"Essentials of Strategic Management" responds head-on to the growing requests by business faculty for a concisely-written strategic management text that's robust and theory-driven and supported with a compelling collection of cases. This text was written with four objectives in mind: although relatively brief in length, the text provides students with an up-to-date and thorough understanding of essential strategic management concepts and analytic tools; it simplifies the task of demonstrating student learning through course embedded assessment; the concepts are supported by contemporary, well-written cases involving headline strategic issues; and lastly, the text serves as the theoretical foundation of a teaching approach incorporating a business strategy simulation.

Table of Contents

PART ONE: Strategy, Corporate Entrepreneurship, and Leadership 1.Strategy and the Quest for Competitive Advantage 2.Leadership and the Strategic Management Process 3.Evaluating a Company's External Environment PART TWO: Factors Shaping Strategic Choices 4.Internal Situation Analysis: Evaluating a Company's Resources, Cost Position, and Competitive Strength 5.The Five Generic Competitive Strategies PART THREE: Executing the Strategy 6.Supplementing the Chosen Competitive Strategy- Other Important Business Strategy Choices 7.Strategies for Competing in International Markets PART FOUR: Beyond Competitive Strategy 8.Strategies for Multibusiness Corporations 9.Ethical Business Strategies, Corporate Social Responsibility, and Environmental Sustainability 10.Superior Strategy Execution-Another Path to Competitive Advantage PART FIVE: Cases in Strategic Management 1.Mystic Monk Coffee 2.Whole Foods Market in 2008: Vision, Core Values, and Strategy 3.Competition in the Golf Equipment Industry in 2009 4.Competition in the Movie Rental Industry in 2008: Netflix and Blockbuster Battle for Market Leadership 5.Dell Inc. in 2008: Can It Overtake Hewlett-Packard as the Worldwide Leader in Personal Computers? 6.Apple Inc. in 2009 7.Nintendo's Strategy in 2009: The Ongoing Battle with Microsoft and Sony 8.Google's Strategy in 2009 380 9.SkyWest, Inc. and the Regional Airline Industry in 2009 Section B: Corporate Strategy in Multibusiness Companies 10.PepsiCo's Diversification Strategy in 2008 11.Adidas in 2009: Has Corporate Restructuring Increased Shareholder Value? Section C: Implementing and Executing Strategy 12.Robin Hood 13.Wal-Mart Stores Inc. in 2008: Management's Initiative to Transform the Company and Curtail Wal-Mart Bashing 14.Southwest Airlines in 2008: Culture, Values, and Operating Practices Section D: Business Ethics and Social Responsibility 15.Countrywide Financial Corporation and the Subprime Mortgage Debacle

Author Biography

Thompson's teaching experience includes 25+ years at the University of Alabama, and 3 years at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. He earned a BS in Liberal Arts and a PhD in Economics from the University of Tennessee. He is a member of the American Economic Association, the Academy of Management, and the Southern Management Association. He has also served on the editorial boards of a number of journals, including the Journal of Economics and Finance, the Journal of Management, the Journal of Management Case Studies, and the Journal of Management Issues.