Introduction...

This is my strategy portfolio. Each of the five pictures represents a framework that was taught in class. All pictures I took specifically for this assignment and are intended to symbolize one aspect of the framework. 

Blue Ocean...

My general feeling is that there are very few blue oceans in which companies exist. The majority of markets are full of predators and or would be predators actively searching for weaknesses and opportunities to exploit.

This semester I have been working on a type of field study with a team at Intel focusing on looking at some emerging trends in the digital space and looking at data economy over the next decade. It has been fascinating work but something that Intel team lead said has been pinging back and forth in my head ever sense. Occasionally lighting up my thoughts but more often just bouncing around. After spending a good deal of time gathering info on some emerging companies he ask our team to identify the most difficult problems these companies and groups are trying to over come. Then he stated that Intel looks for the problems that no one else can solve then goes after them. He explained that they believe the difficulty of the solution will help create a barrier to entry.

Not too long ago I was sitting in a fireside on marriage with my wife and the speaker told how marriage should be one place where there is no competition. Once again ping went off and my mind started thinking about how beautiful the gospel is. All throughout our lives we are in competition with others. From school to childhood sports and of course in the work place. How wonderful it is that the gospel is the polar opposite. We are taught to help others and to serve. We sacrifice our own wants and desires for those of our family's and communities. The gospel is a blue ocean.

Porter's Five Forces...

Porter's Five Forces framework does a fantastic job at helping a us understand some of the competitive forces within an industry. Through analyzing these forces a company or potential entrant may find ways to differentiate or at the very least understand how to play within the industry.

Like most companies, I find myself in a competitive market. I'm here through many choices I've made, both small and large. As I think about my future career it occurs to me that these same five forces may be of use to me in framing the work environment in which I compete; an environment that can be a times just as fierce and unforgiving as the cruelest industries. Of the five force, are two that standout to me as most applicable; though there is some overlap.

Looking at potential entrants I can see there are many. In hunting for an good internship I sat in 25 formal interviews making it to final rounds 6 times. Each time I was on a fly-back I often sat next to and mingled with my very competitors for the internships. Depending on the company that feeling of competition can be very real. The are many potential entrants and the bar continues to be raised each passing year. The questions how am I going to set myself apart from others? How do I lower the threat of substitutes? Can I create a barrier to entry?

The answer to all of these I believe is fairly simple yet difficult to do. In the MBA program a lot of learning takes place at the price of significant time and effort. I've noticed that as people mature in their careers they build some very specific business knowledge from experience that is valued and rewarded by their employers. However, I seen many whose mind are limited by only their experiences as they have continued to rely on the same lessons learned in MBA school or early on in their careers.

How will I be different and create real value and an advantage over others? I believe the key is in learning curves. I plan to be active mentally in my career talking with people outside of my immediate function do understand more and learn from other. Books and staying abreast on current trends, news, and tools is also important. I chose the book pictured here because it is a fairly new book that is patterned like from another time period. It's pages contain old stories but that are no the less interesting today. By continually thirsting for knowledge and acquiring it from many source I can build a competitive advantage that can not be replace by a recent college grad nor the seasoned manager that knows his business very well but know nothing else.

Company Diamond...

The diamond framework aids companies in understanding the alignment between strengths, activities, resources, assets, and values. Ideally all should align and work towards the same goal. In last semester’s leadership course taught by Prof. Lebaron we as students were asked to take on a change project using a leadership principle. For my project I chose to focus on goals.

My wife and I love to set goals. In the past our goals may often become very excessive. As I reviewed and thought about our goals both long and short term and how we go about setting them I realized that we were going about it all wrong. In the past we started near term then moved toward longer time horizons. Looking at our past goals I could see that they were scattered and just hit on various things we wanted to do or achieve. What we lacked was alignment.

After doing some reading I have come to believe that alignment in any organization is key. Key for the family just as much for the corporation. Now once a year when we do our big goal setting we first talk about what values and characteristics are most important to us what long term desires do we have for ourselves and our family. From this perspective we begin setting more granular goals that support our larger ones. The beauty of this is that we now insure our goals are pointed toward the things that are most dear and important to us and that hopefully we never get too far off track.

Consumer Surplus...

The idea of consumer surplus is the difference between what a consumer is willing to pay and the amount paid (as long as that difference is positive). There is a balancing act between the price a company sets that the amount the consumer is willing to pay. Price too high and few consumers purchase. Price to low and the company leaves money on the table. The skill is knowing what to price at for a given product or service. Using calculus in a math book you can find the slope of that curve and price at the optimal level; maximizing profits.

This idea holds true me personally as well. In my career I will be paid for a given level of service both in quantity and quality of service. As I've research and network I have been often told that a company will give them everything you let me. If you want to work 90 hrs per week they won't say no. However, there is perhaps a point where that slope begins to change and you begin to get diminishing returns, the costs to give that extra hour may increase and come in the form of missed children's games and performances. At the same time work at times may demand of me something I'm not well suited for and I must gain knowledge quick. My point is in this model if I'm the company delivering the service and my employer is the one paying me for the service. My goal is still the same. To find where the slop of the curve is zero and my profits are maximize while delivering to my employer exemplary work.

This picture shows a key stone. A key stone is the most import stone in the construction of an arch as it keeps the arch from collapsing. The stone pictured is not from a made from some special material or cut in some unique way it is the same as the others. What makes it special is how it is used. My goal in my own life is to find how I can best be used. Whether it be within my career at Intel, serving in the Church, or within my own home my goal is to achieve the maxim of how best I can be of use. I believe doing so I will find not only financial rewards but a richer and more meaningful life.

Life-cycles...

In class we learned about Industry Life-cycles. The traditional life-cycle move from left to right. It begin in fragmentation, then move toward shakeout. Most of the time is spent in mature and the end is in decline. When I decided to return to BYU for my MBA there were many reasons. Among them was a desire to change industries. Mentally I outlined my own path but it wasn't until this assignment I realized that my career goals seem to go in reverse. I started my career after my undergrad in the commercial automotive industry for Meritor, a company that builds truck axles. The industry is somewhere between mature and declining. The only growth is really driven by population growth. My next move is into the semiconductor industry with Intel. The industry is for Intel is mostly mature. I plan to be with them for the next 20 or so years; essentially my career. Intel will provide the security and opportunities me and my family will need. However, that is not the end. My hope is that after those twenty years, with less financial responsibility for my children, I will be able to work for either a tech start-up or do something on my own. I've always loved trying new things and I've always wanted to own a restaurant. It's a dream that my family can participate in. The risks are high but the reward is much greater than financial.

As you can see my personal career aspirations seem to move in the reverse order than the natural industry and that's fine because it's my journey and my adventure. The picture is of a budding plant. A symbol of spring, of life, and of beginning. The picture symbolizes both my location in my career and my desired destination. Ever growing and trying new things.