“Blue Ocean Strategy” is fairly recent and excellent body of research and knowledge about strategic planning, contained within a book by the same name authored by W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne, professors of strategy and management of INSEAD. The book was published in 2005 by the Harvard Business School. In reading Blue Ocean, I realize that the authors are brilliant, because they have researched over 150 strategic plans spanning more than 100 years, and through this research have managed to identify some unique characteristics of successful strategic plans.

Essentially, companies typically operate in a defined and existing market place, where they battle each other for market share, in an endless struggle for profitability and cost reductions. This is known as the RED Ocean. In order to truly prosper, companies must look beyond their “playground” and create BLUE oceans of uncontested market space, where new demand will exist and competitors will not (at least for awhile).

The book contains a wealth of real life examples of how companies and organizations in general have overcome boundaries and constraints and revolutionized their industries. An example cited is Cirque du Soleil, which transformed the way people think of a circus – entertainment using human athletes instead of animals in a 3 ring setting. The authors actually identify a systematic, strategic plan process that can lead a company into a BLUE Ocean. I would highly recommend reading Blue Ocean Strategy and many thanks to Dr. Hilary Becker of Charleton University for suggesting this book.

For me, the most important aspect of this book is that it puts another “exclamation mark” on how strategic planning, if done properly, can transform an organization, and lead to exceptional operating results (market share, cost efficiencies, etc). A strategic plan can often be daunting in the amount of work involved, but at the end of the day, will result in huge benefits. If resources are a constraint, then look at bringing in some external professionals to assist.

Please don’t hesitate to contact Edelkoort Smethurst Schein CPA’s LLP of Edelkoort Smethurst Schein CPA’s LLP if you wish to discuss this further.