"Built to Last".

Strategy is a deliberate search for a plan of action that will develop a business's competitive advantage and compound it. For any company, the search is an iterative process that begins with recognition of where you are and what you have now. Your most dangerous competitors are those that are most like you. The differences between you and your competitors are the basis of your advantage. If you are in business and are self-supporting, you …

…competencies are the strategic element that set apart one company from another, and if core competencies are rooted deep within the core values and core ideology, then this set of visionary companies should have benefited from strong core competencies. ProsCons *Important ideas *Good evidence is presented to support conclusions *Excellent case studies *Powerful delivery *Extensive documentation in appendices *Helped me understand the importance of purpose in business *Depressing for those not employed by "visionary" companies