The Competitive Edge: Part I

Professor Michael Porter is one of those extraordinary thinkers who sees the business landscape in different shades and hues than most others. His breakthrough research and writing in the 1980s about competitive strategy and changed the way business leaders viewed their mission and achieved their goals. He added the phrase “competitive advantage” to the business lexicon.

Three decades later, Porter remains focused on global strategy, not only in business but in regional and national government, the non-profit sector and across a wide spectrum of leadership. His efforts to understand U.S. competitiveness and its impact on the world has spawned a major research project at the Harvard Business School, where he teaches and writes.

In part I of this podcast, Porter discusses the continuing potency of his original ideas and how information technology has changed the game. Executives, he says, need to be clear just what business they are in.

Author:  Glenn Rifkin is managing editor of the Korn Ferry Institute’s Briefings magazine.