My aim in this book, as in the previous editions, has been to cover the concepts
and principles of strategic management, but not to stop there. Concepts and
principles are of limited value unless people know how to apply them, and much
of the book is devoted to application. In fact I would argue that those who never
get deeper than the overall concepts are unlikely to know very much about their
subject. But I would maintain also that those who believe they are expert in
methods and techniques are only likely to have a true depth of expertise when it
is built on a sound conceptual platform. Theory and practice are two sides of a
coin, and the true expert will have both.
There are many ideas about strategic management, and the subject itself has
evolved through several stages from its origins as long-range planning.
Unfortunately some of those who promote new approaches feel that they also
have to demonstrate the fallibility of everything that has gone before. This is a
pity, because it confuses, and acts as an obstacle to a professional approach to the
subject. True knowledge is built through the contributions of many people, and
to try to deny parts of the past is to emerge with only a partial understanding of
the subject, and to create the danger that the wheel will be reinvented, although
disguised in different colours, time and time again. I hold to the belief that the
‘right’ approach to strategic management is more situational than many have
believed, and that almost every idea or concept is right in some, but rarely in all,
circumstances. The skill is to learn to know when. One aim of the book is to put
the various concepts in context, and to help the reader to what should be a main
objective of strategic management, the ability to undertake strategic thinking.
This means that the reader will not find one dogmatic approach to every aspect
of strategic management, but an attempt to show the richness and variety of what
is available, so that the best choices can be made.