Most 'strategy' is a goal, a vision statement, and wishful thinking wearing a strategy's clothes. This is the difference — and why it matters.
About the book
Richard Rumelt strips away decades of corporate strategy theater to show what strategy actually is: an honest diagnosis of the real obstacle, a guiding policy for overcoming it, and coherent action that isn't just a laundry list of goals. Illustrated through Apple, Nvidia, Walmart, and two Iraq wars, it's less a template to fill in and more a filter for spotting bad strategy — buzzwords and goals mistaken for a plan — in your own organization.
Best used for
—Auditing a strategy doc or pitch deck for buzzword fluff vs. a real kernel
—Turning a goals list into an actual strategy with diagnosis and coherent action
—Finding the single point of leverage worth focusing resources on
“Rumelt is surly and arrogant. The barbs he slings at 'bad' strategists are hilarious.”
— Andrew Garvin, Goodreads
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