shaping external trends

[unpakwon]

I have trouble understanding the following in red. What is it saying?

That's because a blue ocean strategy can take one of six paths: it "looks across alternative industries," looks across strategic groups within the industry," "redefines the industry buyer group," "looks across to complementary product and service offerings," "rethinks the functional-emotionsl orientation of its industry," or "participates in shaping external trends over time."

Thank you.

 

[BobK]

I've no clear idea. This is obviously some sort of management-speak. It uses buzz-words in some strange sort of code. What is 'functional-emotional orientation' of an industry, for pity's sake? It looks as if it might mean doing (rather than the other 5, which involve thinking). If so, it strikes me as a bad list (with dubious parallelism).

b

PS And if you 'participate in a market', aren't you bound to 'shape trends' one way or another; and 'over time' is just a make-weight: whatever it means, they should say. (What I'm saying is, don't worry if it's unclear to you. It's unclear because the thinking behind it is unclear. I do loathe this sort of gobbledygook. :-|)

 

[Grumpy]

Without knowing a bit more about the context of this article, it's difficult to be precise about the meaning, but I would explain it as follows. The article lists the various different ways a company can take a "blue ocean strategy", which to me means a particularly wide-ranging strategy. Five of the ways involve different methods of interacting with different facets of the industry in which the company is already involved. The sixth: "shaping external trends over time" is a much broader and long term approach. It involves the company operating outside normal industrial activities in an effort to change the marketplace in which it operates. This will, obviously, take some time to accomplish.
Let me give you an example. Not many ago, most workmen did not use plastic helmets or high-visibility jackets, and wearing them was not compulsory in the UK. Now, let's say I owned a company making these items. It would not have done very well in those days, because most people regarded these accoutrements as unnecessary. Taking a long-term view, I would have got my PR department to find out which UK organisations and influential individuals were involved in safety at work, and I would have targeted them with propaganda [and monetary support, where applicable] about the need to improve safety and accident statistics. If I could eventually help generate a change in public perception about personal risk and the need to wear safety equipment when working [and even, ideally, have this incorporated into law] then I would have "shaped an external trend over time", which would result in my company selling many more helmets and high-visibility jackets.

 

[unpakwon]

I see.

You seem to be saying something like "leading or driving or creating certain market trends."

Many thanks.

 

[BobK]

:up: Good example.

b

 

[Grumpy]

I see.

You seem to be saying something like "leading or driving or creating certain market trends."

Many thanks.

Call it "influencing".