Ecosystem Edge: Sustaining Competitiveness In The Face Of Disruption

To succeed in the face of disruptive competition, companies will need to harness the power of a wide range of partners who can bring different skills, experience, capacity, and their own networks to the task.

With the advent of new technologies, rapidly changing customer needs, and emerging competitors, companies across more industries are seeing their traditional ways of making money under threat. Arnoud De Meyer and Peter J. Williamson explain how business can meet these challenges by building a large and dynamic ecosystem of partners that reinforce, strengthen, and encourage innovation amid ongoing disruption.

While traditional companies know how to assemble and manage supply chains, leading the development of a vibrant ecosystem requires different capabilities. Ecosystem Edge demonstrates how executives should shift from command and control strategies to those that attract partners, stimulate learning, and promote network health. The authors highlight practical steps through eight examples across industries and continents: Alibaba Group, Amazon.com, ARM, athenahealth, Dassault Systèmes, The Guardian, Rolls-Royce, and Thomson Reuters. Leaders can learn how to unlock rapid innovation, access new value sources, and foster organizational flexibility, gaining the ecosystem edge—a crucial advantage in today's disrupted business environment.