Think you Know Who Your Competition Is? ....Think Again!
Rita McGrath
"In a world where we’re going from industries to arenas, how you define the competitive playing field can either give you an edge or set you back". Rita McGrath
This is a dangerous assumption! You would think that your primary competition comes from other organizations who do the same thing you do.
Rita McGrath
Consider the concept of a competitive arena, rather than an industry.
An arena represents a set of resources that you need, with different players vying for those resources. Rita McGrath
The various stakeholders – customers, of course, but sometimes other ecosystem partners – all have what Clayton Christensen famously called “jobs to be done.”
So rather than think of customers buying a product or service, think instead of their “hiring” your company to get jobs done in their lives. Rita McGrath
When you start to think about the arenas you are competing in, the strategic implications can change dramatically. Rita McGrath
Whatever the future scenarios hold, try to make sure that your strategy is robust to whatever gets thrown at it.
The goal should be preparation and resilience, not prediction – and figuring out who or what you are really competing with is key.
Rita McGrath
https://thoughtsparks.substack.com/