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What Is Strategy ?

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What is strategy?
Strategy is the creation of a unique and valuable position, involving a different set of activities such as: * Few needs of many customers * Broad needs of few customers * Broad needs of many customers in a narrow market
Today, in this globalized world, each and every sector of economy has been integrated into a single platform by technology. The businesses and markets are becoming dynamic and advancement in technology have questioned the sustainability of competitive advantage. All the industries and organizations all over the world are under tremendous pressure to improve productivity, quality and speed. In order to manage these factors, managers are using the tools such as TQM, benchmarking, and re-engineering. Operational improvements are taking place but it has not been able to provide sustainable profitability to the organizations. And gradually, these tools of measurement have taken the place of strategy. In his five-part article, Michael Porter explores how that shift has led to the rise of mutually destructive competitive battles that damage the profitability of many companies. As managers push to improve on all fronts, they move further away from viable competitive positions. Porter argues that operational effectiveness, although necessary to superior performance, is not sufficient, because its techniques are easy to imitate. In contrast, the essence of strategy is choosing a unique and valuable position rooted in systems of activities that are much more difficult to match. Porter thus traces the economic basis of competitive advantage down to the level of the specific activities a company performs.
Now, let us briefly analyze the different points that Micheal Porter is trying to focus in this article. i. Operational Effectiveness is not strategy
Operational effectiveness means performing similar activities better

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