Book Description
With the publication of his best-selling books Competitive Strategy (1980) and Competitive Advantage (1985), Michael E. Porter of the Harvard Business School established himself as the world's leading authority on competitive advantage. Now, at a time when economic performance rather than military might will be the index of national strength, Porter builds on the seminal ideas of his earlier works to explore what makes a nation's firms and industries competitive in global markets and propels a whole nation's economy. In so doing, he presents a brilliant new paradigm which, in addition to its practical applications, may well supplant the 200-year-old concept of "comparative advantage" in economic analysis of international competitiveness.
To write this important new work, Porter and his associates conducted in-country research in ten leading nations, closely studying the patterns of industry success as well as the company strategies and national policies that achieved it. The nations are Britain, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States. The three leading industrial powers are included, as well as other nations intentionally varied in size, government policy toward industry, social philosophy, and geography.
Porter's research identifies the fundamental determinants of national competitive advantage in an industry, and how they work together as a system. He explains the important phenomenon of "clustering," in which related groups of successful firms and industries emerge in one nation to gain leading positions in the world market. Among the over 100 industries examined are the German chemical and printing industries, Swiss textile equipment and pharmaceuticals, Swedish mining equipment and truck manufacturing, Italian fabric and home appliances, and American computer software and movies. Building on his theory of national advantage in industries and clusters, Porter identifies the stages of competitive development through which entire national economies advance and decline.
Porter's finding are rich in implications for both firms and governments. He describes how a company can tap and extend its nation's advantages in international competition. He provides a blueprint for government policy to enhance national competitive advantage and also outlines the agendas in the years ahead for the nations studied. This is a work which will become the standard for all further discussions of global competition and the sources of the new wealth of nations.
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A four-year, ten-nation study of the patterns of competitive success in leading countries concludes that companies achieve competitive advantage through acts of innovation. A nation's capacity to innovate is affected by four broad attributes, the "diamond" of national advantage: 1) factor conditions; 2) demand conditions; 3) related and supporting industries; and 4) firm strategy, structure, and rivalry. Based on this analysis, government and companies should act as catalysts and challengers, but not get directly involved in competition.
Customer Reviews:
A Classic.......2007-01-24
"The Competitive Advantage of Nations" gives insights into why and how industries, regions, nations or some social groups thrive or fall short. The book explains and presents the theory on the sources of sustained prosperity in the contemporary worldwide economy. This seminal work has assisted countries to develop national policy based on their international competitiveness.
Porter methodically and systematically discusses why some nations achieve continual economic prosperity. He explains the roles of governments and companies in economic development. The author shows the distinction between competitive advantage as a source of wealth and the concept of comparative advantage which had been until recent years the paradigm on thinking about international competition.
Porter based his research in 10 leading trading nations. The book introduced the author's "diamond" which is a new way of looking and comprehending the competitive advantage of a nation. His concept of "clusters" or groups of interconnected firms, suppliers, related industries and institutions in certain locations opened a unique way for organizations and governments to look at economies and assess the competitive advantage of locations and set public policy.
This weighty tome is recommended reading for entrepreneurs, business executives, policy makers, economists and other readers who are interested in ensuring that companies can successfully face the future based on pragmatic assessment of how the firm can gain competitive advantage.
Strategy - It's a matter of life and death .......2005-05-03
As an active Business Consultant I'm often appalled at the lack of disregard for the importance of strategy. It's a matter of life and death (at least for your company).
"Vision without action is a daydream. Action without vision is a nightmare." - Japanese proverb
Why read a book on strategy? Quite simply, to be successful. Technology and globalization culminated in ferocious competition for virtually all industries. To be competitive in today's world, you must understand that all value is derived from the customer. Therefore, you will do well to delve deep into how to create value for the customer.
Competition is becoming increasingly global. Therefore, it is in your best interest to understand how national, international, and governmental issues affect your industry and hence, your company.
Third in Porter's landmark trilogy, Competitive Advantage of Nations, somewhat different from his first two books, focuses less on industries and companies themselves, and more on how a firm actually gains an advantage over its rivals.
Competitive Advantage of Nations consists of four parts:
Part I - Foundations, presents the theoretical frameworks which form the basis for the rest of the book. In Chapters 2, 3 and 4 Porter revisits most of his previous work, such as the five competitive forces, generic strategies, the value chain, and the advantages "diamond".
Part II - Industries, frameworks of Part I are applied to explain the histories of four industries (German printing press, American patient monitoring equipment, Italian ceramic tiles, and Japanese robotics). In addition, Porter applies the frameworks to the service sector.
Part III - Nations, frameworks of Part I are applied to ten nations. Porter splits these ten nations up in early post-war winners, emerging nations in the 1970s and 1980s, and the traditional business countries (Britain and USA).
Part IV - Implications, Porter discusses the impact of the frameworks of Part I on company's strategies and government policies. In the final chapter Porter tries to answer the question, "What of the future?" According to Porter "the central economic concern of every nation should be the capacity of its economy to upgrade so that firms achieve more sophisticated competitive advantages and higher productivity. Only in this way can there be a rising standard of living and economic prosperity."
In summary, Competitive Advantage is a must read for any Aspiring Entrepreneur. To lead your company into the future you must create and capture value. Reading this book will help you better understand how firms within industries gain a competitive advantage. Don't be blindsided by the comfort of the moment, prepare for the future now.
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Michael Davis, President - Brencom Strategic Business Consulting
Virtuosic analysis of national productivity and technology.......2003-06-14
Forty to fifty years ago economists and political theorists did much armwaving about what makes nations competitive. In the past 20 years tools like analysis of patents, R&D expenditures, the numbers of scientifically educated people, have provided more quantitative insight. To these tools Porter adds realistic analyses of top industries in various countries - from shoes and couture in Italy, to Silicon Valley in the U.S. He points out that the fastest growth comes when favorable factors are concentrated in centers where diverse groups - industrial, academic, sometimes government or traditional industries come together and have intense interactions. This book glitters with insights and ideas. The author is among the leading US analysists of economic performance, heading a study discipline at Harvard and working with the National Bureau of Economic Research
Reasons for success and failures of nations.......2001-12-12
Michael E. Porter is a Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School and a leading authority on competition and strategic management. Porter is the author of the legendary business and management books 'Competitive Strategy' (1980), and 'Competitive Advantage' (1985). I cannot start this review without a word of warning: This book is consists of 850 pages and is thus not a quick weekend-read.
In this book, the author aims to answer the question, "Why do some social groups, economic institutions, and nations advance and prosper? ... I titled the book 'The Competitive Advantage of Nations' to highlight the crucial distinction between my broader concept of competitive advantage as a source of wealth and the nation of comparative advantage which had long dominated thinking about international competition." In order to answer this question, Porter uses his traditional extensive research methods and tools to prove his point.
The book is split up in four parts: (i) foundations; (2) industries; (3) nations; and (4) implications. In Chapter 1 - The Need for a New Paradigm, the author discusses the reasons for his research: "The central question to be answered is why do firms based in particular nations achieve international success in distinct segments and industries? The search is for the decisive characteristics of a nation that allow its firms to create and sustain competitive advantage in particular fields, that is, the competitive advantage of nations."
In Part I - Foundations, the author presents the theoretical frameworks which form the basis for the rest of the book. In Chapters 2, 3 and 4 Porter revisits most of his previous work, such as the five competitive forces, generic strategies, the value chain, and the advantages "diamond". Porter makes an important notion before turning the second part of the book: "The theory can and must be applied at two levels, the industry and the nation."
In Part II - Industries, the frameworks of Part I are applied to explain the histories of four industries (German printing press, American patient monitoring equipment, Italian ceramic tiles, and Japanese robotics). In addition, Porter applies the frameworks to the service sector. This is a sector which Porter has discussed very little in his previous books. "... an increasingly important class of industries where international competition has not been widely studied."
In Part III - Nations, the frameworks of Part I are applied to ten nations. Porter splits these ten nations up in early post-war winners, emerging nations in the 1970s and 1980s, and the traditional business countries (Britain and USA). Thank God, the author discusses both successes and failures within the different countries, plus identifying the reasons behind them. He also advises which steps can be taken to improve national advantage.
In Part IV - Implications, Porter discusses the impact of the frameworks of Part I on company's strategies and government policies. In the final chapter Porter tries to answer the question, "What of the future?" According to Porter "the central economic concern of every nation should be the capacity of its economy to upgrade so that firms achieve more sophisticated competitive advantages and higher productivity. Only in this way can there be a rising standard of living and economic prosperity."
This book is an impressive piece of research and Porter gets assistance from over 30 research assistants from all around the world. The book is not a simple read due to the amount of information provided and the length of the book. For readers who have read Porter's previous masterpieces I would like to stress that this book is considerably different than his previous masterpieces. It focuses less on industries and companies themselves, but more on national, international, and governmental issues. This book shows the author's education and training (Harvard PhD in economics). Still, the book is an impressive piece of work, although not for the fainthearted.
Act Three of Three in a Symphony.......2000-07-27
A model for localize advantage not exclusively predicated on geography, geography, geography (location, location, location). A guide for what a government can effectively do to attract, grow, and sustain world class competitive industries. Should be read by every sub-saharan nation that has try to create industries without much success. It's Balanced Regulation, Respect for Private Property, Even Handed Law, and Education STUPID! If every tin horn dictator would read Dr. Porter and Dr. Olson we may eventually all live in a better planet.
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- Global Information Warfare - On going and getting worse
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Global Information Warfare: How Businesses, Governments, and Others Achieve Objectives and Attain Competitive Advantages
Andy Jones ,
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ASIN: 0849311144 |
Book Description
Like no other book before it, Global Information Warfare illustrates the relationships and interdependencies of business and national objectives, of companies and countries, and of their dependence on advances in technology. This book sheds light on the "Achilles heel" that these dependencies on advanced computing and information technologies create. It underscores how hostile countries, business competitors, terrorists, hacktivists and others are waging Information Warfare (IW) against their adversaries. This may sound like science fiction, but it has been happening for years and continues to this day-anyone and everyone can be a target and a casualty.
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Global Information Warfare - On going and getting worse.......2002-07-11
We wrote this book, because global information warfare attacks are increasing and awareness of the threats is the first step towards defending against such attacks. Here's what others have said about our book:
"...successful organizations are the ones that actively manage their information environment...having the capabilities to conduct offensive and defensive information warfare (IW) is absolutely essential. Many countries, cartels, and terrorist organizations possess sophisticated information warfare know-how and will do what they can to disrupt a nation's freedom, safety, economy and social fabric. The concepts and recommendations in Global Information Warfare are a good place to start and ones which I heartily endorse. Kent Kresa, Chairman and CEO, Northrop Grumman Corporation. Los Angeles, California, USA
The authors have written another "must have" for ALL Security professionals charged with the protection of corporate assets. This book clearly depicts everything you need to know about defending your systems and information, while giving you the information you need to understand the global nature of information warfare. Suzanne Gorman, SIAC, Director, Corporate Information Security Awareness and Investigations, New York City, New York, USA
Awareness is the first and key step in finding proper solution for any problem. Awareness of the nature of the problem, its various appearances, consequences as well as of tools and means to fight it and their strengths and weaknesses. This book gives you exactly that, in a quick, complete yet comprehensive way: awareness! Predrag Pale, University of Zagreb, Deputy Minister of Science and Technology of Croatia 1993-2000, "Father" of Croatian Internet, Croatia
Going business on the global information superhighway can be a dangerous business. Consequently, if you are an information security officer with a responsibility for the protection of key business information assets then this book is a book that you will want to have and use. This book provides all the information you need to understand the global nature of information warfare. It also provides you with all the information that you need to begin to defend your information systems against attack. In short, if you want to protect your systems and do business on the Internet then you need this book. Dr. Andrew Blyth, School of Computing, University of Glamorgan, UK
Information Warfare has many perspectives and this book serves as an excellent overview as well as stimulation for further thinking. Manuel W. Wik, Chief Engineer, Strategic Specialist,
Defence Materiel Administration (FMV), Stockholm, Sweden
In recent years, the conception of Information Warfare has become very popular in advanced countries. This concept involves employing information and information technology to affect all aspects of politic, economy, military, and psychology of other countries, and to defend our country, especially during the war period. This book provides readers with basic and new knowledge regarding Information Warfare, and enlightens readers to realize that Information Warfare has become more and more important to every country, society, military, and individual. As a Col. instructor of Air Command and Staff School, National Defense University, R.O.C., I strongly recommend this book to all students studying in military schools and for every soldier. This book will not only expand our knowledge, make us realize the importance of Information Warfare, above all, it will make us be better prepared for the next war. Ching-Chang Wu, Air Force Colonel, Chief Instructor, Air Command and Staff School, National Defense University, Republic of China.
Global Information Warfare is an in-depth assessment of current drivers and initatives that govern the protection perimeters and profiles that will be needed for the immediate future. It combines a common sense approach to understanding the global critical infrastructure, our individual nation-state and corporate vulnerabilites, and what must be done at what level; by whom. It is an exciting and explicit investment in the future, a must read manuscript for the security practitioner. Don Evans, Senior Security Engineer, United Space Alliance, Houston, Texas, USA
This book is a practical survival guide for anyone working in the world of protecting information against any adversary that's motivated to attain a competitive edge. Jerry Swick, WorldCom Network Security Operations Center, Investigative Services, Los Angeles, California, USA
The authors have written a book that is essential reading for managers, executives and both physical and information security professionals. In the era of e-business and global commerce linked via the Internet understanding the means and methods of information warfare will be crucial for both private sector as well as governmental leaders. The authors have done the public a great service by describing clearly how, when, why and where we can expect to see information warfare emerge into increasing importance. Spurred on by the global war on terrorism it's inevitable that global information warfare will be waged, and therefore it's critical that we all be well informed on this once arcane topic. Read this book and learn! William Boni, Chief Information Security Officer, Motorola Corporation USA
Information Warfare is complicated and very serious business. This book will organize and simplify your understanding of it. Information Warfare is a sad reality of the 21st century. Failure to understand it and deal with it can be disastrous. This book will help you do both. Ed Halibozek, Corporate Director of Security, and IS Sector & Western Region Manager of Security, Los Angeles, California, USA
A timely and relevant book by authors who know the subject, inside and out. Well worth the time to read. Michael Stankosky, D.Sc., Professor of Knowledge Management, The George Washington University, USA
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- Asian Post-Crisis Management: Corporate and Governmental Strategies for Sustainable Competitive Advantage
- Very good coverage of China
- Excellent and practical insights
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Asian Post-Crisis Management: Corporate and Governmental Strategies for Sustainable Competitive Advantage
Manufacturer: Palgrave Macmillan
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ASIN: 0333949641 |
Book Description
A decade ago, a writer from Fortune magazine wrote in the preface to Kim Woo Chong's book, Every Street is Paved with Gold, that Kim, the Daewoo empire's founder, "personifies the drive and imagination that makes East Asia a dynamic center of economic growth." Kim fled South Korea in late 1999, shortly after his empire crashed. From his initial exile post in Frankfurt, he submitted his resignation from all the Daewoo group's companies. He has left no clue about his whereabouts since then.Kim Woo Chong's meteoric rise as one of Asia's most powerful tycoons, and his equally spectacular fall, symbolize the Asian miracle and the prolonged crisis that threatended to destroy it in 1997 and that still hangs over the economic landscape. The system's flaws became apparent in mid-1999, when Kim acknowledged that his companies, which had acquired a global reach in a debt-fueled expansion binge, could not pay their creditors. By the time the banks that took over the Daewoo group had calculated $80 billion in liabilities, Kim was changing addresses in Europe. For Asia, lessons from the crisis indicate that traditional methods of operation through debt financing and over-investing will fail. This lesson and others are explored in Asian Post-Crisis Management.
Contributers: Usha C.V. Haley • Masaaki Kotabe & Shruti Gupta • Yasuhiro Arikawa & Hideaki Miyajima • George T. Haley • Brij N. Kumar, Yunshi Mao & Susanne Birgit Ensslinger • Nancy E. Landrum & David M. Boje • Xue Li, John Kidd, & Frank-Jürgen Richter • Malcolm Cooper • Yi Feng & Baizhu Chen • Howard V. Perlmutter • Sek Hong Ng & Malcolm Warner • Thomas Clarke • Keun Lee • Caroline Benton & Yoshiya Teramoto • Fred Robins • Michael A. Santoro & Chang-su Kim • Beverly Kitching • Hock-Beng Cheah & Melanie Cheah
Customer Reviews:
Asian Post-Crisis Management: Corporate and Governmental Strategies for Sustainable Competitive Advantage.......2005-09-15
Accurate description of the item and swift notice and delivery
Very good coverage of China.......2002-10-24
Professor Haley has edited an excellent compilation of chapters on Asian business -- I thought the chapters on China, its business environments, problems and opportunities, and industrial restructuring were particularly useful. A valuable addition to the genre.
Excellent and practical insights.......2002-10-06
Very good review of the major Asian economies and business concerns in these regions. Especially useful as businesses enter China after its WTO entry and ponder new relationships with post-crisis SE Asia.
Book Description
Entrepreneurs and managers are increasingly aware that the environment can be both a threat and an opportunity to their current economic activities. This timely book discusses the question of environmental performance versus corporate practices and finds that environmental considerations can have a positive effect on business.
The perception of the environment as a means to achieve competitive advantage for companies is a relatively recent phenomenon. The contributors address how to create institutional environments that stimulate businesses to integrate the environment in strategic decision making and thereby promote eco-efficiency. Together they build a convincing argument that the economy-environment trade-off is a false stalemate: societal and market forces may impact on the environment and on business in positive, neutral or negative ways. The authors use evidence from the United States and Europe to demonstrate that environmental considerations can have a positive effect on the competitive advantage of firms.
This book draws together three fields - environmental economics, environmental regulation and strategic management - and will be of great interest to scholars and practitioners working in these areas.
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Industrial Policy and Competitive Advantage (International Library of Critical Writings in Economics)
Manufacturer: Edward Elgar Publishing
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ASIN: 185898470X |
Book Description
The emergence of industrial policy as a central issue among both policy makers and the intellectual community reflects not only concerns about the international competitiveness of firms and nations but also unemployment and growth. Scholarship on industrial policy has been scattered across a wide range of disciplines and subjects, rendering it difficult to grasp the state of knowledge on the subject. The purpose of this three volume set is to provide the classic articles forming the building blocks of scholarship on industrial policy and present them in an integrated framework. These classic contributions span a number of subjects within economics, such as international trade, industrial economics, labor economics, economic development and technological change, as well as a number of different academic disciplines, including political science, sociology, international relations, and international management. The first volume focuses on The Mandate for Industrial Policy, the second on Instruments and Targets, and the third on Industry and Country Studies.
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- The engine of growth: cluster dynamics
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The New Competitive Advantage: The Renewal of American Industry
Michael H. Best
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
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ASIN: 0198297440 |
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This book addresses the sustained resurgence of American economy, and the firms, regions, and technologies that are driving this growth. Michael Best develops a new model of technology management and regional innovation based on the principle of systems integration. The principle of systems integration is manifest in the organizational capability of firms, individually and networked, to foster rapid technological change. Application of the principle of sysyems integration to business organization means integrating an ongoing technology management capability into a production system. The effect is a network or clusterof entrepreneurial firms in which design is decentralized within the enterprise and diffused anongst networked enterprises.It is a business model ideally suited to product-led strategies and technological innovation. The combination of entreprenurial firms and inter-firm networks is shown to foster a range of dynamic cluster processes which, in turn, underlie the growth of Silicon Valley and the unexpected resurgence of Boston's Route 128. The general character of the capabilities and innovation perspective is illustrated with applications to regions at different levels of industrial development. The implications for policy making are profound: technology management is a powerful lever for both fostering growth and shaping competitive advantage. Moreover, it offers a framework for addressing the challenge of ecologically sustainable growth. Complex product systems, such as energy, transportation, and health, are a consequence of past and present technology RandD choices and corresponding investements in technical education. Thus capability and skill development policies shape what is on offer in the marketplace.
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The engine of growth: cluster dynamics.......2002-08-11
In the 1970s and 1980s, the competitiveness of American economy seemed to be eroded away in the face of Japanese challenge. But all of a sudden, applauded Japan lost its way in the 1990s and by middle of the decade, American industries resurged. This book is one of attempts to explain such dramatic rise and fall, and find the underlying mechanism of industrial success stories. The author demands us to delve into the regional growth dynamics to solve those puzzles. Best attributes the rise and fall of nation economies to the underlying dynamics of local clusters. The unit of analysis in conventional economics is either the economy or the individual (including firm). But such approaches haven't provided acceptable explanations. Michael Porter argues the basic unit of analysis should be the industry, to understand competitiveness and productivity. Actually Michael Porter's conception of competitive advantage, cluster has been widely adopted in 1990s. Competitive advantage of the firm is created and sustained through local competition in its industry, Porter maintains. But local industry is not isolated from other local industries. It's connected to clusters of industries through vertical and horizontal relationships. Cluster is firm's home base environment. For example, Porter argues that, in "Can Japan COmpete?" , Japanese industry, like auto or electronics, is competitive where its backing cluster is strong, while uncompetitive, like petrochemicals or aerospace, where backing cluster is weak. Cluster is the ecology of the firm. And firm's competitive advantage is shaped in its ecology. Advantages in its ecology are necessary for achieving and sustaining competitive success. For Porter, rivalry between leading firms in the local is the driver and the weapons to compete comes from the local environment. The firm read and identify the market opportunities and shape its strategy to exploit the opportunities and mobilize the resources from the local cluster. So the firm is the real actor in the economic drama, Porter points out. But ironically, the internal organization of the firm does not feature in Porter's cluster.To construct the acceptable framework to explain the cluster dynamics, Best argues the firm should be given the due role in economic drama. Here comes the Schumpeterian entrepreneur. There are so many clusters. But there are few successful cluster like Silicon Valley. Few develop the regional growth dynamics. In competition between the two regions, the higher productive region will create regional competitive advantage. The difference lies in a few driver or creator of cluster dynamics: the entrepreneurial firm. To the entrepreneurial firm, competition is not price-based but product-based. To do so, the entrepreneurial firm pursues market niches by developing unique production capabilities, often of a technological form, to differentiate its product from competitors. In turn, the process of such developing precipitates new market opportunities to guide the new product development. Capturing those opportunities leads to another round of developing production capabilities. We could identify such process in Japanese practice of kaizen. In the Japanese production system, production process and developing process are integrated. Best calls it as technology management. In kaizen system, the innovation of technology is systemized in production process so developing technology is not one-off event but continuous process. The production is the process not only of producing product but also of finding new knowledge. In short, the entrepreneurial firm refers to a few firm in cluster with the dynamics of such virtuous circle. Best call it technology/market dynamic. The internal dynamics of the entrepreneurial firm induces the regional cluster dynamics. It's a virtuous circle too. No firm, no matter how big, can pursue all technological possibilities it created. Apple could not make all the peripherals for its Apple computer, like applications, printers, monitors and so on, on its own. Apple had not enough resources to make all of them. Those were possibilities to other firms opened up by Apple. And Apple PC was itself the given-up possibility by Xerox. Those are not pursued internally become market opportunities for other firms, resulting in so-called Silicon Valley effect. New small entrants can exploit new technology capability, advance the emerging technology and develop the new market. The entrepreneurial firm start-up system is particularly strong in the Silicon Valley and Route 128. Best attributes the resurgence of American economy to such cluster dynamics.
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Organizational Capability and Competitive Advantage: Debates, Dynamics and Policy (International Library of Critical Writings in Business History)
William Lazonick
Manufacturer: Edward Elgar Publishing
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ASIN: 1852787767 |
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Upgrading New Zealand's Competitive Advantage
Graham T. Crocombe ,
Michael J. Enright , and
Michael E. Porter
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
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ASIN: 0195582241 |
Book Description
Why has the New Zealand economy underperformed over the last three decades? How did New Zealand end up one of the most indebted nations, when it was once prosperous through international trade? This book seeks to answer these questions by setting out a rigorous framework for the development
of a more prosperous New Zealand economy and drawing on the findings of the "Porter Project," the largest research project ever undertaken into the sources of New Zealand's competitive advantage. This research examined the top twenty export industries, using a microeconomic approach as opposed to
the traditional macroeconomic analysis.
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The Dutch Diamond: The Usefulness of Porter in Analyzing Small Countries
Manufacturer: Garant Uitgevers N V
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 9053504605 |
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