Title: Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant
Author: W. Chan Kim
First published January 1, 1994
240 pages, Hardcover
ISBN: 9781591396192 (ISBN10: 1591396190)
Rating: 4
Overview
This worldwide bestseller will challenge everything you thought you knew about what it takes to succeed in business. Updated with new content, Blue Ocean Strategy argues that cutthroat competition leads to a bloody ocean of rivals fighting for ever-shrinking profits.
Drawing from a study of 150 strategies across 30 industries spanning over 100 years, the authors demonstrate that lasting success is not found in battles with competitors, but in the creation of “blue oceans” – untapped market spaces ripe for growth. Discover how to make the competition irrelevant and unlock new opportunities for your business with this groundbreaking guide.
About the Author
Meet W. Chan Kim: Co-Director of the INSEAD Blue Ocean Strategy Institute and Chair Professor of Strategy and International Management at INSEAD.
Kim is a world-renowned author and his book, Blue Ocean Strategy, co-authored with Renée Mauborgne, has become an iconic and impactful strategy book with over 3.6 million copies sold. The book has been published in a record-breaking 44 languages and is a bestseller on five continents.
Kim has been ranked as one of the top three management gurus in the world by the Thinkers50 listing of the World’s Top Management Gurus. He has also been selected for the 2011 Leadership Hall of Fame by Fast Company magazine and named among the world’s top five best business school professors by MBA Rankings.
Kim has received numerous awards, including the Nobels Colloquia Prize for Leadership on Business and Economic Thinking.
Kim is a Fellow of the World Economic Forum and an advisory member for the European Union. He also serves as an advisor to several countries.
With his extensive expertise in strategy and international management, Kim is a valuable asset to the business world and beyond.
Editoral Review
Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant by W. Chan Kim is a groundbreaking book in the field of business and marketing.
The book introduces the concept of a “blue ocean” which represents a market space that is unexplored or uncontested by competitors, as opposed to the “red ocean” which represents over-saturated and competitive markets. The authors argue that in order to create and sustain growth, companies need to move away from competing in the red ocean and focus on creating new blue oceans through innovative and value-driven strategies.
Kim and co-author Renee Mauborgne use real-world examples and case studies to illustrate their ideas and provide practical tools and frameworks for companies to apply in their business strategies. The book covers topics such as value innovation, the strategic canvas, and the four actions framework, all aimed at helping companies identify new market opportunities and create new value for customers.
While the book was first published in 1994, it is still relevant and widely cited in business and marketing literature today. Its ideas have been implemented by major companies such as Apple, Nintendo, and Cirque du Soleil, and it has been translated into over 40 languages.
One of the strengths of Blue Ocean Strategy is its clear and concise writing style. The authors explain complex concepts in a way that is accessible to readers from a variety of backgrounds, without oversimplifying the material.
They present their ideas in a logical and well-organized manner, with each chapter building on the previous one. Another strength is the practicality of the tools and frameworks provided in the book.
The authors don’t just present theory, but offer concrete steps for companies to follow when implementing their strategies. The case studies they use to illustrate their ideas are also compelling and informative, providing readers with real-world examples of how blue ocean strategies have been successful in various industries.
However, one potential weakness of the book is that it can be overly optimistic about the potential for companies to create blue oceans. Critics have argued that in some industries, the competition is so entrenched that creating new markets may not be possible.
Additionally, the book has also been criticized for not providing enough guidance on how to sustain a blue ocean strategy once it has been established. Overall, Blue Ocean Strategy is a must-read for anyone interested in business and marketing.
Its ideas are innovative and practical, and its writing style is engaging and accessible. While it may have some limitations, the book offers a valuable perspective on how companies can create new opportunities for growth and innovation.
The Washington Post gives this book high marks for its expert storytelling and compassion, calling it a “sensation of floating.” We at AI, likewise, give it a firm four out of five stars for its highly informative and thought-provoking content.
