Michael Porter Quotes

The best CEOs I know are teachers, and at the core of what they teach is strategy.

Change brings opportunities. On the other hand, change can be confusing.

Billions are wasted on ineffective philanthropy. Philanthropy is decades behind business in applying rigorous thinking to the use of money.

Without a goal analytics is aimless and worthless.

Efforts to preserve all industries will lower the national standard of living.

The economic distress of America's inner cities may be the most pressing issue facing the nation. The lack of businesses and jobs in disadvantaged urban areas fuels not only a crushing cycle of poverty but also crippling social problems such as drug abuse and crime… A sustainable economic base can be created in the inner city, but only as it has been created elsewhere: through private, for-profit initiatives and investment based on economic self-interest and genuine competitive advantage.

Businesses must reconnect company success with social progress. Shared value is not social responsibility, philanthropy, or even sustainability, but a new way to achieve economic success. It is not on the margin of what companies do but at the center. We believe that it can give rise to the next major transformation of business thinking.

The underlying principles of strategy are enduring, regardless of technology or the pace of change.

Competitiveness is defined as the ability of companies to compete while maintaining or improving the average standard of living. If you are cutting wages to become more competitive, that's not really more competitive. It's raising the skill and the efficiency of those workers so that they can support and sustain that higher wage.

You can't be all things to all people.

Companies operating in urban communities have a tremendous ripple effect.

The company without a strategy is willing to try anything.

A strategy delineates a territory in which a company seeks to be unique.

Sound strategy starts with having the right goal

If your goal is anything but profitability - if it's to be big, or to grow fast, or to become a technology leader - you'll hit problems.

A target should go with every goal. A target is the value that defines success.

I teach in the medical school, the School of Public Health, the Kennedy School of Government, and the Business School. And it's the best perch... because most of my work crosses boundaries.

Risk is a function of how poorly a strategy will perform if the 'wrong' scenario occurs.

Health care historically has been a very siloed field that's organized around medical specialties - urology, cardiac surgery, and so forth - and around the supply of these specialty services. The patient is the ping-pong ball that moves from service to service.

Strategy is about setting yourself apart from the competition. It's not a matter of being better at what you do - it's a matter of being different at what you do.

The chief strategist of an organization has to be the leader - the CEO.

Finally, strategy must have continuity. It can't be constantly reinvented.

The thing is, continuity of strategic direction and continuous improvement in how you do things are absolutely consistent with each other. In fact, they're mutually reinforcing.

Operational effectiveness and strategy are both essential to superior performance.

There's a fundamental distinction between strategy and operational effectiveness.

The essence of strategy is that you must set limits on what you're trying to accomplish.

Competitive strategy is about being different. It means deliberately choosing a different set of activities to deliver a unique mix of value.

Ultimately, health care fails the most basic test. It's not organized around the needs of the patient.

The ability to change constantly and effectively is made easier by high-level continuity.

If a strategy meets a goal: It's working. If a strategy meets a target: It's a success.

Technology has given us this wonderful opportunity to have low energy costs. We have to seize that, rather than keep debating and discussing and fighting over it.

The U.S. is facing a structural competitiveness problem that is leading to the weakest economy we have seen in generations.

The purpose of the corporation must be redefined as creating shared value, not just profit per se. This will drive the next wave of innovation and productivity growth in the global economy.

Apple does all of its research and development in America. It has all these brilliant people sitting in Silicon Valley. But until recently, Apple made nothing in America. Zero. And the jobs that were accessible to a good, well-trained worker that knew how to do welding or assembly, none of those jobs had stayed in America. We don't have the workforce.

Innovation is the central issue in economic prosperity.

Strategy is choice. Strategy means saying no to certain kinds of things.

Strategic thinking rarely occurs spontaneously

If all you're trying to do is essentially the same thing as your rivals, then it's unlikely that you'll be very successful.

The essence of strategy is choosing what not to do.

Strategy is about making choices, trade-offs; it's about deliberately choosing to be different.