With my vast experience of having been involved in the strategy process of exactly ONE company, perhaps I’m not the best judge of this book. But since when did credibility stop someone from posting his opinions on the internet, eh? So here we go.

I guess the highest praise I can give a book is that is has changed my perspective, in what I have to assume is a good way. Made me smarter, perhaps. This book did just that. Hat-tip to the colleague who recommended it! It details the common pitfalls of running the strategy process, many of which I recognized from my first rodeo, so to say. Sandbagging. Incremental improvement. Etc. Of course, as Teddy Roosevelt said (according to a motivational poster I saw), “Complaining about a problem without posing a solution is called whining.” Lots of people can do that. Yours truly included. This book goes beyond, naturally.

If you haven’t already picked it up from my previous non-fiction book reviews, let me state it plainly: I like data. Empirical evidence turns me on. If something (e.g. sleep) has been empirically proven to have an effect (e.g. to improve memory), I will take the claim seriously. Of course, you can get statistics to say anything, so I don’t always take claims at full face value, but, well, supporting evidence tends to help. This book has it.

Basically, the McKinsey authors lay out 10 things that predict a company’s future suggest with reasonably good probably (do these 10 things, you have an 80% chance of improving your company’s lot in life). Already interesting. But those 10 things must be done to a greater extent than the competition. Go big or go home. Or rather, go big or stay in place. Competitors are also moving, so if you don’t move big, you’re not likely to change your position. Among the levers: M&A, resource re-allocation, productivity gains, capital expenditure, etc.

The book gives a blueprint for how to achieve strategic success, as well as tips for how to improve the strategy process to avoid the most common problems. So, content-wise, quite enlightening. I will still be far from the smartest person in the strategy room, but at least I will be able to challenge on some relevant fronts.

Style-wise, the book is also a hit. It’s McKinsey, so it shouldn’t be surprising. Concise, logical, and written to be understood rather than to impress. It’s really a pretty easy read.

Verdict: If you’re interested in corporate strategy, I highly recommend it.