strategy: building and sustaining competitive advantage

Course Objectives

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Distinguish between low cost, differentiation, focus and best cost strategies
• Implement low cost strategies in their organizations to gain cost advantages over rivals
• Recognize and apply differentiation strategies in their organizations to gain differentiation advantages against rivals
• Apply the basic concepts, tools and frameworks of blue ocean strategy to create a new market place
• Explain how blue ocean strategy is 'put into action'

• Introduction to competitive strategies
  • The three big strategic questions
  • Strategy and the quest for competitive advantage
  • Defining competitive strategy
  • The five generic competitive strategies
• Low cost provider strategies
  • Objectives and key to success
  • Translating a low cost advantage into higher profits
  • Approaches to securing a cost advantage
    • Controlling cost drivers
    • Revamping the value chain
  • Keys to success in achieving low cost leadership
  • When does a low cost strategy work best
  • Pitfalls of low cost strategies
• Differentiation provider strategies
  • Objectives and key to success
  • Benefits of a successful differentiation
  • Types of differentiation themes
  • Sustaining differentiation
  • Importance of perceived value
  • Signaling value as well as delivering value
  • When does a differentiation strategy work best
  • Pitfalls of differentiation strategies
• Best cost and focus provider strategies
  • Objectives and key to success
  • When does a best cost strategy work best
  • Risks of a best cost strategy
  • Focus low cost and focus differentiation strategies
    • Objectives and key to success
    • Approaches to defining a market niche
    • When does a focus strategy work best
    • Risks of a focus strategy
• Blue ocean strategy – the new market space
  • Red ocean versus blue ocean strategies
  • The impact of creating blue oceans
  • Value innovation: the cornerstone of blue ocean strategy
  • The six principles of a blue ocean strategy
  • Analytical tools and frameworks
    • The strategy canvas
    • The 'eliminate-reduce-raise-create' actions framework
    • Reading the value curves
  • Formulating a blue ocean strategy
    • Reconstructing market boundaries
    • Focusing on the big picture, not the numbers
    • Reaching beyond existing demand