Developing Strategies for Competitive Advantage (Best of Long Range Planning - Second S.)

This selection of papers from "Long Range Planning - The International Journal of Strategic Management" examines the evolution of competitive advantage over the past decade, setting out areas of major change and areas which have been less subject to change. It begins by examining how strategic management has been influenced by the transformation of industries and the changes in the rules for success, and the dramatic rise in the strategic importance of information technology. In many industries, the established rules of the game no longer apply, and their continued use will most likely lead to failure, even for firms which appear to have unassailable positions of strength. It is not that strategic planning has failed, but rather that in a previous era of greater certainty and clearer boundaries, the unquestioning application of established strategic rules often worked. In the new era of competitive uncertainty and uncertain boundaries, many of the rules of strategy still apply, but they can only have utility when applied in an appropriate context. The book concludes that when clarity exists about business definition, industry definition and competitor definition and how strategic techniques or measures should be applied, then the strategic fundamentals which have obtained for many years are likely to continue to do so.

Patrick McNamee is Professor of International Business in the University of Ulster, Northern Ireland. In addition to teaching Strategic Management on all the University of Ulster MBA programmes he has also been a visiting professor or guest lecturer at many of the universities and business schools throughout the world.

His research in the area of strategic management has led to the publication of many articles in journals; in addition he has written six books in the area of strategic management. His writings have always had the hallmark of practicality through his many close associations with companies throughout the world.