Strategy Formulation
What We Cover
 Pierre Azoulay Assistant Professor of Management |
One of the most important recent developments in business strategy is the realization that nonmarket actors — governments, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and the court of public opinion — can be as important as competitors, customers and suppliers in determining firm performance. This is especially the case when the activities of the companies in an industry are central to the public welfare. In the core strategy class, we study these problems in the context of the pharmaceutical industry's response to the AIDS crisis in Africa.
Why It Matters
Business leaders in many industries now invest considerable resources in formulating nonmarket strategies. In the particular case of the AIDS crisis, the pharmaceutical industry's response is significant on many levels. First, the availability of medications to combat communicable diseases has tremendous consequences for public health and economic development in all nations of the world. Second, the pharmaceutical industry's response may be critical to its own long-term prospects, as the AIDS pandemic continues to cause governments and NGOs to question the virtues of systems for protecting intellectual property rights for human therapeutics.
What Students Learn
Students discover ways to think about formulating a nonmarket strategy and integrating it with the overall strategy of the firm.