Playing to Win: How Strategy Really Works
Strategy & Leadership

Playing to Win: How Strategy Really Works

A.G. Lafley & Roger L. Martin· Published 2013

A practical framework for strategy based on five choices: What is our winning aspiration? Where will we play? How will we win? What capabilities must be in place? What management systems are required?

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Why It's On My Shelf

This book turns strategy into a set of explicit and actionable choices. The five questions - where to play, how to win, and which capabilities and systems matter most - create clarity that many organizations lack. For CIOs, the framework is invaluable for aligning technology investment with business intent. It helps determine which platforms deserve top talent, which initiatives to stop, and how to translate business strategy into a coherent technology portfolio. I rely on this book when shaping multi-year roadmaps and making trade-offs visible and intentional.

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