The current world of business is changing fast, in particular through the rise of digital technologies and the need to find a more sustainable economic model. These changes generate constraints but also tremendous opportunities to rethink competitive landscapes and to come up with disruptive strategies (‘the kinds that result in the creation of entirely new markets and business models’ (Christensen, 1993).

The purpose of this course will be to offer analytical frameworks to help develop these disruptive strategies, and to apply these frameworks to a variety of contexts and of new technologies.

In doing so, we will work at integrating the technological developments identified in other courses in the program into strategies that create value for customers and that might lead to more sustainable economic models.

There will be two parts in this course. The first part (two sessions in December) will be devoted to discussing how to define a strategy in periods of deep changes. In that context, firms have to position themselves regarding their market strategies (product, price, differentiation, etc.), but also regarding their nonmarket strategies (lobbying, stakeholders management, etc.) as period of structural changes are characterized also by changes in the regulations and other ‘rules of the game’. The articulation of these market and nonmarket strategies create tensions and difficult choices for managers and entrepreneurs, which we will explore in our discussions. 

Based on this, we will be on solid grounds to explore further disruptive and transformational models in the second part of the course next semester.