strategy and analysis

Strategy

Insight SRI's offerings are all built around understanding strategy. 

Strategy is a funny subject. The vast majority of companies do perfectly well without engaging in much strategic thinking at all - a testament both to the powers of inertia and to size. Generally, strategy only comes up as a subject when CEOs and Boards are investing in new projects, or when they are under financial pressure.

When firms do decide to look at 'strategy', instead of focussing on the fundamentals of value they too often lose themselves in complex analysis. Likewise, many firms mistake a focus on efficiency or cost cutting for "strategy".

The problem is that when talking about strategy, companies often make the mistake of focussing on the tools rather than the strategy itself. 

When this happens, what should be an exercise in understanding the fundamentals of a business are dilluted to a soundbite. Usually some simple version of Porter's "Differentiate or compete on costs."  Companies quote Porter, cut costs, and then think they have satisfied the strategy. This almost always a mistake. The efficeincy or productivity gains you make today are gains your competitors can make tomorrow. The advantage may be tactical, but it is usually short lived and never "strategic".

Insight SRI helps executives move beyond the short-term focus on the "tools", to develop positions of long term competitve advantage and growth.

Market analysis

Strategy can only be developed in the pragmatic context of the business and its markets. This means informed decisions rely on strong research and analysis.

Insight SRI helps firms with:

• review/due diligence of existing reports/analysis
• competitor analysis
• customer analysis
• market / industry analysis
• bespoke cluster analysis
• product research

Examples: 

industry level cluster analysis for a technology client 

The Dangers of Taking Market Research at Face Value
Review of market research report in vitamin and supplements market