Joan Magretta (1)

Michael Porter, an author renowned for his works on competition and strategy, including Competitive Strategy (1980) and Competitive Advantage (1985), developed a framework for analyzing industries in the context of competition. He identified the competitive landscape as a set of five forces that impact the industry.

In "Understanding Michael Porter," Joan Magretta, Porter's former editor at Harvard Business Review, presents a comprehensible overview of Porter's framework and ideas. The book is divided into two parts: part one introduces readers to the general terminology and concepts, while part two establishes implementation and fitness criteria for strategy.

Porter's framework emphasizes a firm's value chain, which refers to the distinct economic activities a company performs from end-to-end until it reaches its customers. It is worth noting that readers may find Porter's framework more or less revealing, depending on their industry.

I highly recommend this book to those who do not have adequate time or patience to read all of Porter's works or who need help understanding the intricate relationships between the concepts presented without the academic overhead. I also suggest paying particular attention to the author's notes between chapters and Porter's interview at the end of the book.… (more)