Think Tank-Beyond the Five Forces Model and Blue Ocean Strategy: An Integrative Perspective From Sun Zi Bingfa

摘要

The 2,300-year-old military treatise Sun Zi Bingfa has been extensively applied to the business arena over the years. A study of Michel Porter's five forces model regarding competitive strategy and the blue ocean strategy espoused by W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne shows that key concepts contained in both theories hark back to the ancient philosophy of Sun Zi. In his work, he urged leaders to proactively attack an undefended or weakly defended area while maintaining a proactive defense. An analysis of this holistic perspective in addressing competitive challenges offers useful guidance to forward-thinking 21st-century strategists in both the East and the West.