Adaptability - The New Competitive Advantage

Source - Harvard Business Review

Traditional approaches to strategy assume a relatively stable world. They aim to build an enduring competitive advantage by achieving dominant scale, occupying an attractive niche, or exploiting certain capabilities and resources. But globalization, new technologies and greater transparency have combined to upend the business environment. 

Sustainable competitive advantage no longer arises from positioning or resources. Instead, it stems from the four organizational capabilities that foster rapid adaptation:

• The ability to read and act on signals of change.
• The ability to experiment rapidly and frequently—not only with products and services but also with business models, processes, and strategies. 
• The ability to manage complex and interconnected systems of multiple stakeholders.
• The ability to motivate employees and partners.