The challenges faced by diversified corporations—firms that operate in more than one industry or market—have changed over the years. In this new edition, Olivier Furrer helps students of corporate strategy to consider the impact of critical changes in resources, businesses and headquarters roles on the firm’s ability for establishing and sustaining corporate advantage.
New to this edition are stimulating pedagogical features and additional material such as a new chapter on the theoretical foundations of multibusiness firms, along with a host of new examples from across the world.
A companion website supplements the book, providing PowerPoint slides, a test bank of questions, and lists of suggested case studies.
Preface 1. What is Corporate Level Strategy? 2. Why Do Multibusiness Firms Exist? Theoretical approaches to diversification 3. Managing the Multibusiness Firm: Theoretical approaches to corporate level strategy 4. Defining the Business 5. Diversification Strategies: Creating corporate value 6. The Issue of Relatedness: Creating synergies 7. Diversification and Performance: Limits to the scope of the firm 8. The Role of the Parent: Managing the multibusiness firm 9. Organizing and Structuring the Multibusiness Firm 10. Vertical Integration: Coordinating the value chain 11. The Growth of the Firm: Internal development, mergers & acquisitions, and strategic alliances 12. Restructuring Strategies: Reducing the scope of the firm 13. Multipoint Competition: Managing market power 14. International Diversification: Global integration and local responsiveness 15. Corporate Governance: Controlling top managers and meeting corporate social responsibilities
Biography
Olivier Furrer is Chaired Professor of Marketing at the University of Fribourg in Switzerland and Visiting Professor at HEC Geneva, Switzerland and the University of Lille, France.
'This highly readable book is a valuable guide to assess ways in which a corporate parent can add or destroy value to its portfolio of businesses. With a keen eye for the history of the field, Furrer provides a welcome overview of what constitutes strategy at the corporate level in a way that is accessible to both students of management and practitioners alike.' - Rick H.L. Aalbers, Assistant Professor of Strategy & Innovation, Radboud University, the Netherlands
'This book blends theory and practice and gives voice to the adage that the best theory is the best practice and vice versa. The book is written to stress learning and thus each chapter begins with learning objectives and each chapter ensures that it covers material that should provide the reader with knowledge to accomplish those objectives. In closing, it is a very valuable book on a very important subject.' - Devanathan Sudharshan, Professor, University of Kentucky, USA
'This book provides an excellent roadmap and a set of essential tools for every step in the ongoing struggle between diversifying and restructuring around the blurred boundaries of corporate and competitive levels of strategy. A bedside handbook for students and C-level managers of any firm.' - Miguel González-Loureiro, Associate Professor, University of Vigo, Spain and CIICESI, Portugal
'There are many textbooks in Strategic Management but very few in Corporate Strategy. Furrer not only fills this gap but also offers a comprehensive presentation of the main issues on this important area of strategy. He covers the traditional topics such as diversification strategies, vertical integration and mergers and acquisitions as well as, most importantly, including some less well researched areas, such as defining the business, restructuring strategies and managing and organizing the multibusiness firm. This is an essential book for Corporate Strategy.' - Luis Ángel Guerras-Martín, Professor, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Spain
'Olivier Furrer provides an all-encompassing, eloquent, and imperative insight in corporate strategy. Building on a solid theoretical foundation, he details on multiple contemporary topics, including firm growth, multi-market competition, restructuring, and corporate social responsibility. The book is rich with mind-expanding examples, which reinforces the book’s freshness and enables an easy comprehension of the content. If one seeks to obtain an understanding about what corporate strategy is, and why it matters, this book is a must have!'- Brian Tjemkes, Associate Professor, VU University Amsterdam, the Netherlands
