Corporate performance has increasingly come to be judged by shareholder value in the last few years, and chemical companies are among those embracing the trend. Written by an international team of leading experts from the prestigious top management consultancy McKinsey & Company, this book provides a guide to value creation for chemical companies which is based on first-hand experience gained in hundreds of strategic and operational consulting engagements in the industry, as well as extensive research projects. The book discusses today's challenges in an ever more rapidly changing business world. What is the relevance of capital markets to strategic decision making in chemical companies? What strategic paradigms currently apply to the industry? How can the selected strategies be implemented successfully? This book presents a detailed examination of innovative and traditional ways to create value, and offers authoritative information on the required management approaches. It includes some important recently emerging aspects such as the impact of e-commerce, biotechnology, and the role of financial investors. Although mainly directed at managers in the chemical industry, the knowledge contained in this comprehensive introduction to the area has sufficient general validity to benefit scientists, engineers, investors, students, and anyone else dealing with management issues in this and related fields.