Good Strategy/Bad Strategy: The difference and why it matters

Much of what passes for strategy is a stack of goals, slogans and financial targets, and Richard Rumelt's book is largely an exercise in telling the difference. Strategy, as he defines it, is coherent action supported by an argument: a diagnosis of the real difficulty, a guiding policy for dealing with it, and a set of moves that fit together. Examples run across corporations, militaries, space programmes and public institutions, showing how a clear reading of a situation produces options that ambition alone never generates. First published in 2011, it has since become a standard text on strategy courses. Highlights for readers: • A working definition separating strategy from vision, planning and leadership talk • The diagnosis, guiding policy and coherent action structure explained in full • Case material from business, government and military history • Diagnostic tests for spotting an empty strategy document Valuable for managers, consultants and business students writing or reviewing strategy, stocked at Boipoka.