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Market-Driven Strategy

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Market-Driven Strategy
The market and competitive challenges confronting executives around the world are complex and rapidly changing. Market and industry boundaries are often difficult to define because of the entry of new and unfamiliar forms of competition. Customers’ demands for superior value from the products they purchase are unprecedented, as they become yet more knowledgeable about products (goods and services) and more sophisticated in the judgments they make. External influences from diverse pressure groups and lobbyists have escalated dramatically in country after country. Major change initiatives are under way in industries ranging from aerospace to telecommunications. Innovative business models that question the traditional roles of an industry are defining a new agenda for business and marketing strategy development. Companies are adopting market-driven strategies guided by the logic that all business strategy decisions should start with a clear understanding of markets, customers, and competitors.1 Increasingly it is clear that enhancements in customer value provide a primary route to achieving superior shareholder value.2 Consider, for example, Southwest Airlines’ market-driven strategy that has achieved a strong market position for the U.S. domestic carrier. The airline’s growth and financial performance are impressive. Although Southwest is the fourth largest U.S. airline, its market capitalization is greater than the total capitalization of AMR (American Airlines), Delta Airlines, and UAL Corp. Southwest’s revenues will approach $7.5 billion in 2002, compared with $4.2 billion in 1998. Net profits also are displaying strong records during this five-year period. Southwest uses a point-to-point route system rather than the hub-andspoke design used by many airlines. The airline offers services