Wharton on Dynamic Competitive Strategy

This book is amazingly well written and goes from the basics of strategy to more complex subjects such as game theory. But the best of it is not the wide variety of strategy subjects or the amount of real world examples it uses but the integration between chapters. One can easily read this book at once or skip to chapters that are more interesting to him/her.I consider this book essential for MBA students, management consultants and managers in general. Excellent choice!

It provides views on every angle of strategy. I appreciate the effort of the editors to combine the papers by different authors, though the content is still fragmented. Nonetheless, if you read them separately, this is a good collection of strategy-related book.

Met my expectations.

I purchased this book for school, it was a decent read, great for gathering some highlights and topic awareness gathering purposes.

David Reibstein is a marketing genius.

Both editors are marketing professors at The Wharton School (University of Pennsylvania), which is the world's leading business school (BusinessWeek and Financial Times). George Day is well-known for his market-driven strategy, while David Reibstein is one of the leading scholars in the field of competitive marketing strategy. The book is split in 4 parts, each consisting of 3-to-5 stand-alone chapters.Part I - Understanding Advantages in a Changing Competitive Environment - discusses competitive arenas, competitor analysis, and competitive advantage. The first two chapters expand largely on Michael Porter's (Harvard Business School) frameworks, whereby the other two chapters introduce approaches to include policy and technology trends into the strategic planning process.The aim of Part II - Anticipating Competitors' Actions - is to get inside the heads of competitors. Chapters 5 and 6 explain the possible use of the game theory within competitive strate!gy and strategic decision making. Chapter 7 builds on these chapters to integrate the economic frame (chapter 5), the behavioral frame (chapter 6), with an coevolution frame. The final chapters of this part introduce frameworks and approaches to understanding competitor response and competitive relationships.Part III - Formulating Dynamic Competitive Strategies - builds on the first two parts and introduces approaches to designing strategies. It introduces reactive strategies, preemptive strategies, signaling opportunities and uses, competitive positioning, and antitrust constraints (which is increasingly important to companies).In Part IV - Choosing Among Alternative Competitive Strategies - the three chapters introduce methods and frameworks for choosing the right strategy. Chapter 15, in which conjoint analysis is combined with scenario analysis, is perhaps the most complicated chapter of the book. Part IV also introduces the possibilities to use simulation !tests for analyzing and testing strategies.Although this book is named "Wharton on Dynamic Competitive Strategy", there are various chapters from other academic institutions. Each chapter is an excellent piece of work and can be read on a stand-alone basis. For beginners in the strategic field I recommend chapters 1 and 2 highly. The book is written in business US-English.

I am working on a strategic analysis report for my company, and this book is very helpful in synthesizing the mainstream strategy theories in the market to bridge the gap between theory and practice. I found the explanation of the usefulness of game theory satisfying but still not much breakthrough on defining a universal framework for formulating strategies even though much attempts on putting together all the theory. Hence, the practical usefulness is still limited. I would say, as another review suggests, Mastering Strategy providing a more practical treatment of overviewing the subject. Nonetheless, Wharton on Dynamic is definitely a good guide to have for bridging theories to practices.

The competitive challenges facing managers are more complex and fast-moving than ever. This environment demands dynamic competitive strategies-strategies that anticipate and adjust to competitors' countermoves, shifting customer demands, and changes in the business world.The Wharton Business School at the University of Pennsylvania is the oldest business school in America and one of the most revered institutions of business study in the world. Wharton on Dynamic Competitive Strategy offers new perspectives on competitive strategy from a distinguished group of faculty at Wharton and other leading business schools around the world. This book presents the best insights from decades of research in key areas such as competitive strategy, simulations, game theory, scenario planning, public policy, and market-driven strategy. It represents the most cohesive collection of insights on strategy ever assembled by a leading school of business.Developed for the thinking manager, Wharton on Dynamic Competitive Strategy provides deep insights into the true dynamics of competition. In contrast to popular, quick-fix formulas for strategic success, this book provides perspectives that will help you better understand the underlying dynamics of competitive interactions and make better strategic decisions in a rapidly changing and uncertain world.The insights and approaches presented here are illustrated with real-world examples which demonstrate how these approaches can be applied to your strategic challenges.This groundbreaking new book will change your view of strategy and give you the tools you need to succeed in a dynamic and intensely challenging world.Reviewed by Azlan Adnan. Azlan is Managing Partner of Azlan & Koh Knowledge and Professional Management Group, an education and management consulting practice based in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysian Borneo. Azlan has a MA in International Business and Management from the University of Westminster.

This book hits the nail on the head.The book shows to know even today the importance of supporting of the competitive strategies of its competitors.Highly recommended book.