The Ultimate Competitive Advantage: Secrets of Continually Developing a More Profitable Business Model [Hardcover]

Donald Mitchell (Author), Carol Coles (Author), B. Thomas Golisano (Author), Robert B. Knutson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 12, 2003

Authors Donald Mitchell and Carol Coles conducted a ten-year study of companies that had grown the fastest over a three-year period. Their research reveals that while unsuccessful companies doggedly apply outdated business models, the successful ones improve their models every two to four years.

The Ultimate Competitive Advantage provides a straightforward, systematic method any company can use to review and improve its business model and each of its key components: pricing, costs of doing business, and benefits added. Dozens of concrete examples from companies of all sizes and types are provided.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

It's a challenge to discuss business models compellingly, but management consultants Mitchell and Coles do an impressive job of it here. Their thesis: the best-performing corporations are those that constantly review and update their business models to adapt to changing conditions. Their supporting stories in particular are well-chosen, fleshing out entrepreneurial successes from companies from a dry cleaner in Newton, Mass. to the Mandalay Resort Group. At the "award-winning" cleaners in Newton, for example, the owner established a VIP service at no extra charge; customers could drop off laundry any time of the day, have the costs charged to a credit card and use a separate line when picking up their clothes. The benefits for the owner? He cut costs by ensuring swift payment and could process the VIP customers' orders before or after business hours, thus diminishing the demands on his employees manning the counter during busy opening hours. That example shows up in Chapter Three, "Eliminate Costs That Reduce Customer and End-User Benefits," and like the rest of the book, the case studies are clearly and enthusiastically presented with literary epigraphs and helpful chapter summaries that front each chapter. The lessons are far from shocking (e.g., "Cut Harmful Costs"), but it's a worthy review of sound business practices. The core message, for businesses big and small: survival depends on constant business model improvement, especially in tough economic times.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Donald Mitchell is CEO and chairman of Mitchell and Company, a financial and strategy consulting firm working with the most senior officers at hundreds of major companies including Black & Decker, Procter & Gamble, Charles Schwab, Southwest Airlines, Time Warner and Xerox. Carol Coles is COO and president of Mitchell and Company, and co-founded the firm. She has an extensive practice in strategy development and stock-price improvement.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 334 pages
• Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers (March 12, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1576751678
• ISBN-13: 978-1576751671
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (135 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #867,132 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Mr. Mitchell is chairman and chief executive officer of Mitchell and Company, a management consulting firm established in 1977 which specializes in business strategy and financial consulting. His consulting clients are often found among the nation's 200 largest corporations. One instance of his firm's success is that, since 1977 Mitchell and Company's clients have increased their share values by more than $37 billion faster than the Standard and Poor's 500 Average has risen, upon implementation of the firm's recommendations.

In 1981, Mr. Mitchell founded Mitchell Investment Management Company, Inc., a firm specializing in acquisitions. He also serves as its president. Mr. Mitchell's clients are primarily entrepreneurs and successful executives in major corporations.

In 1995, Mr. Mitchell founded the 400 Year Project, a global initiative to create improvements 20 times faster for everyone on the Earth (see www.fastforward400.com).

Since 2002, Mr. Mitchell has been developing improved management practices for entrepreneurs and small business leaders.

Mr. Mitchell is coauthor of The 2000 Percent Solution: Free Your Organization from "Stalled" Thinking to Achieve Exponential Success (AMACOM 1999), The Irresistible Growth Enterprise (Stylus 2000), The Ultimate Competitive Advantage (Berrett-Koehler 2003), The 2,000 Percent Squared Solution (Booksurge 2007), The Portable 2,000 Percent Solution (Booksurge 2007), and The 2,000 Percent Solution Workbook (iUniverse 2005). He is the author of Adventures of an Optimist (Booksurge 2007).

He has also been quoted by Business Week, Chief Executive Magazine, Dun's Business Month, Financial World, Forbes, Fortune, Institutional Investor, Money, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, ABC News and United Press International regarding business strategy and investments. Mr. Mitchell is listed in many biographical references, including Who's Who in the World. He has published over 20 articles on these subjects as well.

Prior to founding Mitchell and Company, Mr. Mitchell was Director, Strategic Planning, for Heublein, Inc. Prior to his position at Heublein, he was a project manager at the Boston Consulting Group Inc.

Mr. Mitchell has an A.B. degree magna cum laude from Harvard College and a J.D. degree from Harvard Law School. While studying for his J.D. degree, he attended Harvard Business School and pursued the field of marketing. He is a member of the bar in Massachusetts. Mr. Mitchell is a former treasurer of the Harvard Law School Association and is a former director of the Harvard Alumni Association.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Doubts, December 26, 2003

By 

John - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Ultimate Competitive Advantage: Secrets of Continually Developing a More Profitable Business Model (Hardcover)

On an attentive reading of this book I must say it does not live to its rich promise as far as I am concerned. And it promises a lot which even transpires from its elaborate and frankly immodest format of introductions to introductions and forewords to forewords. No assurances of authors that the reader is dealing with a break-through knowledge can - though - replace the hard earned content. And the content shows surprisingly little home work done on the promised in-depth analysis of a hundred successful business entities. Instead one gets a series of real life business stories related. Not a very creative thing to write if you read business press today. Comparing this book to those of Mr.Collins who so meticuosly presents results of his research of the best companies or to such a thorough job on business models as that done by Mr. Slywotzky in his rich and clear "The Profit Zone : How Strategic Business Design Will Lead You to Tomorrow's Profits" leaves one truly unsatisfied.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Innovative thinking backed up with a coherent approach, March 1, 2004

By 

Mike Tarrani "www.tarrani.com" (Deltona, FL USA) - See all my reviews
(COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Ultimate Competitive Advantage: Secrets of Continually Developing a More Profitable Business Model (Hardcover)

This book does two things - (1) it describes how to achieve and sustain competitive advantage by examining your current business model and refactoring it to take advantage of emergent opportunities or changing business climates, and (2) it teaches you how to think out of the box.

Thinking out of the box is a prerequisite for refactoring your business model, and unlike the plethora of books on this seemingly ineffable topic, this book will provide you with the knowledge and skills to do just that. Excellent example of thinking out of the box are immediately given in the introduction - each mini study set in text boxes is anchored to one of more factors in business model innovation, and illustrate how thinking out of the box by individuals led to radically new ways of viewing their business, and the successes that came from acting on these insights. Everyone will find at least one inspiring case study in this book that elicits an Eureka! Mine was the GoldCorp case.

However, case studies--no matter how inspiring--are nothing more than interesting reading without knowing the common critical success factors in detail. This is where the book shines, because these details are exposed, analyzed and the reasons why they are important are given in a compelling way. Part One, which addresses value, cost and price is by far the most influential 114 pages I have read in any book. Most of the techniques can be found in any college-level text book, but the manner in which it's presented, and especially the chapter on eliminating costs that reduce customer and end user benefits, will inspire you to think broadly and deeply about these issues. Part Two covers how to provide sustained benefits to all stakeholders. In theory this seems easy, but too many organizations acknowledge the benefits without acting. The authors show you how to transform the theory into action and results. They also tackle the messages in Parts Three (Expand Business Model Innovation) and Four (Pursue Higher-Potential Business Model Improvement) with the same painstaking detail as in the first two parts.

This book has clear, lively writing that will hold your interest from the first page. In fact, it is so well written that you may easily overlook the experience, knowledge and skill that is woven into this excellent book through carefully chosen case studies, key questions that cause you to think, and copious use of text boxes to highlight key points or impart quick pieces of essential information. In that respect not only is this book a valuable addition to any executive's reading list, but it's a masterpiece. It deserves a place alongside the works of Michael Porter, Kaplan & Norton, and Drucker.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Typical American Business Book, April 19, 2003

By 

Mikko Valimaki (Helsinki, Finland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Ultimate Competitive Advantage: Secrets of Continually Developing a More Profitable Business Model (Hardcover)

Consultants Mitchell and Coles have written an easily approachable business book. The book argues that every business manager should ask how to improve the existing business model. Answer? Expand your business and focus it to the areas where you can gain competitive advantage. But isn't the argument too vague and self-evident? Of course you can make more money if you have a better business model than your competitors do.

Perhaps more interesting than the argument itself is therefore the tips and expreriences Mitchell and Coles share with their readers. Based on extensive interviews with hunders of companies they tell us success stories from diverse fields of businesses ranging from computer industry to airlines and gold mines. They pose practical questions and call for an open mind. Where can you cut cost without compromising value? How could you share benefits with all who contribute? And so on...

All in all, don't take the book's title literally: I didn't find any ultimate solution or secrets in this book. Don't expect anything you wouldn't have read from somewhere else. Don't expect any detailed case analyses either. But do expect good narrative, upbeat tempo and belief in the human values. Expect an American business book par excellence. So get inspired and go create!