I have been blessed with many opportunities up until now to be a part of stimulating consulting projects among different corporations. Giving lectures or conducting research at the graduate level are, of course, very thought provoking too; but as consulting is exactly “an opportunity to practice theory,” it is very exciting. Normally, once the strategy formulation process is complete, the client team takes the lead to actively implement the execution process. At that point, I often provide lectures on strategic management or strategic marketing to the team leaders or staff members who are in charge of the implementation team. In such cases, as much as possible, I try to avoid theories that are excessively detailed, and conversely, an analysis that is too broad. Why? The answer is simple; these subject matters are completely useless when making strategic judgments on a business level.

There is already a great deal of literature on management theory. These include many theoretical books that analyze subjects ranging from strategic management to business strategy, competitive strategy, marketing management, strategic marketing, one-to-one marketing, consumer behavior, growth strategy, functional strategy, technology management, and so forth. Numerous how-to books on strategy formulation have also been published. However, I feel that there are not enough texts that systematically synthesize - not as individual parts - the truly meaningful essence of strategy, marketing and other related subjects in the business scene that require the pursuit of results while making actual decisions.

The theme of this book is learning how to strengthen the capability of envisioning appropriate directions or attractive and strategic options (we refer to this capability as strategic thinking), while combining the environmental changes of the market and competitors with management resources and capabilities of the company, and immediately being able to surmise the impact on your business. The uniqueness of this text lies in its systematization, through use of a strategic management process and selected elements that are essential during strategic judgment. From this awareness, the text contains 15 points that are deemed as necessary to create attractive and strategic options, which have been compiled into systematic steps. I have put together a systematic flowchart of the 15 keys essential for creating attractive and strategic options.

The 15 steps are largely divided into three parts, and the keys are analyzed under the subjects of corporate strategy, business strategy, and performance results.

The following five subjects will be discussed under corporate strategy: Clarifying the corporate mission, Macro-level situation analysis, Setting up corporate goals, Defining the scope of business (product line-market), and Asset allocation (Product Portfolio Management/PPM).

The following eight subjects will be covered again under the theme of business strategy: Clarifying the business vision, Micro-level situation analysis, Setting up business goals, Defining the scope of business (product-customer), Competitive strategy, Marketing management, Designing the value chain, Developing structure and systems.

Finally, I will comment on the performance results of strategic management that consist of brand building and financial projections. The qualitative results of strategic management are presented as brand building, while the quantitative results are presented in financial projections.

This book is suitable for management or business professionals who need to develop business strategies or who wish to improve their strategy development process within the organization. It is also designed for use in business school courses that focus on marketing and strategy-related issues, such as strategic management, strategic marketing, entrepreneurship, etc.

I hope this book becomes the backbone for the action and decision making of professionals who are practicing strategy or marketing in the business world. Furthermore, nothing would make me happier than if I am able to contribute in some way towards building a stronger economy as the sum total of creating attractive products as well as solutions, and developing competitive businesses and winning companies by working with everyone.

Eiichi “Eric” Kasahara
May 2014