This book is written for practicing executives getting ready to assume executive responsibilities and for MBA and EMBA students who aspire to senior management responsibilities. Success in business depends to a considerable degree on the ability to craft and implement effective strategies. Companies that enjoy a competitive advantage over their rivals typically have a better understanding of customer needs and wants, how they can create value, who their competitors are, and how they behave. Formulating a sound strategy requires both analysis and synthesis and therefore is as much a rational as it is a creative act. Successful strategies reflect a solid grasp of relevant forces in the external and competitive environment, a clear strategic intent, and a deep understanding of an organization's core competencies and assets. Generic strategies rarely propel a company to a leadership position. Knowing where to go and finding carefully considered, creative ways of getting there are the hallmarks of successful strategy. This book builds upon the collective writing experiences of both authors. Between the two of them, they have written dozens of books and some hundred and fifty articles in academic and professional journals, mostly focused on strategy formulation and implementation. The content of this book also reflects our broad experience in teaching this subject to a wide variety of audiences - from undergraduate students to MBA's to practicing executives. Our goals were simple: to communicate succinctly, in a conversational style, at an advanced level, with an executive perspective