Editor’s letter

Citation

Randall, R.M. (2008), "Editor’s letter", Strategy & Leadership, Vol. 36 No. 6. https://doi.org/10.1108/sl.2008.26136faa.001

Editor’s letter

Article Type: Editor’s letter From: Strategy & Leadership, Volume 36, Issue 6

When something surprisingly different is happening in the world you can hear the excitement in people’s voices, if you just listen. That’s why this special issue, “Anticipating opportunity,” has lots of memorable quotes. For years managers have been urged to adapt to rapid change with slogans like “Ready, Fire, Aim.” Now the future has arrived, it’s truly different and not what we expected. Co-creation of unique experiences will rule, says C.K. Prahalad! What you used to know about markets, offerings, competition, management and resources is suddenly antique. So listen closely to what these visionaries and top consultants are saying about the challenges of anticipating opportunities in the rapidly transforming business environment:

C.K. Prahalad heralds a new era of innovation

Robert J. Allio

“Increasingly, companies will have to learn how to mobilize the resources of many to satisfy the needs of one.”

Value opportunity webs: a new concept for anticipating potential marketplace breakthroughs

Liam Fahey and V.K. Narayanan

“A Value Opportunity Web, a process for anticipating potential marketplace breakthroughs, [collects insights] from a community of experts in a variety of fields, individuals “close to the action” who can anticipate, for example, how a set of technologies might intersect at some future point in time to create new product solutions.”

Assessing the risk of M&A: Bruner’s Disaster Framework applied to Berkshire Hathaway’s Gen Re Acquisition

Joseph Calandro, Jr

“Robert Bruner’s Disaster Framework can help corporate leaders better assess the likelihood of M&A failure, or the risk of other ambitious strategic initiatives.”

The anticipatory leader: futurist, strategist and integrator

Anika Savage and Michael Sales

“Anticipatory leaders can reframe difficult conditions to illuminate unperceived opportunities.”

Globality: challenger companies are radically redefining the competitive landscape

Harold L. Sirkin, James W. Hemerling and Arindam K. Bhattacharya

“The central idea of globality is that organizations are now competing with incumbents and challengers, from the developed world and the developing economies, everywhere for everything – customers, talent, capital, intellectual property, and opportunities.”

The new demography of the 21st century: part 1 – the birthrate surprise

Martin Walker

“By the year 2050 … more American babies will be born than Chinese ones and the United States will be contributing more to the world’s population growth than a shrinking China.”

And speaking of changes, the Editor’s desk has moved across the US, and so when I’m not reading Strategy & Leadership articles on the computer screen I get to watch the dramatic meteorology of a new landscape. I’ve forsaken my vista of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge for one of New York City’s George Washington Bridge. Instead of watching fog blanket the Marin Headlands I can now take inspiration from the spectacular thunderheads and sunsets that materialize over the Hudson River and the New Jersey Palisades.

Good reading,

Robert M. RandallEditor