Sentient Strategy: How to Create Market-Dominating Strategies in Turbulent Economies
Alan Weiss
Routledge/An imprint of Taylor & Francis Group (March 2023)

“The early bird may get the worm but the second mouse gets the cheese.”  Steven Wright

In the Introduction, Alan Weiss cites this definition by Ben Tregore: “Strategy is a framework, within which decisions are made that establish  nature and direction of the business.” I view it in simpler terms as a “hammer” that drives “nails” (tactics). Weiss’s book “is meant to be an [begin italics] organic [end italics] framework that leads and influences [begin italics] every [end itakics] business discussion [and decision] and assigns accountability to executing the strategy and modifying it to people with the ability and authority to do so.”

Presumably Weiss agrees with Oliver Ratzesberger: “If we use human sentience as a model for enterprise intelligence, we see an exciting near-future for organizations across every industry. We are accelerating towards a time where companies will be proactive, scalable, frictionless, evolving and autonomous. Like the human brain, organizations will translate streams of data into a coherent picture of what steps to take next. ” In a sentient enterprise, it is also important to keep in mind what Michael Porter suggests: “The essence of strategy is choosing what not to do.”

Weiss makes skillful use of several reader-friendly devices, notably brief “nuggets” (mini-insights) about sentience that he inserts throughout his lively and eloquent narrative. Consider these sets in the first and last chapters:

o “When differing entries compete for the same resources, one will eventually be more effective and subordinate or eliminate the other[s].”

o “It’s best to identify your ideal market — your ideal buyer — and seek 100 percent of that market rather than try to embrace wider markets against entrenched competition which already ‘owns’ that market.'”

Head’s Up: Check out W. Chan Kim and Renée A. Mauborgne’s latest book, Beyond Disruption: Innovate and Achieve Growth without Displacing Industries, Companies, or Jobs. 

o “Strategy is the deliberate attempt to plan for successful growth of the organization by identifying appropriate markets and distinguishing relevant benefits to attract and sustain those buyers.”

o “Strategy never ‘fails’ in its formulation, it usually fails in its implementation because the two are intertwined.”

o “As I’ve discussed earlier, there is no ‘new normal’ or ‘return to normal,’ just a confrontation with new realities, which I’ve termed ‘No Normal.'”

o “You can only ‘coast’ when you are headed downhill.”

NOTE: Marshall Goldsmith asserts, “What got you here won’t get you there.” My own opinion is that what got you here won’t even allow you to remain here, however and wherever ‘here” and “there” may be defined.

* * *

o  “You can’t dominate any market without constant growth, and you can’t grow without constant innovation.”

o “Boards [or their equivalent] will be under more pressure than ever, so strategies will have to be agile and short-term and very self-aware.”

Yes, these “nuggets” are taken out of context but they and others in other chapters — and in the Epilogue– serve two important functions: they indicate the thrust and flavor of Weiss’s thinking, and, offer “street smart” reminders of key points. Pay “nuggets” special attention to the Epilogue. Here’s its premise: “No pre-pandemic strategy is worth a cent in a post-pandemic world. There is no “new normal” or “return to normal.” There are only new realities.”

In his superb Epilogue, Alan Weiss focuses on 19 specific insights that can help almost any leadership team in almost any organization to formulate appropriate, high-impact business domination strategies.

Those who share my high regard for this book are urged to check out three others: The Crux: How Leaders Become Strategists (2022) and Good Strategy/Bad Strategy: The Difference and Why It Matters (2011), both by Richard Rumelt; also, Enterprise Architecture as Strategy: Creating a Foundation for Business Execution a business classic co-authored by Jeanne W. Ross, Peter Weill, and David Robertson (2006).

Here are two concluding suggestions: Highlight key passages, and, keep a lined notebook near at hand while reading Sentient Strategy in which you record your comments, questions, action steps (preferably with deadlines) and page references. These two simple tactics will facilitate, indeed expedite frequent review of key material later.