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If a strategy meets a goal: It’s working. If a strategy meets a target: It’s a success.

Michael Porter

Change brings opportunities. On the other hand, change can be confusing.
MICHAEL PORTER

Change Confusion Hands Opportunity
If your goal is anything but profitability – if it’s to be big, or to grow fast, or to become a technology leader – you’ll hit problems.
MICHAEL PORTER

Big Goal Leadership Problem Profit Yourself
Risk is a function of how poorly a strategy will perform if the ‘wrong’ scenario occurs.
MICHAEL PORTER

Function Performance Poor Risk Strategy Wrong
The underlying principles of strategy are enduring, regardless of technology or the pace of change.
MICHAEL PORTER

Change Endurance Pace Principle Technology
Strategic thinking rarely occurs spontaneously.
MICHAEL PORTER

Occur Rare Strategy
I teach in the medical school, the School of Public Health, the Kennedy School of Government, and the Business School. And it’s the best perch… because most of my work crosses boundaries.
MICHAEL PORTER

Boundary Government Medicine Teaching
Technology has given us this wonderful opportunity to have low energy costs. We have to seize that, rather than keep debating and discussing and fighting over it.
MICHAEL PORTER

Cost Discussion Energy Fight Low Opportunity Technology Wonderful
Strategy is choice. Strategy means saying no to certain kinds of things.
MICHAEL PORTER

Choice Decline Kind Strategy
Innovation is the central issue in economic prosperity.
MICHAEL PORTER

Economics Innovation Issues Prosperity
The thing is, continuity of strategic direction and continuous improvement in how you do things are absolutely consistent with each other. In fact, they’re mutually reinforcing.
MICHAEL PORTER

Consistency Direction Each Other Improvement Strategy
The best CEOs I know are teachers, and at the core of what they teach is strategy.
MICHAEL PORTER

Best Myself Strategy Teacher
A target should go with every goal. A target is the value that defines success.
MICHAEL PORTER

Definition Goal Success Target Value
If all you’re trying to do is essentially the same thing as your rivals, then it’s unlikely that you’ll be very successful.
MICHAEL PORTER

Rival Success Try Yourself
Competitive strategy is about being different. It means deliberately choosing a different set of activities to deliver a unique mix of value.
MICHAEL PORTER

Activity Choice Competition Deliver Different Unique
Good leaders need a positive agenda, not just an agenda of dealing with crisis.
MICHAEL PORTER

Deal Goodness Leadership Need Positive
The essence of strategy is that you must set limits on what you’re trying to accomplish.
MICHAEL PORTER

Accomplishment Limitation Strategy Yourself

If a strategy meets a goal: It’s working. If a strategy meets a target: It’s a success.

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If a strategy meets a goal: It’s working. If a strategy meets a target: It’s a success.

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Popular Authors

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