Strategic Intent

Most leading global companies started with ambitions that were far bigger than their resources and capabilities. But they created an obsession with winning at ail levels ofthe organization and sustained that obsession for decades. oday managers in many industries working hard to match the compete advantages of their new global rivals. They are moving manufacturing offshore in search of lower labor costs, rationalizing product lines to capture global scale economies, instituting quality circles and just-in-time production, and adopting Japanese human resource practices. When competitiveness still seems out of reach, they form strategic alliances-often with the very companies that upset the competitive balance in the first place. Important as these initiatives are, few of them go beyond mere imitation. Too many companies are expending enormous energy simply to reproduce the cost and quality advantages their global competitors already enjoy. Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but it will not lead to competitive revitalization. Strategies based on imitation are transparent to competitors who have already mastered them. Moreover, successful competitors rarely stand still. So it is not surprising that many executives feel trapped in a seemingly endless game of catch-up, regularly surprised by the new accomplishments of their rivals. For these executives and their companies, regaining competitiveness will mean rethinking many ofthe basic concepts of strategy.' As "strategy" has blossomed, the competitiveness of Western companies has withered. This may be coincidence, but we think not. We