Charting the Corporate Mind

This work argues that companies are now not in a race to produce, so much as a race to learn, and those who lead must learn most - and most quickly. The central pillar of this learning process is an organization's ability to resolve dilemmas that appear and reappear in constantly changing forms. The author asks: how reliable do you make your product before you undermine your own replacement market; do you standardize your product to provide it cheaply on a large scale or do you make it distinctive; do you compete on quality and demand a premium price or do you compete on low cost; how much value can you afford; is one feature best or a combination; should you try to attract the widest possible market by combining numerous features or target a more defined market sector? This book discusses the dilemmas facing business leaders. It shows what outstanding individuals in the private sector have achieved. The book presents a tried and tested learning system which different companies can adapt to fit their own circumstances. Successful users include Shell Oil, Apple Computer and Hanover Insurance.
This book is designed as a challenge to accepted Western business assumptions and a major practical strategy statement for organizations determined to succeed.