
approach important for measuring and optimizing environmental impact & build strong culture and purpose, inspires employees and stakeholders**
Four common
process strategies
Process structure: Determines the process type relative to the kinds of resources needed, and their characteristics. It includes Layout decisions.
Customer Involvement, Resource Flexibility, Capital Intensity.