Strategy Maps
Converting Intangible Assets into Tangible Outcomes
Harvard Business Review Press, 2004
Category:
Strategy
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(7)In this summary you will learn
- How to balance various forces that affect your organization: tangibles, intangibles, current profit and future innovation
- How value-added strategies differentiate your firm and your products
- How to create and implement a "strategy map" and achieve its goals
- What the "Balanced Scorecard" method involves
- How other companies have applied the strategy map concept
Why you should read Strategy Maps
If this book were a Hollywood film, it might be titled "Son of Balanced Scorecard" or even "Balanced Scorecard III." This book, however, is no mere spin-off or sequel. In two prior works, The Balanced Scorecard (which you may wish to read before reading this book) and The Strategy-Focused Organization, authors Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton introduced the powerful concept of measuring the elusive intangibles that affect organizations. This information-dense book was born when the authors observed that CEOs instinctively draw arrows to explain their goals. This led to a breakthrough realization: "Objectives should be linked in cause-and-effect relationships." The graphic display of these relationships is a "strategy map." This book breaks new ground by providing a template so executives can be sure that their strategic planning omits nothing. It expands the concepts of "strategic themes" and "value-creating processes," and explains a system for aligning your organization’s strategy with its intangible assets. However, the real-world examples may be lost on CEOs who are unfamiliar with MBA-style case studies. If you’re implementing a "Balanced Scorecard" initiative or planning your firm’s future, getAbstract.com says this is a blockbuster you don’t want to miss.
About the Authors
Robert S. Kaplan is a professor of leadership development at Harvard Business School, and chairman of the Balanced Scorecard Collaborative, where David P. Norton is co-founder and president. Kaplan and Norton also co-authored The Balanced Scorecard and The Strategy-Focused Organization.
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