Latest "Blue Ocean Strategy" Posts
Value Innovation – The Key to Blue Ocean Strategy®
Value Innovation is the cornerstone of Blue Ocean Strategy® and is created through a series of strategic moves resulting in a product or service substantially different from any other offering. These strategic moves also function to lower costs to the producer of the product or service, resulting in the capability to offer a high value product or service that has not been seen before, at a very reasonable price to the buyer.
Why value innovation? Value without innovation will give only incremental gains easily duplicated by the competition. Innovation without value is typically technology oriented and won’t be a commercial success.
Posted in Blue Ocean Strategy, Growth by Dr. Sarah Layton on April 1, 2009.
Well, we finally got our new website launched. Check it out at http://www.corporatestrategy.com/. Be sure and listen to the audio by clicking my photo on the home page and don’t miss the personal scrapbook link at the bottom of the About Dr. Layton page. Please let me know if you have any problems at all or have suggestions that would make it better.
Some people seem to struggle with the tools of Blue Ocean Strategy when they apply them to their own organizations as part of their strategic planning process. Starting with the next blog, I will cover each tool separately and give simple instructions for how to apply each one, step by step.
Posted in Blue Ocean Strategy by Dr. Sarah Layton on March 26, 2009.
Why not?
According to Wikipedia, a community association is a nongovernmental association of participating members of a community, such as a neighborhood, village, condominium, cooperative, or group of homeowners or property owners in a delineated geographic area. Participation may be voluntary, require a specific residency, or require participation in an intentional community. Community associations may serve as social clubs, community promotional groups, service organizations, or quasi-governmental groups.
There are many communities around the US and the world and more are being developed every day. Many are aging and now must face the future competing with the fresh new developments unconstrained by age, and old construction material and design.
Posted in Blue Ocean Strategy, Governance by Dr. Sarah Layton on July 31, 2008.
According to Craig Barrett, Chairman of Intel Corporation, the United States will need to improve its capacity to innovate if it wants to maintain its economic position in the world,. Furthermore, government must make R&D more of a priority, as should private industry.
In an interview putblished by Insead Univeristy, Barrett says that INTEL is one of the largest venture capitalists in the world and no longer invests as heavily in the US and Europe, but rather in Asia.
Posted in Blue Ocean Strategy, Governance, Growth by Dr. Sarah Layton on March 25, 2008.
It is the object of calls for reform on the presidential campaign trail. Its medical errors come under scrutiny on CBS News’s “60 Minutes.” It undergoes the Michael Moore treatment in such biased films as “Sicko.” Yes, health care in America looks like it needs a fresh prescription.
“Like it or not, our health-care system has become a price-driven commodity business,” says Florida-based corporate strategist Dr. Sarah Layton. “Blue Ocean Strategy – an approach which creates brand-new market space where no competition yet exists based on creating value — is not prevalent in this industry. Nevertheless, it is possible in any industry — even in healthcare with its regulations and constraints.”
Posted in Blue Ocean Strategy, Governance, Strategic Planning by Dr. Sarah Layton on March 18, 2008.
The other day someone asked me when Blue Ocean Strategy should be considered as a process for their company. I kept wondering when shouldn’t it be considered as a process?
Most companies seem to be in a do or die situation with our economy today. Blue Ocean Strategy tools and processes are the very best way to navigate past all that mess and create something you don’t have to worry about. Wouldn’t it be nice not to have to worry about your competitors?
Posted in Blue Ocean Strategy, Governance, Growth, Strategic Planning by Dr. Sarah Layton on March 7, 2008.
Barack Obama may have stumbled upon Blue Ocean Strategy’s number-one principle: Reconstruct Market Boundaries. Is he achieving that with new voters? Is he getting non-voters to register? How is the Obama campaign – or Clinton’s (that’s Hillary’s not Bill’s!) or Huckabee for that matter – breaking through the boundaries and changing the competitive factors? The interesting question is would he make a good President? Of course, as we saw with President Bush, only time will tell.
Posted in Blue Ocean Strategy, Growth, Strategic Planning by Dr. Sarah Layton on February 15, 2008.
What is Microsoft thinking? Some think the acquisition of aQuantive by Microsoft might be Phase 1 of a Blue Ocean Strategy* and their hostile bid for Yahoo the Phase 2 of a Blue Ocean Strategy. While these acquisitions may increase share of the online advertising market and make them more competitive, competitors already exist and will be hot on their heels. They are simply buying more space in the already bloody red ocean of competition
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The acquisition of aQuantive seems a good perfect fit for Microsoft if they want to be more competitive in their current market, because its technology targets ads based on Web surfer’s habits. That opens large swaths of new customers to Microsoft, but the markets will soon be flooded with competitors after the same business.
Posted in Blue Ocean Strategy, Growth, Strategic Planning by Dr. Sarah Layton on February 13, 2008.
Many companies think they are so different and doing such wonderful things for their customers. They probably are doing OK, but based on my conversations with many of their customers, there is no differentiation at all from their competitors. The customers are saying they are all different in the same way.
How can you determine whether you are in a bloody red ocean or a true blue ocean? How can you determine if there is a possibility of creating a blue ocean for any of your current products or services? The Pioneer-Migrator-Settler Map helps you visualize where your portfolio of products falls in the proverbial ocean.
Posted in Blue Ocean Strategy by Dr. Sarah Layton on January 29, 2008.
Ask any CEO if s/he and her/his team know the factors of competition for their products and services and they will always tell me they do. When asked to define competitive factor, often there comes a “deer in the headlights” response. Further, when you get these same people in a room, divide them into teams and have each team come up with the competitive factors for their products and services, you may get very different answers.
Posted in Blue Ocean Strategy, Growth, Strategic Planning by Dr. Sarah Layton on November 27, 2007.
