Special INFORMS journal collection explores the origins of strategy science

CATONSVILLE, MD, February 13, 2018 – Where do great strategies come from? How can opportunities be maximized? How can the most successful strategies be identified? These questions and more are explored in a one of a kind collection of essays by prominent thought leaders in strategy science. This one-of-a-kind collection began with a collaborative workshop hosted by Apple and was ultimately published by INFORMS, the largest international association of operations research (O.R.) and analytics professionals.

On the Origin of Great Strategies consists of original essays, published as a special edition of the INFORMS journal Strategy Science, a leading publication of research on the challenges of strategic management in both business and nonprofit organizations. The content in this special essay collection serves as a valuable resource to practitioners, students, media, and industry, especially those interested in taking a deeper dive into the fundamentals of strategy science, or looking for a fresh perspective on how to approach their own research. 

The collection is the result of a uniquely collaborative effort, with the authors providing early drafts of their essays for a workshop led by Joel Podolny, fellow collection author, vice president at Apple, and dean of Apple University. During the workshop at Apple headquarters, the authors presented their essays for critique and discussion among the other authors, who represent leading universities and O.R. and analytics programs from across the U.S.   

“This collection explores strategy science in a unique and inspiring way,” said Giovanni Gavetti, a special guest editor of the collection from Dartmouth College. “We challenged each of these authors to take a new approach to many of the basic questions that serve as the founding principles of strategy science and each provided a thoughtful and original viewpoint. Given the caliber of the authors and the fact that the question we asked them strikes right at the heart of the field, there is a good chance that the special issue will be remembered as an important contribution to strategy, both the theory of strategy and its practical and pedagogical implications.”

In addition to Gavetti, Joe Porac of New York University also served as a guest editor, under the guidance of the editor in chief of Strategy Science, Daniel Levinthal of the University of Pennsylvania. While Strategy Science traditionally publishes the latest research and studies in strategic science, On the Origin of Great Strategies provides an original opportunity for previously published authors to take a deeper dive and explore the origins and fundamental ideals that structure the field.

“This collection is not only a wonderful resource but an exciting departure from the more conventional approach of a traditional edition of Strategy Science,“ said Porac. “We feel it will be of great interest and value to anyone interested in the field of strategy science, regardless of their experience level.” 

Part 1 of the collection is available at https://pubsonline.informs.org/toc/stsc/2/4 and Part 2 is available at https://pubsonline.informs.org/toc/stsc/3/1.

About INFORMS

With 12,500 members from nearly 90 countries, INFORMS is the largest international association of operations research (O.R.) and analytics professionals and students. INFORMS provides unique networking and learning opportunities for individual professionals, and organizations of all types and sizes, to better understand and use O.R. and analytics tools and methods to transform strategic visions and achieve better outcomes.

Visit www.informs.org or @informs.

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