Resources
[1] General / strategy
[1] Fundamentals of Beyond Default - 2.5 minute video with the authors explaining the term ‘default future’. The page includes links to other short videos by the authors explaining different aspects of thier book.
[2] Beyond Default - contemporary approach to strategy and change by David Trafford & Peter Boggis based on the belief that the purpose of strategy is to change the trajectory of an organisation, from one taking it to its ‘default future’ to one that takes it to an improved future. The default future of your organisation is the place it will end up if no action is taken, other than that currently planned.
[3] Strategy necessary for success (BBC, 2018) - what is strategy and why do businesses need it? What distinguishes a good strategy from a bad one? Evan Davis chairs a round table discussion to find out the answers.
[4] Help me stop pandemics (TED talk, 2006!) - how smallpox was eradicated from the planet, and calls for a new global system that can identify and contain pandemics before they spread.
[5] House of strategy - model for sharing / explaining strategy across whole organisation.
[6] Digital Transformation Handbook - a practical guide for organisations wishing to adopt a structured, agile approach to driving competitive advantage through the use of digital technology.
[7] What is strategy? - a nine-minute animated video answering this important question!
[2] Fourth industrial revolution
[1] Industry X.0 (Accenture)
[2] What is industry 4.0? (Forbes)
[3] What it means, how to respond (WEF) The Fourth Industrial Revolution: what it means, how to respond
[4] WEF Global Intelligence (WEF) website of Industry 4.0 resources
[9] Digital Transformation Revolution (Medium) The Digital Technology Transformation
[5] Fourth Industrial Revolution - practices, opportunities, challenges (Petrillo et al)
[6] Challenges (Deloitte) Industry 4.0 Challenges and solutions for the digital transformation and use of exponential technologies
[7] Industry 4.0 and Humanity 4.0 (TED Talks, 2018) short TED style lecture outlining Industry 4.0 from opportunities and challenges viewpoint.
[8] What is Industry 4.0 and what does it mean for you? (University of Derby, 2019) - short 2 minute video introducing the topic. Easy to understand overview.
[9] What is the Fourth Industrial Revolution? The “Fourth Industrial Revolution” is a common phrase at the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland. But what exactly does it mean? CNBC’s Elizabeth Schulze explains.
[10] Industry 4.0: how intelligent machines will transform everything we know (TED, 2015) - The fourth industrial revolution is upon us: machines infused with intelligence. This transformation will transform how manufacturing works today, making it 30% faster and 25% cheaper because a machine will know when it makes a mistake and will correct itself.
[11] What Is Industry 4.0 and How Did We Get Here? Lengthy video (1hour 16) of lecture from MIT associated organisation giving thorough overview of subject.
[127] What is Industry 4.0? (IBM) - the company’s point of view and solution set with some thought provoking case studies.
[3] Strategic agility
[1] Explaining strategic agility - 12 min video interview where Doz & Kosonen describe the concept and how it enabled Nokia to attain market leadership position.
[2] Nokia’s failure in the mobile phone industry - 10 min video where Prof. Doz uses strategic agility failure to explain the subsequent demise of Nokia.
[3] Strategic Agility and international joint ventures - The willingness - ability paradox of family firms – in this journal of management article the authors combine the two themes of family business and international joint ventures and explore how strategic agility can overcome the emotional gap common in family firms that can inhibit Joint Venture formation.
[4] Strategic Agility: and agenda for executive IT leaders - This California Management Review article focuses on information technology leaders and their evolving strategic role at the forefront of organisations. It describes how these practitioners can build and maintain strategic agility, and it concludes by conceptualising these practices in an agenda and leadership framework.
[4] Internal and external environments / forces
[1] Exogenous forces - summary of recent round table discussing the importance of understanding the external environment and their impact on strategy.
[2] How information gives you competetive advantage - written by Michael Porter & Victor Millar in 1985 provides the basis for modern strategic thinking and information driven change.
[3] An Interview with Michael E. Porter. Hear it from the man himself! Porter's five competitive forces is the basis for much of modern business strategy. Understand the framework and how to put it into practice.
[4] Porter’s 5 Forces Explained - Hear it from Lars! He talks about Porter's Five Forces and how to use it properly with the aid of some examples from the airline industry. The Five Forces model is a framework that helps assessing the industry attractiveness through the relationship between.
[5] Economics of Mutuality - a joint initiative between SAID (Oxford Business School) and the MARS corporation looking to balance profit with people and planet in determining organisational contribution.
[6] Your Strategic Context is Defined for You, Not by You - insightful explanation of how forces affect an organisation, and some common mistakes leaders can make in dealing with them.
[5] Scenario futures
[1] Living in the futures - HBR article describing the powerful method of considering strategic choices.
[2] Scenarios: an explorer’s guide - Royal Dutch Shell pioneered the use of scenario futures and have been using it for over 40 years. This is their guide as a 98 page PDF.
[6] Storytelling and operating principles
[1] Five essential tips for business storytelling (Forbes) - easy to read guide
[2] How to tell a great story [HBR] - excellent advice!
[3] How operating principles can make strategy meaningful - overview from David Trafford and Peter Boggis (authors of Beyond Default) explaining the comon gap between strategic vision and implementation and why operating principles are a good way of bridging the gap.
[7] Governance
[1] Companies Act 2006 (UK Government, 2006) - the (rather dry) reference text defining the statutory roles and responsibilities of a director in Part 10 (A Company’s Directors) sections 171 to 177.
[2] Director’s general duties under the Companies Act 2006 (icsa, 2020) - useful 19 page synopsis of the companies act from a director viewpoint.
[3] UK Corporate Governance Code (FRC, 2018) - commonly known as the Code - sets out function of board and role of members including but not limited to NED.
[4] Comply or explain (FRC, 2012) - in depth treatment of this concept which is central to the operation of the Code.
[8] Leadership, culture and change
[1] People and Organisational Culture the development and usage of the Organizational Culture Profile.
[2] 5 TED Talks to Inspire Great Company Culture – exploring different aspects of culture.
[3] Measuring Culture: 18-page eBook with contributions from several authors.
[4] 10 culture metrics you should be tracking how company culture determines how things get done.
[5] Defining a digital culture – case study-centric paper.
[6] Digital transformation challenges a systematic literature review.
[7] The role of culture in digital transformation explores how organizations work through a digital transformation.
[8] The nine elements of digital transformation how managers can use technology to redefine their businesses.
[9] Growth mindset behaviours ‘building a culture that delivers better business outcomes’.
[10] .How to drive cultural change three integral steps businesses can take to drive company change.
[11] Understanding the agile mindset contrasting this to bureaucratic mindset common in some organisation.
[12] EAST Four simple ways to apply behavioural insights how behaviour can be changed.
[13] The power of believing you can improve 10 minute TED Talk Prof. Carol Dweck.
[14] Life begins at the end of your comfort zone 9-minute TED talk power of moving beyond your comfort zone.
[15] Leadership in digital transformation (infographic) why leadership in digital transformation processes is so important.
[16] Leadership in the digital era includes Prof. Dweck’s mindset framework at the centre of making leaders more effective.
[17*] Digital success requires a digital culture (McKinsey) suggesting three pragmatic steps to overcome culture barriers to being digital.
[18] Trickle down effect of good (and bad) leadership - HBR article about this powerful yet often under-rated effect.