Strategic Management
Reviewed by Sinbin Wu, Professor, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley on 11/7/22
Comprehensiveness
The textbook covers majority of the key theories and concepts, eg., five forces. But other key elements for strategic management are missing. For example, organizational structure, culture as resources and decision making for upper echelons. Also more depth should be explored for some of the key concepts. For instance, it would be better to extend PESTEL analysis. For now, it is concise with a table outlining all factors. If an example is provided for each of the factors, students may learn more.
Content Accuracy
The book borrows a lot from various sources. So no issue on accuracy.
Relevance/Longevity
While the textbook doesn't provide much new topics, e.g., digitalization and strategic management, it does contain established works that have been proven to be useful and long lasting. Those core concepts will stay for a long period of time.
Clarity
It is easy reading.
Consistency
Absolutely. Each chapter starts with what is in it for me, key takeaway, exercises and essential vocabulary. If the exercises include some scenarios or case analysis, it would be much better.
Modularity
The design is pretty simple, not cluttered. Each unit includes a few topics and each topic addresses several issues. It is easy to navigate.
Organization/Structure/Flow
The organization is pretty good. Some improvement would be a plus. For example, a brief introduction may be useful when there are several elements to be presented. When presenting external environment analysis, a start like the following can be helpful. There are two types of environments, general and competitive. General environment refers to external forces that firms can't change much in short term, but need to respond, but competitive environment can be monitored and controlled by well managing the five forces.
Interface
Well done here.
Grammatical Errors
Pretty easy to read.
Cultural Relevance
No issues here.