Synopsis
The belief that managers and potential managers will profit from understanding the major conflicting approaches to strategy forms the point of departure for this book. Ignoring the profound differences between the various schools of thought does not enhance a managerÂ's or studentÂ's capacity for strategic thinking. Rather, it is only when there is knowledge of the various points of view can strategists truly see the range of options open to them. Then they can find a way to choose between them, or integrate them, to be practically effective. To structure the comparison of strategy approaches, the most important conflicting strategy perspectives have been clustered together around ten key strategy issues, one key issue per chapter. Two classic readings in each chapter by key strategic thinkers further represent the two opposite positions. De Wit and MeyerÂ's Strategy Synthesis actively challenges the educational orthodoxy to encourage students and managers to be critical, and to challenge them to be analytical, in order to facilitate creativity and unconventional thinking. In this text the authors carefully guide students and managers through the many, often conflicting, perspectives in the field of strategy, in order to help them become true strategic thinkers.
About the Authors
Bob de Wit is director of the Strategy Academy, an international research and educational institution focusing on strategy, leadership and business innovation issues (www.strategy-academy.org). He is also managing director of Strategy Works, an international strategy consulting and coaching firm that facilitates boardroom decision-making and guides companies through processes of strategic renewal (www.strategy-works.com).
Bob has a BA in Psychology from the University of Utrecht, an MBA from the Delft University of Technology and a Ph.D. in management from the Erasmus University in Rotterdam. From 1985 to 1996 he was a professor of strategic management at the Rotterdam School of Management. Since 1996 he has held a chair in Strategy at the Maastricht School of Management, where he also served as the Associate Dean for research from 1997 and 2001. Bob is an active member of the Strategic Management Society, where he serves as chairman of the Interest Group `The Practice of Strategy¿, as member of the annual conference paper review committee, and as a member of the McKinsey Best Paper Prize committee.
Prof. Ron Meyer is Professor of Corporate Strategy at TiasNimbas Business School, Tilburg University. Ron studied Political Science at the University of Alberta in his native Canada. After receiving his bachelor's degree he moved to the Netherlands and got his MBA and PhD at the Erasmus University in Rotterdam. From 1987 to 1998 he was a professor of strategic management at the Rotterdam School of Management / Erasmus Graduate School of Management. During this period he taught strategy in 15 countries, at universities and in companies, and acted as consultant to a wide variety of firms. For two years he was also Associate Director of RSM, in charge of managing the MBA Program. Since 1998, at the Center for Strategy & Leadership and its predecessors, Ron has combined boardroom consultancy work with in-company trainings and applied management research. As consultant he works with many top international companies on such topics as corporate strategy, business innovation, strategic alliances and strategies for growth. As trainer he has given seminars and training courses to hundreds of companies around the world and lectured at more than 30 universities. He has (co-)authored numerous articles and books, among which the internationally leading textbook on strategic management, Strategy - Process, Content, Context: An International Perspective. Over 250.000 copies have been sold so far and the book is used at more than 200 business schools around the world. In 2005 the 2nd edition was published of Strategy Synthesis: Resolving Strategy Paradoxes to Create Competitive Advantage, while his latest book, Mapping the Mind of the Strategist, was published in 2007.
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