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Book Cover for: Leap: How to Thrive in a World Where Everything Can Be Copied, Howard Yu

Leap: How to Thrive in a World Where Everything Can Be Copied

Howard Yu

Every business faces the existential threat of competitors producing cheaper copies. Even patent filings, market dominance and financial resources can't shield them from copycats. So what can we do -- and, what can we learn from companies that have endured and even prospered for centuries despite copycat competition?

In today's competitive environment where latecomers can replicate almost any product or service for less, and where intuition and market intelligence have been overtaken by machine algorithms, companies can no longer just be very good at what they do. The need to leap to new knowledge disciplines. The best leap repeatedly. And it's the combination of two skills - mastery of the old and new - that empowers them with the best competitive advantage.

To discover how some companies not only survive but thrive for centuries, strategy expert Howard Yu identifies key trends from business history, skillfully extracting timeless lessons and applying them to today. He illustrates how managers can look to leverage technological shifts, increasingly ubiquitous connectivity, smart machines, and managerial creativity - in order to leap forward. Ultimately, Leap is a playbook for the future that shows how pioneering players can thrive by rethinking their business, their relationships with customers, and the very reasons they exist.

Book Details

  • Publisher: PublicAffairs
  • Publish Date: Jun 12nd, 2018
  • Pages: 288
  • Language: English
  • Edition: undefined - undefined
  • Dimensions: 9.30in - 6.10in - 1.70in - 1.05lb
  • EAN: 9781610398817
  • Categories: Strategic PlanningStructural AdjustmentDevelopment - Business Development

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About the Author

Howard Yu is the LEGO(R) Professor of Management and Innovation at IMD Business School in Switzerland and founding director of its Future Readiness Center, which helps companies navigate strategic transformation. A globally ranked Thinkers50 member, he won the Strategy Award in 2023, building on earlier recognition from Poets&Quants as one of "The World's Top 40 Business Professors Under 40." He is also a LinkedIn Top Voice. Yu writes the widely read Substack newsletter One Inch Ahead and earned his doctorate at Harvard Business School.

Praise for this book

A Strategy + Business Best Business Book of 2018
A Financial Times Best Business Book of the Month
An Inc. Top 10 Best Business Book of 2018
An 800 CEO READ Business Book to Watch in June 2018
Winner of a 2019 Axiom Business Book Award in the Business Intelligence/Innovation category
"Yu's research exemplifies how management theory is rigorously built and improved. He carefully documents how companies in the past have spotted and seized opportunities for growth. I find the case studies compelling and the principles intriguing for all business leaders."
--Clayton Christensen, Kim B Clark Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business School
"Leap shows you how to go about deliberately thinking about adapting your business, and investigates the technological forces at work. Every leader can benefit from the wisdom found in this book."--Jorgen vig Knudstrop, executive chairman, LEGO Brand Group
"Howard Yu argues that, even in a future age of machine intelligence, the human ability to innovate will be the primary factor enabling companies to thrive. His advice will be invaluable to managers and CEOs worldwide."--V.G. Govindarajan, Coxe Distinguished Professor of Management, Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth University, and author of the New York Times bestseller Reverse Innovation
"At a time when big business is challenged by start-ups, when 100-year-old business models have run out of steam, and when your next competitor can come from a totally unrelated industry, Howard Yu offers important guidance on how to reinvent corporations and the need for top leaders to show compassion, pride, solidarity, and vulnerability as organizations embark on the process. The marriage of big data and humanity can fundamentally change business. I can't recommend this book highly enough."--Poul Weihrauch, global president Petcare, Mars Inc.
"As technology's tectonic shifts reshape how companies win, Howard Yu shows the criticality of good management today. In Leap, he's written a valuable guide to help managers prepare their companies for long and successful lives."--Keith Ferrazzi, chairman, Ferrazzi Greenlight and author of New York Times bestsellers Never Eat Alone and Who's Got Your Back
"A deeply thoughtful journey on why human curiosity and creativity matter more, not less, than ever in the new brave world of ubiquitous connectivity and smart machines. And why and how we as leaders need to learn to leap - and not just incrementally extrapolate what we already know."--Jouko Karvinen, Chairman of Finnair
"In a world driven by global competition and constant change, businesses increasingly struggle to achieve long-term success. This book is a unique source of strategic ideas that will enable complex organizations to reinvent themselves and drive sustainable growth."--Urs Rohner, Chairman, Credit Suisse Group
"A truly remarkable book that addresses the fundamental challenge facing managers who seek to sustain growth. Powerful case examples illustrate important concepts drawn from science and sociology as well as business."--Joseph L. Bower, Donald Kirk David Professor, emeritus, Harvard Business School