Cambridge Business Association
Competitive Value Management
Book

Competitive Value Management

Achieving competitive advantages using a Finance Intelligence Radar

Hermann J. Stern
Wiley-VCH, 2007
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Editorial Rating

9

Qualities

  • Innovative
  • Applicable

Recommendation

In his book, Hermann J. Stern identifies the weaknesses of traditional market analysis, and financial and strategic planning. He drafts a convincing alternative to budget-based management. His analysis and planning processes are largely well-known but the author subordinates them to one goal: increasing the value of the company. Alongside his explanations, he throws in guest contributions and interviews with renowned finance experts to add insight into the practice of value-based management. He includes case studies in every single chapter to provide – much needed – illustration of the theories and models. getAbstract finds this demanding yet information-laden book extremely useful for CEOs and directors, and especially for decision makers in the finance and strategy sectors. Why? Simply because it can help you increase the value of your company considerably.

Summary

Moving from Budgets to Value Management

Today’s companies should heed this motto: “Don’t beat the budget; beat the competition.” However, more than likely, your company also takes part in the yearly ritual of tedious budget negotiations. After all, budgets do not only determine objectives, they often serve as the basis for employee assessment and the incentive system. Nevertheless, with budgets you lose valuable time and inspire employees to only mediocre performance. Furthermore, budgets are not a suitable criterion for performance: What counts is market performance. To increase the market value of your company, you must break the vicious circle of budgeting and look toward the future.

Orientation toward the Market: Observing the Competition

Your main question should be that of any potential investor: Is your company better or worse than comparable companies? Answer this question irrespective of how large your company is or whether it can really finance itself above the equity market. The long-term capital gain matters. Unlike in benchmarking, where you only look at a few competitors, you should compare yourself with a large number of similar companies (peers...

About the Author

Hermann J. Stern is manager of the CFO Intelligence Force Obermatt. The Swiss organization specializes in value and risk analysis for finance experts and decision makers. He received his Ph.D. from the University of St. Gallen, and worked as CFO for a leading telecommunication provider in Switzerland and as financial manager for a computer company. He is author of The Value Cockpit and several other books.

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