What Strategists Can Learn From Sartre

“In an existential world that may be insecure, setting strategy must become an existential exercise.”

Thus reads the intro to this article from www.strategy-business.com. This is a highly recommended reading for the corporate leader who tries to make certainty in a world of chaos.

 

 

Strategy & Competition, Winter 2003
By James Ogilvy (jay_ogilvy@GBN.com)
In an uncertain world where competitive advantage is insecure, setting strategy must become an existential exercise. Read on...

 

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Excerpt from this article:

 

Five Principles of Existential Strategy

Finitude. You can’t be all things to all people. If you’re not saying “no” to some possibilities, then you’re not acting strategically.

Being-Toward-Death. No one is too big to fail, to die, to go bankrupt. Gliding on momentum can lead to a crash.

Care. Define your interests more precisely than ROI or return to shareholders. If you don’t know where you stand, you’ll fall for anything.

Thrownness. You have a past; you have experiences and core competencies. Know them, use them, and don’t forget them.

Authenticity. Don’t be bound by your past. Feel free to reinvent yourself and your company for an uncertain future.

 

Don’t fail to read and pass on! Here’s the link again: http://www.strategy-business.com/press/article/03405?pg=0

 

Happy reading!