Bring up Google News and search “competitive strategy,” and chances are good you’ll find the phrase scattered across recent business articles. You might assume business leaders have been talking about that topic forever, but they haven’t.
The phrase came into common usage because in 1980 Michael Porter, a Harvard Business School professor, wrote a book called Competitive Strategy. It made him world famous almost immediately and is still in print. More broadly, Porter introduced new analytical thinking into business strategy through several more bestselling books.
In this 2012 article, I wrote that the business world speaks the language of Porter, knowingly or not. Remarkably, he remains today what I called him then: the most famous and influential business professor who ever lived.
By the time I wrote the article, Porter had become a celebrity among CEOs and heads of state (he had written The Competitive Advantage of Nations in 1990). He earned his stature with more than a brilliant mind; he also practiced a legendary work ethic. A Harvard Business School colleague of his told me, “I’ve worked with Mike for 30 years and have never seen him eat a meal.” On a six-day speaking tour through Asia, he didn’t stay in hotels, instead sleeping on overnight flights between cities.
