Neither it’s about numbers and data, nor it’s solely about products and technology. Breakthrough strategies are a never-ending quest for differentiation. An investigation into what goes into their making.

Apple designs gorgeous products bedazzling technocrati on every cue. Yet, its products are only the tip of its carefully curated innovation spear. The company, in fact, saves substantial amounts on supply chain management, which gives it an edge over others. CEO, Tim Cook has won several praises for bringing efficiency in Apple’s supply chain.

Product innovations are vital to business success. A nice little feature that securely starts a device with a fingerprint or a special graphic chip in a computer. Users value these advances. But alone, new functions and features are insufficient for continued differentiation.

Today designs can be knocked off in record time. Launch any new gizmo, and its engineering configuration will quickly appear online. They are the easiest for the competitors to copy. Interestingly, there is an anti-award – The Plagiarius Award – given to the makers and sellers found guilty of most scandalous product imitations.

So, it is equally important for businesses to nurture other sources of breakthroughs –processes, revenue models, customer engagement, and so on – to land a bigger and more lasting competitive advantage. We look at what breakthrough strategies really are, and how to develop a good one.

https://www.thestrategyinstitute.org/insights/the-strategists-dilemma-what-makes-a-breakthrough-strategy