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WORK TITLE: If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat!
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S): Sherman, Len
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: http://www.lsherman.com/
CITY:
STATE:
COUNTRY:
NATIONALITY:
http://www.lsherman.com/the-author.html * http://www8.gsb.columbia.edu/cbs-directory/detail/ls2673 * https://cup.columbia.edu/book/if-youre-in-a-dogfight-become-a-cat/9780231174824
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Male.
EDUCATION:Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, B.S., M.S., Ph.D.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Executive, consultant. Booz, Allen & Hamilton, partner for its U.S. automotive practice; J. D. Power and Associates, managing partner; Accenture, general partner, board member, senior partner, 1995; Evergreen Health Cooperative, CFO, COO; Columbia Business School, executive in residence, adjunct professor teaching MBA and EMBA programs, 2007-; Forbes, contributor.
AWARDS:Columbia Business School, Dean’s Award for Teaching Excellence in 2013.
WRITINGS
SIDELIGHTS
Leonard Sherman has written the 2016 If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat! Strategies for Long-term Growth, which gives business advice to companies in crisis. With more than forty years of business experience, he is an executive in residence and adjunct professor at Columbia Business School. He also teaches MBA courses at the school, and in 2013, he received the Dean’s Award for Teaching Excellence. Previously, he was general partner and board member at Accenture, then promoted to senior partner. He has also has written for Forbes. At J. D. Power and Associates, he was a managing partner, and also a partner at Booz, Allen & Hamilton with responsibility for its U.S. automotive practice. Sherman attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he earned a B.S. in aeronautical engineering, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in transportation systems.
In If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat!, Sherman shares management principles he has learned over the years with businesses that are trapped in a competitive dogfight, clawing for market share with indistinguishable products and services. He highlights the exceptions to this inevitable market battle, explaining that truly innovative companies know that the rules can be changed and know that they don’t have to engage in the dogfighting mentality. He offers case studies of massively successful companies like Apple, FedEx, and Starbucks to show how they became “cats,” companies that have renewed and reinvented themselves to develop distinctive strategies and continuous roads to long-term profitability.
Another business example is Yellow Tail wine, which applied Sherman’s strategic imperatives of recognizing the underserved U.S. market with unique wine, colorful labels, single bottle shape, and unpretentious marketing. A Soundview Executive Book Review website contributor said: “Sherman has written a detailed and comprehensive review of business strategy — with chapters on why strategies fail, how to create strong brands, how to develop great new ideas and much more. His cat-in-the-dogfight metaphor summarizes a rigorously researched and tested thesis on how to win.”
In the book, Sherman explains that many companies cannot sustain success and that only thirteen percent of Fortune 100 companies could sustain two percent real growth annually over a decade. He offers advice on how companies can learn not to focus on the short term but to innovate, differentiate, and employ strategic imperatives to maintain growth over the long term. A Publishers Weekly writer commented: “A cutesy title isn’t enough to differentiate a familiar take on gaining the competitive advantage in this strategy guide.”
Writing on the Creative Warrior website, Jeffrey Shaw noted that in business, “It’s time to see opportunities in what may be viewed as a ‘challenging industry,’ and begin standing out.” Shaw outlined some of Sherman’s main points: timing is important, come back to a market if it isn’t working right now, too much competition makes a company lose sight of its goals, there will be constant pressure to release new and fresh product lines, and trying new things will help your business.
Writing online at Jaipur Book Lovers, Vipul Murarka commented: “He has given sound theories, backing all of them with good examples not only from history but also from the current strata.” Noting how Sherman talks about the need for companies to have a strategy in place, conduct effective marketing, and build brand strength, Murarka added: “Disparate doctrines have been proposed, which if religiously followed can indeed give absolute result. The theories presented are backed by strong bona fide examples.”
According to Charles Franklin on the Small Business Trends website, the book “is best suited for business owners or management in charge of long-term planning. The book directs focus at the underlying assumptions behind a strategy. It can be very easy to become distracted with the newest ‘trend’ or ‘technological breakthrough,’ but this book reminds us that the fundamentals (innovative culture, strong branding, business alignment) will always keep a business in front of the competition.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Publishers Weekly, November 14, 2016, review of If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat! Strategies for Long-term Growth, p. 46.
ONLINE
Creative Warrior, http://creativewarriorsunite.com/if-youre-in-a-dog-fight-become-a-cat-do-the-unexpected/ (February 11, 2017), Jeffrey Shaw, review of If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat!
Jaipur Book Lovers, http://jaipurbooklovers.com/ (December 9, 2016), Vipul Murarka, review of If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat!
Len Sherman Website, http://www.lsherman.com/ (September 1, 2017), author profile.
Small Business Trends, https://smallbiztrends.com/ (February 12, 2017), Charles Franklin, review of If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat!
Soundview Executive Book Review, http://www.summary.com/ (September 1, 2017), review of If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat!*
CONTACT
len@lsherman.com
@lenshermanCBS
Leonard Sherman is an Executive in Residence and Adjunct Professor at Columbia Business School and Forbes contributor, with over forty years of experience in business, teaching and research on business strategy and entrepreneurship. He currently teaches courses in the MBA and EMBA programs, where he received the Dean’s Award for Teaching Excellence in 2013. Prior to his academic pursuits, Sherman was a Senior Partner at Accenture, where he provided management counsel to CEO’s in a variety of industries, served as the president of two business units, and helped launch the firm’s corporate venture group as a General Partner, serving as a board member for five technology-based startups.
Prior to these positions, Sherman was a managing partner of J. D. Power and Associates, where he led the firm's management consulting practice, and was a partner at Booz, Allen & Hamilton with responsibility for its U.S. automotive practice. Sherman has a BS in aeronautical engineering, and an MS and Ph.D.in transportation systems from M.I.T.
Len Sherman
Adjunct Professor of Business
Marketing
Executive in Residence
Executives in Residence Program
BS (aeronautical engineering), MS (transportation systems), PhD (transportation economics) MIT
Joined CBS in 2007
E-mail: ls2673@columbia.edu
Biography
Biography
Len Sherman brings over thirty years of business experience and academic research on growth strategy, innovation and entrepreneurship to Columbia Business School. At CBS, Professor Sherman teaches “Integrated Marketing Strategy” and "Entrepreneurship in Large Enterprises to MBA and EMBA students, earning the Dean’s Award for Teaching Excellence in 2013.
Prior to teaching at Columbia, Dr. Sherman was a Senior Partner at Accenture, where he served in a variety of positions including President of two Business Process Outsourcing units: Accenture Procurement Solutions and Accenture Learning. At Accenture, he also served as a founding General Partner of Accenture Technology Ventures, where he led Accenture's investment activities in Supply Chain Management, Procurement and eLearning. He sat on the Boards of Directors of five technology-based firms in the procurement, supply chain and eLearning domains. Prior to these positions Dr. Sherman also led Accenture's Global Strategic Services Practice covering client services in the Automotive & Industrial Equipment, Transportation & Travel Services, Food & Consumer Package Goods, Retail and Pharmaceuticals/Medical Products industries.
Dr. Sherman joined Accenture in 1995 from J. D. Power and Associates where he had been managing partner of the firm's management consulting practice and responsible for European business operations. Prior to that, he was a partner with Booz, Allen & Hamilton with responsibility for its U.S. automotive practice. Prior to joining Columbia, Professor Sherman taught "Innovation and Enterprise Growth" in Northeastern University's MBA program. He has published and presented widely on automotive marketing and distribution strategy, customer satisfaction measurement and effective approaches to corporate education. Since joining CBS, Sherman has authored case studies in the automotive, retail, consumer packaged goods and hard goods industries. His book on growth strategy – If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat!: Strategies for Long-Term Growth – will be published in January, 2017 by Columbia University Press.
Dr. Sherman has a BS in aeronautical engineering, a MS in transportation systems and a Ph.D. in transportation economics, all from M.I.T.
If You're in a Dogfight, Become a Cat! Strategies for Long-Term Growth
Publishers Weekly. 263.46 (Nov. 14, 2016): p46.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
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If You're in a Dogfight, Become a Cat! Strategies for Long-Term Growth
Leonard Sherman. Columbia Business School, $29.95 (368p) ISBN 978-0-231-17482-4
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
A cutesy title isn't enough to differentiate a familiar take on gaining the competitive advantage in this strategy guide from Sherman, who boasts over three decades of experience in management consulting. Now a teacher at Columbia Business School, Sherman reports discovering over the course of his career that most companies simply can't sustain success; one study found that, over the last 50 years, only 13% of Fortune 100 companies showed as much as 2% real revenue growth annually from one decade to another. Here, he seeks to explain how businesses can create and maintain lasting growth. He distinguishes between "dogfights," in which strength pays off in the short term but the fighters eventually get weary, and "catfights," which use innovation. He urges readers to pick the latter, further suggesting taking up the three "strategic imperatives" of continuous innovation, meaningful product differentiation, and business alignment. Insisting there are no unwinnable industries, Sherman cites those companies that beat the odds and generate long-term profitable growth, including Netflix, Apple, Yellow Tail Wine, and Costco. The case studies are interesting, and M.B.A. students looking to grasp the subject may find this useful, but the titular metaphor isn't enough to help this one stand out from the pack. (Jan.)
DECEMBER 9, 2016 BOOK REVIEWS
Book Review of If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat by Leonard Sherman
Review by Vipul Murarka
Edited by Ayushi Chaurasia
Thanks to Net Gallery and Columbia University Press for providing the Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat by Leonard Sherman. The book is scheduled to release on January 10, 2017.
If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat is a bible for all those who haven’t had the opportunity to attend business school but are in the making of a business professional. The author, Leonard Sherman, was a consultant and is now a faculty member of Columbia Business School. Thus, the contents of the book, flow systematically and is loaded with numerous case studies and examples.
I would like to divide the book into two parts (though the book is not actually divided like this). The book starts with delineating ‘strategy’ and how companies can build strategies that can possibly assure long term profit and growth. He has given sound theories, backing all of them with good examples not only from history but also from the current strata (as latest as that of 2015).
The second part of the book deals with marketing. Once a company has strategy in place, marketing and brand building assure long term growth. Disparate doctrines have been proposed, which if religiously followed can indeed give absolute result. The theories presented are backed by strong bona fide examples.
The book’s writing is fairly simple and the author has cleverly explained the concepts with an incisive writing style (as has been put by Alex Taylor of Fortune). The models, highlighted in the book are easy to understand and fit to corporal understanding. The accuracy of the models is assured by the examples the author has cited in abundance throughout the book which actually makes it very interesting to read.
However, if you have attended a business school in your under-graduation or post-graduation, you will find most of the stuff repetitive. Yes the examples, most of them, are new and interesting, but the theories are pretty much what are taught in any B-school. Thus I didn’t gain much theoretically. Author, linking the theories to real life is what makes the book de facto, impressing lessons upon the reader. Not only are there Porter’s 5 forces, Marketing Mix (4Ps), but also there is a detailed mention of blue ocean strategy and disruptive innovation, which are recommended for reference reading in B-Schools. Another let down (a major one) for me was the author’s love for Apple. In almost all of the theories, Leonard has somehow or the other tried to fit in Apple which I felt was over the top.
I suggest this book as a good read for all those who would want to learn business, especially the ones who haven’t had the chance to go through business courses. They should keep this book in their shelves and can refer to it frequently. Others can give it a skip unless you want to read the informative case stories mentioned in this book.
For me this is a 3.5 out of 5 book.
If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat: Differentiating Your Small Business
Feb 12, 2017 by Charles Franklin In Business Books, Motivational Books 0
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Summary
In the unpredictable future of business, chasing behind trends or the competition is a losing battle. Instead of trying to figure out your competitor's next move, reinvent the rules of the game so they are chasing you. "If You're in a Dogfight, Become a Cat!: Strategies for Long-Term Growth" shows you how and why a base built on three simple factors can dramatically improve your profits in the present and into the future.
If You're in a Dogfight, Become a Cat: Differentiating Your Small Business
In this age of disruption, the old recipe of “build a good business and they will always come” doesn’t seem to work like it once did. Big companies that seemed unstoppable, like Blockbuster, have lost to smaller and more nimble competitors like Netflix and Redbox. The irony is that these “big” companies were still doing the successful things they had done in the past (for the most part) when they lost.
If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat! Strategies for Long-Term Growth is a guide for businesses seeking to break out of the pack and differentiate themelves from the competitors.
What is If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat About?
As discussed in Sara Roberts’ book Nimble, Feisty, and Focused, culture has a huge impact on a business’s ability to compete in the future. Culture isn’t the whole story, however. At the end of the day, strategy drives decisions. This book is designed to create a strategy in an extremely competitive and complex environment.
To see the kind of competition the book is referring to, you need to only go as far as a grocery store shelf. The options for just one item (like tea) have exploded over the years as more businesses try to cash in on a global market. While competition means more options for consumers, it also means death for “average” businesses. In order to avoid that death, many businesses develop “copycat syndrome”, where one company tries to capitalize on the success of another. “Copycat syndrome” is the philosophy behind a business looking to become “the next Facebook” or “the next Google.”
If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat! challenges readers to avoid the “copycat syndrome” because it’s a losing battle. Trends don’t make a business. You need a good long-term strategy based on three key factors discussed in the book: continuous innovation, business alignment and meaningful differentiation from competitors. Integrating these three factors into a business is not an easy thing, which is why the book explores this topic from various angles (branding, finance, leadership, etc.) Businesses with the book’s base of three factors should be able to innovate and operate in a way that leads the competition before they realize what’s happened.
Author Len Sherman is an Executive in Residence and professor at Columbia Business School in addition to serving as a management consultant and contributor to aviation magazines. An engineering graduate of MIT, Sherman served as a C-level executive before becoming a professor and consultant. When he isn’t working, Sherman flies planes, spending time with his dogs, and supporting the Red Sox.
What Was Best About If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat?
If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat! brings deeper attention to the areas that business owners often overlook when planning for the future. Most books focus on the technology of innovative companies, but this book is different. It focuses on the “innovation” of business to consistently create superior and recognizable products and services over time. Instead of reading only about Amazon and Apple (which are none-the-less covered), more businesses (i.e. Yellow Tail, Southwest Airlines, etc.) are also reviewed in the case studies and discussion.
What Could Have Been Done Differently?
This book is best suited for established businesses. The majority of case studies are established businesses that have a wealth of customer insights and resources to draw from. While the book can be used by a business at any stage, the focus remains on refining business processes and resources that a business already has rather than starting from scratch.
Why Read If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat?
If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat! is best suited for business owners or management in charge of long-term planning. The book directs focus at the underlying assumptions behind a strategy. It can be very easy to become distracted with the newest “trend” or “technological breakthrough,” but this book reminds us that the fundamentals (innovative culture, strong branding, business alignment) will always keep a business in front of the competition. The author demonstrates how business innovation is more than just a new feature or product line. It’s the way a business is able to develop its own processes to deliver consistent and distinctive service now and in the unpredictable future.
For many businesses, writes Columbia University professor Leonard Sherman, competition is a dogfight between rival firms viciously battling each other for market share. In his evocatively titled book, If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat!, Sherman argues that the most successful strategy is not to engage in the dogfight but to do something completely different — to become the metaphorical “cat” of his title.
Sherman, who has been a partner, managing partner and senior partner at blue-chip consultancies such as Booz Allen Hamilton, J.D. Power and Associates and Accenture, offers a specific prescription for becoming a cat. This prescription is based on three strategic imperatives that, he writes, drive sustained profitable growth.
The first strategic imperative is continuous innovation, which is not an imperative for its own sake but is required in order to deliver the second strategic imperative: meaningful differentiation that is recognized and valued by customers. Meaningful differentiation, in turn, is enabled by the third strategic imperative: business alignment. Business alignment, writes Sherman, is “where all corporate capabilities, resources, incentives, and business culture and processes are aligned to support a company’s strategic intent.”
The Australians Are Coming!
Welcome to the U.S. wine market in the year 2000. Not only is the market crowded, but breaking into the U.S. is even tougher because most Americans prefer beer to wine. Yet, somehow, a new wine from a small vineyard in southeastern Australia would become the top-selling imported wine in the U.S. within five years after introduction. The secret? Casella Family Brands, which made and sold the upstart wine, decided to act like a cat.
In the Australian wine case study — the first of many fascinating case studies he presents to support his insights — Sherman describes how winemaker John Casella of Casella Family Brands first attempted to break into the market in the traditional manner: targeting the lower-priced premium wine category. Also, keeping with tradition, Casella gave his wine a name with a bit of gravitas: Carramar Estates. The launch of Carramar Estates was a failure, but Casella would not give up. Only this time, the Australian winemaker broke with market tradition in just about every way. No serious-sounding Chateau name on the front of the bottle — or intimidating language about bouquet and terroir on the back. Instead, the bottle’s image featured a brightly colored wallabee. And its name, in lower case and between brackets, was Yellow Tail.
In addition, Casella further broke with industry conventions by avoiding the 10 percent of the U.S. population that bought nearly 90 percent of the wine. Instead, Sherman writes, the winemaker “targeted 48 percent of the population who either drank only beer and spirits (33 percent) or who were marginal wine drinkers (15 percent).”
Yellow Tail wine is a compelling case study in the application of Sherman’s three strategic imperatives. As Sherman explains, the key innovation “was recognizing a unique, untapped opportunity to serve the large number of U.S. consumers that were mostly ignored by thousands of undifferentiated, expensive and overly complex products on the U.S. wine market.” Its colorful, playful label, single bottle shape, unpretentious marketing and premium taste at a low price were all elements in its meaningful differentiation that was loved by customers. And all of its business practices — from its brand positioning, winemaking process, pricing and so forth — were aligned to enable this differentiation.
Sherman has written a detailed and comprehensive review of business strategy — with chapters on why strategies fail, how to create strong brands, how to develop great new ideas and much more. His cat-in-the-dogfight metaphor summarizes a rigorously researched and tested thesis on how to win, even if you’re just an Australian winemaker hoping to get noticed in a market packed with very big and important dogs.
Len Sherman – If You’re in a Dogfight, Become a Cat. Do the Unexpected.
BY JEFFREY SHAWPosted on February 11, 2017in All Episodes, Authors, Coach, Entrepreneur, Inspirational, Podcast, Sales
THE PILOT WARRIOR
The world of business is more competitive than it has ever been. As we know, it is one thing to do your business well, but a completely different thing to stand out and compete against all your other competitors in our own specific industry. It’s time to see opportunities in what may be viewed as a “challenging industry,” and begin standing out.
Len Sherman joins us today to discuss staying ahead in the marketplace, and what way of thinking it takes to be successful in your field. Lee is an executive in residence and adjunct professor at Columbia Business School, with over 40 years of experience in the business and teaching industry. Lee currently teaches in the MBA, where he has received the Dean’s Award. Prior to his educational experiences, he was an employee at Accenture, and served as a board member for five technology-based start ups. Lee is the author of his current book, “If You’re in a Dogfight, Think Like a Cat.”
THE PILOT WARRIOR
“If you’re in a dogfight, become a cat!” -Len Sherman
Highlights –
The difference between a good idea and a great idea is often timing.
If the market isn’t ready for your great idea, it’s ok, stay with it and come back later.
There’s a tremendous amount of time at companies spent looking over their shoulder at their competitors. This can cause them to lose sight of their own goals.
Sometimes it takes an entrepreneur to come in and recognize the gap in the marketplace in order for it to be fixed, or change.
The pressure to constantly renew and refresh a product line is never going to go away.
What makes you different makes you marketable.
TRY NEW THINGS! It could really help your business.
Be a cat in a dogfight. Be totally different than everybody else.
If you’re not improving your business every day, you are falling behind.