W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne - new experts from Thinkers50

The SKOLKOVO business school library managers continue to introduce experts from the Thinkers50 global ranking!

Please meet W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne - professors of strategy and management and authors of Blue Ocean strategy.

“A blue ocean strategy is about pursuing differentiation and low cost simultaneously. In contrast, in competitive strategy, differentiation is achieved by providing higher value at a higher cost.”

“A blue ocean strategist does not gain insights about reconstructing market boundaries by looking at existing customers, but by exploring noncustomers.”

Blue ocean strategy: how to creat uncontested market space and make the competition irrelevant
W Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne
Harvard Business School Press,
2005 xv, 240 pages
ISBN: 9781591396192

A red ocean is the existing world of competition where companies succeed by outperforming each other. A blue ocean is an untapped market space ready for growth. Instead of fighting over existing customers, a blue ocean strategist reaches beyond existing demand. This book looks at the sequence of strategic moves needed to create value innovation, the hallmark of a blue ocean strategy. The authors quantify the impact of blue ocean strategies by analyzing the launch of over 100 companies and comparing their revenues and profits. The findings show a significant advantage accruing to the small percentage of companies who manage to exploit a blue ocean. Test your understanding of the key concepts of blue ocean strategy here.