Strategy

Competitive Strategy: Techniques for Analyzing Industries and Competitors
$40.00
I was happy with the condition of the book I received but the delivery was terribly late. I wanted to have the book urgently in a week and I got the book only after 18 days..

Strategy: Second Revised Edition (Meridian)
$18.00
Liddell-Hart's Strategy attempts to show the power of the so-called indirect approach in warfare, as well as the futility of the frontal, direct approach. Sadly, its presentation is extremely biased and flawed.

The book is dominated by a historical overview of nearly every war fought in the western world, with an in-depth focus on the World Wars. The overview is truly detailed in the wars and battles it covers, from Marathon to Remagen (though the American Revolution is conspicuous in its absence). Sadly, the way those wars and battles are covered is not as detailed.

Liddell-Hart is obviously biased towards the superiority of the indirect approach, and it shows in his descriptions of the battles and wars in his overview. Campaigns that involved an indirect approach are examined in great detail, while direct campaigns and wars are dismissed in a few paragraphs, often brushed away as "indecisive" (The best example is the Russo-Japanese War, which certainly was decisive) without explaining why they were indecisive. Even his descriptions of indirect campaigns do not contain nearly enough information to enable one to truly make one's mind up on the battles, regardless of opinion, leaving one with little choice but to take Liddell-Hart's word for it.

Not only does Liddell-Hart marginalize campaigns dominated by the direct approach, but he also oversimplifies and leaves many details that contradict his views out. The book's description of the American Civil War is an excellent example of this biased reporting. Besides vilifying Grant for following a direct approach and glorifying Sherman for using an indirect one, Liddell-Hart simply leaves out many indirect approaches that failed, from Hood's Franklin-Nashville campaign to the many flank offensives that Grant planned as part of his grand campaign, like Butler's failed Bermuda Hundred landing.

Another example of Liddell-Hart's bias is his coverage of the Guadalcanal campaign-or lack of it. The six-month campaign that turned the offensive tide in the Pacific is covered in only two sentences: "In August 1942, General MacArthur's opening move was made against Guadalcanal--the most southerly, and nearest, of the Solomon Islands. The reconquest of Guadalcanal took six months." Besides containing a factual error (Guadalcanal was planned for by Admiral Ernest King, not MacArthur), the description seeks to show the folly of the direct approach-that taking a small island with the direct approach took six months, in contrast to the rapid advance gained by island hopping.

What it does not mention is that at the time of the campaign, the Japanese possessed greater naval strength in the Pacific, and that during those six months, that naval strength (particularly its skilled aviators), was reduced by the bloody, direct battles in and around Ironbottom Sound. It also does not mention that the climax of the land campaign in late October was dominated by a Japanese attempt at an indirect approach that succeeded in misdirecting the Americans, but still failed miserably due to poor logistics, command, and the firepower and determination of the American defenders. Far from showing the folly of the direct approach, the Guadalcanal campaign shows how a bold and well-executed direct approach can be decisive.

Strategy also suffers from lopsided coverage of certain campaigns. Eighteen pages are devoted to Rommel's North Africa campaign, while only five are devoted to the entire Pacific theater throughout the war, to give just one example. The last quarter of the book is devoted to the "Theory of Strategy". This is not as interesting as the historical section, and essentially just repeats Sun Tzu while bashing Clausewitz.

Though its premise that indirect maneuver is preferable to direct frontal attacks is one that I agree with and that few would dispute, Strategy is nonetheless a biased and flawed history book. I cannot recommend it.

Executing Your Strategy: How to Break It Down and Get It Done
$29.95
If you need help figuring out how to plan to motivate your company, this book is very informative. It helped me in planning for my own job.

The Boston Consulting Group on Strategy: Classic Concepts and New Perspectives
$34.95
I'm a grad student with IT background and want to become a management consultant or a CEO.
This is not a coffe-table book. The best is to have a business encyclopedia by the hand when reading it (i recommend Business: The ultimate resource,2nd).
For more info about table of contents click on the book picture.

The essays are short (cca 2 pages), but extremely consciously and well written. I think, no former business knowledge is necessary: anybody can pick up this book, who is interested in business, likes to think deeply and have persistence (you'll need it to get through the book).
After reading the book, the reader will have an superb overview of business concepts, strategy, leadership -- i dare to say, that s/he will have all the knowledge a big CEO needs to have.