MIT Sloan Management Review Article on Strategy as a Way of Life

We live in a world of discontinuity and uncertainty, where norms are rapidly disintegrating and businesses are losing their footing. We live in a time of flux and fluidity, when mandates for growth are driving high-velocity, unrelenting change. We live in a messy world, where boundaries are becoming more porous and unprecedented complexity adds ambiguity and reduces predictability.

Our traditional approach to strategy, based on data and analysis, is at a crossroads in this era of unknown unknowns. The most well-trained AI, built on vast stores of data, information, and knowledge, could not have predicted how the COVID-19 pandemic would affect a world made more open and connected by digital technologies. Can strategy be reframed so that companies can thrive in the face of our current and future challenges?

About the Author

Ikujiro Nonaka is professor emeritus at Hitotsubashi University.

Hirotaka Takeuchi is a professor of management practice at Harvard Business School.

Learn more about MIT SMR.