Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Building a strategy


Not to sound like an arrogant character from a 1990’s movie, but I have had a problem with strategy in the fashion world since I completed my MBA. Most executives in fashion do not know the difference between a tactic and a strategy. It is an essential responsibility of any executive, merchant, or sourcing role to build and execute a solid strategy.

I admit to sometimes interchanging the words inappropriately myself on occasion. When building a strategy however, it’s a good idea to be clear on the difference between the two. I could write more on the subject, but would rather point you to a person  I would consider the expert. I strongly encourage you to read Michael Porter’s “What is Strategy?”.  Here is the link to purchase: http://hbr.org/product/what-is-strategy/an/96608-PDF-ENG. You could also Google it and find it for free, but I do not want to support piracy. It’s worth the $7.00.

If you have followed my advice and read “What is Strategy?”, how as it changed your view of strategy? What can you do to build a strategy with supporting tactics? How successful have you been in building strategies in the past? Who have you worked with in the fashion industry who builds and implements successful strategies? What has made those strategies successful?

Learn more about the fashion industry from Career Coach Kate Kibler at http://www.katekibler.com

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