《三原则杰出公司的思考方法》（第三章）翻译项目报告.pdf

'‘一＊一．－．‘’六；＾把去．？＇ｆ心Ｖ；‘．０％蓋辨：Ｖ；＞ｘＪＶ／＼交，户＇＇一１‘。－：，＇，於！，＇、当令嗦：祕＠細！ＩＩ讓１‘；．，：：．繁护瓦，：式篡、．．．：＇请．祷巧是脱专业学位巧生论文过装梦读＆％．—；‘：４＇：＜ｒ义：－摔苗．＼＼這於矿、心皆．皆—＇—．；马辑ｄ；玲式皆蹲裏藻《玉／走＊公巧方方ｇ？爲１讀—、＇．：．．．；為知巧．鸿乾第支章方Ｉｎ种巧《旅告？訪葛聲－＊－■’一己．古子，？ｕ矣ＣＶＶ＼气．‘．＇＇＾＾－斗、，＇；：讀知巧５＾：Ｖ；－Ｘ巧佳—＇－、Ｊ片节、－ｒ；Ｖ矣碱／．．．爲主，，：＇骄原＇■敗琴玄＇。＂？＇－－■式．？＾巧冉＼．：當．Ｔ窜：、遵兴；式礙一－．－．＇■－：＇、一．．．；．－．．子＇＇？气：．－？■．．．：－巧ｉ公緊、。、＇．；．？兴．余点，ｖＶ－．？户．？ｄｒｒ．－－？．、．心心．琪；Ｖ黎古．；語苗：聲巧巧苗！；巧＇＾ｊ；片術导老师Ｉ朱佑ｉ曲＜１＾；／Ｖ、＇■－、．．．＾－，—－Ｖ：？’／一Ｖ．？，：，ｒ二－．寺７＾：：－二游寿化名巧：？译巧±；．—？■＊＇．－、一？＾：－＿一－＇＇＇．？三。二．．早片？Ｖ？；ＪＬ：研々方巧巧巧笔译互＾為＾苗－＇＇－，？．．，．＇＾罩’．－．與．某＼養；＿二，：：．丢论１４；：：摄空时间，如６月六义年；ｒＳ；：苗．３＾巧，扣皆＇２１６＊０Ｓ＊＊辩时闺月文年瑶；巧韋這歲请＇－－．．节节．苦巧ｙ％．．：‘．．论义缩々＇０１６３４２５巧／．舍．靖：．’邊；濟，巧養：气？‘’一－、、、二占心．式ｈ．ｒ深．＾－、：三作耗；三Ｖ、’万■＇＇二＇，＇＇．户公．一省，．為爲必每＇．－－與皆＾气．．＾巧皆％Ｖ秦Ｗ解、１＾—，’一：＇．．，－－＇兴＾矣：；．Ｈ过Ｎ巧？；欢；＾；／—心．？．ｆ’．．．＇．、＇：巧、．：非看扛．Ｖ；弘：巧、：叮新７ SichuanInternationalStudiesUniversityAReportontheTranslatingofThreeRules:HowExceptionalCompaniesThink(ChapterThree)byHuangShijiaAthesissubmittedtotheGraduateSchoolinpartialfulfillmentoftherequirementsforthedegreeofMasterofTranslationandInterpretingunderthesupervisionofAssociateProfessorZhuHaiyanChongqing,P.R.ChinaMay2016 ii 《三原则：杰出公司的思考方法》（第三章）翻译项目报告摘要本翻译报告原文本为《三原则：杰出公司的思考方法》一书的第三章，作者为迈克尔·E·雷诺和蒙塔兹·艾哈迈德，这两人均为德勤公司合伙人，在商业领域经验丰富，其中迈克尔·E·雷诺出版过多本商业类畅销书，如《决策的悖论》和《创新者的宣言》。原文主要讲述了如何更好的经营公司，使公司的表现更加优异，从而让公司在商业竞争中脱颖而出。该书列举了多组数据，仔细比较了公司与公司之间竞争能力、经营模式的差异，以及资产收入的组成，竞争能力、执行力和行业三者的关系。这样的书籍在中国也不少，但这本书的数据更详细、理论层次更高，尤为重要的是，此书阐述的内容主要涉及的是国外公司的情况；因此将此书翻译介绍给中文读者很有必要。本翻译报告主要包括四部分，第一部分是关于整个翻译项目的介绍，包括背景、目的和价值，以及要求等；第二部分是关于翻译原文的介绍，包括内容和结构的介绍，以及语体风格的介绍；第三部分着重介绍翻译过程中采用的理论依据，所遇到的问题和解决方法。本翻译报告以功能对等理论为指导，在翻译实践中尝试解决翻译这类文本遇到的典型问题。第四部分为报告总结。关键词：翻译难点；《三原则：杰出公司的思考方法》；功能目的论；公司管理ii AReportontheTranslatingofThreeRules:HowExceptionalCompaniesThink(ChapterThree)AbstractThisisareportonthetranslationofthethirdchapterofThreeRules:HowExceptionalCompaniesThink.TheauthorsareMichaelE.RaynorandMumtazAhmedofDeloitte.Theybothareexperiencedcorporatemanagers.MichaelE.RaynorisalsotheauthorofthebestsellingandcriticallyacclaimedTheStrategyParadoxandTheInnovator’sManifesto.Thesourcetextdemonstrateswhatagoodcompanyshouldconsiderinordertogaincompetitivepositionandbetterrevenueaswellasbuildingtherightbusinessmodel.Theauthorsusedalotofdataandjargonsandtermstoaddresstheseissues.TheSLtextoffersdetailedinformationonhowthecompaniesnamedinthebooktheirbusinessgoals,whichmakesthistranslationprojectawellworthyattempt.Thisfour-parttranslationprojectreportstartswithanintroductiontotheprojectbackgroundandsignificance.Thesecondpartisanaccountofthesourcetext,includingthecontent,structureandthestylisticfeatures.Thethirdpartisareviewonthetranslatingprocess.Itstartswithanintroductiontothetranslationtheoriesadoptedbytheauthortoguideherpractice,andthentheproblemsencounteredbythetranslatorandhersolutions.Thefourthpartistheconclusionofthepaper.Keywords:Translationdifficulties;ThreeRules:HowExceptionalCompaniesThink;skopostheory;corporatemanagementiii AcknowledgementsFirstandforemost,Iwouldliketoexpressmysinceregratitudetomysupervisor,associateProfessorZhuHaiyan,forherkindnessandconstantencouragementduringtheprocessofthesiswriting.Withoutherenlighteninginstructionandpatience,Icouldnothavecompletedthisthesis.Herprudenceandvigorprovidedmewithaspirationtofinishmypost-graduatestudyandacquiremymasterdegree.Furthermore,Ishallextendmythankstothreeofmydearfriends,LiSha,HeYafei,andZhangLanyuefortheirinvariableloveandsupport.Withouttheirtimelyandcordialhelp,thiswouldhavebeenimpossible.Iamalsoindebtedtomyfamilyfortheirunfailingsupport.Theirlovingcaresandgreattoleranceofferedmemuchencouragementtofinishthisthesis.Lastbutnottheleast,myheartfeltthanksareduetomyroommates.Overthelasttwoyears,theyprovidedmewithmanyvaluablelifetipswhichwereconsiderablyhelpful.iv Contents摘要...........................................................................................................................iiAbstract....................................................................................................................iiiAcknowledgmentsivChapterOneIntroduction..................................................................................11.1BackgroundInformation..............................................................................11.2TheSignificanceoftheTranslationProject.................................................2ChapterTwoAbouttheSourceText.................................................................32.1AbouttheAuthor.........................................................................................32.2AbouttheSourceText...............................................................................42.2.1TheMainIdeaoftheSourceText.....................................................42.2.2TheStylisticFeaturesoftheSourceText..........................................4ChapterThreePreparation,TranslationProblemsandSolutions.................73.1Pre-translationPreparations..........................................................................73.1.1TheoreticalPreparations....................................................................73.1.2ProfessionalPreparations...................................................................83.2MajorTranslationProblems.........................................................................83.3SolutionstoProblems...................................................................................93.3.1Amplification.....................................................................................93.3.2Annotation.......................................................................................103.3.3SplittingandReordering..................................................................123.3.4Omission..........................................................................................153.4Summary....................................................................................................16ChapterFourConclusion..................................................................................174.1LessonsDrawnfromtheTranslationProject.............................................174.2LessonsDrawnfromDoingthisTranslationProject.................................174.3ProblemsUnsolved....................................................................................18v References..............................................................................................................19Appendix1:TheOriginalText............................................................................20Appendix2:TheTargetText...............................................................................35vi ChapterOneIntroduction1.1ProjectBackgroundNowadays,howtorunacompanysuccessfullyhasbecomeaconcernforcorporateexecutives.Sustainingexcellentperformances,providingbetterproducts,andhavinghigherROAareregardedasthefundamentalsforsuccessfulbusiness.However,thereareobstaclesofcorporatemanagementinChinesecompanies.HugegapsarestilltobefoundindifferenttypesofChineseenterpriseswhilemanycompaniesareundergoingchangesfromexperientialmanagementtoscientificmanagement.CurrentlysixcategoriesofproblemsremaininChinesecorporatemanagement.First,companymanagementisnotstandardizedaswellascompanyusuallyrunsinthewaythattheexecutivesfeelpleased.Mostenterprisesarepassivelyresponsivesowhennewproblemscomeoutchiefexecutiveofficersareatloss.Second,Chineseenterpriseslacklong-termstrategicobjectives.Theyoftenjumpintodiversificationwhenchasingshort-termprofit.Third,Chinesecompaniespreferdevelopingnewproductsattheirownwillregardlessofthemarket.AccordingtoPeterDrucker’sidea,companiessurvivebecausetheycreatecustomers,sothosewhowinthepreferenceofcustomerswinthemarket,andaboveall,theycultivateloyaltyoftheircustomers.Fourth,whethertheenterprisesarestate-ownedorprivate,operatorsofthebusinessseemtohavethemostpowerfulsay.Tosomeextentthismechanismofoperationishazardousbecausenobodycanmakeappropriatedecisionsallthetime.Fifth,manyChineseenterprisesarenolongerattractivetoyoungtalents.Comparedtoforeign-investedenterprises,Chineseenterprisesaredestituteinexcitationmechanismhenceitiseasyforthemtolosehumancapital.Sixth,excellentChineseenterprisesoftenpaycloseattentiontoestablishmentofcorporateculturewhiletheyhavemisunderstandingofit.Theythinkthatmaterialconstructionoutweighsestablishmentofcorevalueswhichisworthfurtherdiscussion.InChina,therearebooksonhowtomanageacompany,ofcourse,butthisSToffersnewanglestoviewthesamethesamething,anditsresearchmethodanddataareagreateyeopenerfortheChinesereaders.RaynorandAhmedillustrateeachoftheserulesthroughdetailedcasestudiesof1 threecompaniesinthesameindustry.Thesethreecompaniesaremetaphoricallycategorizedas“MiracleWorkers”--companiesthathavewinningperformancethroughtimetotheextentthatit’snotjustluck;“LongRunners”---firmswhoseperformanceisgood,butmorevariableagainindicationthatit’snotluck;and“AverageJoes”---companieswhoseperformancecanbeviewedasrandomorinkeepingwithindustryaverages.RaynorandAhmedprovideapowerfulantidoteforwhattheycall“successstudies”basedonselectingleadingcompaniesoveraperiodofyears.Byconcentratingonsimplerules,ratherthancomplexprescriptions,theSLtextoffersexecutiveswithaclearviewontheirstrategy,operational,productandcustomerdecisions.Inshort,thoughtherearepopularbooksonbusinessmanagementinChina,theuseofdetailedinformationofmanyfamousUScompaniesandthesimplicityoftheprinciplesstillmakesthistranslationprojectaworthyendeavor.1.2SignificanceoftheTranslationProjectThistranslationprojectissignificantintwofolds.ThefirstliesinthatthisprojectoffersaChineseversionofthebookforthecorporateexecutives,MBAstudents,governmentandotherpeopleinterestedinbusinessmanagementwhocannotreadtheEnglishversion.Thetranslationprojectissignificantinanotheraspectaswell:Itservesasatouchstoneforthewriter’stranslationabilityafterhavingattendedtwoyears’MTIprogram.Theaccomplishmentofthistranslationprojectcanbeagoodproofforthetranslator’scompetence.Theprojectcanalsoserveasachanceofexploringtranslationtheoriesandmethods.2 ChapterTwoAbouttheSourceText2.1AbouttheSLTextAuthorTheThreeRules:HowExceptionalCompaniesThinkiswrittenbyMichaelE.RaynorandMumtazAhmed.Dr.MichaelE.RaynorisaresearchdirectoratDeloitteServiceLLP.Inhisresearchandclientworkheexplorescorporatestrategy,innovation,andgrowthacrossawidevarietyofindustries.Michaelisco-authorwithProfessorClaytonM.ChristensenofTheInnovator"sSolution,whichwasonTheWallStreetJournalandTheNewYorkTimesbestsellerlist,andsoleauthorofTheStrategyParadox,namedbyBloombergBusinessWeekoneoftheyear"s10bestbusinessbooksin2007.MumtazAhmedistheChiefStrategyOfficerofDeloitteLLP,responsiblefordevelopingstrategyforabroadprofessionalservicesfootprintandfordefiningDeloitte"sstrategicpositioning.Heisalsoresponsibleforcorporatedevelopment,innovation,eminence,brand,communications,andknowledgemanagement.Hehasworkedcloselywithmanyleadingtelecommunicationsandtechnologycompanies,advisingonstrategy,corporatedevelopment,mergersandacquisitions,consumerandbusinesssegmentoperations,andnetworktechnology.HisthoughtonleadershiphasappearedinHarvardBusinessReview,IveyBusinessJournal,StrategicManagementJournal,andotherleadingpublications,includingDeloitteReview.TheThreeRulesbyMichaelE.RaynorandMumtazAhmedprovidescredibleevidencetosupportthelogicoftheservice-profitchainandtheyattempttofindwhatmakesgreatcompaniesgreatinthebook.What’smore,theyintendtofindhowthosecompaniesachieveandretaintheirgreatness,whichishelpfulforChinesebusinesspeoplewhowanttoknowmoreaboutrunningabusiness.3 2.2AbouttheSourceText2.2.1TheMainIdeaoftheSLtextThesourcetextofthistranslationprojectisthethirdchapterofTheThreeRules:HowExceptionalCompaniesThink,firstpublishedonMay30,in2013.ThisbookispublishedbythePenguinGroup.Throughtheirlong-termresearchinthefield,RaynorandMumtazfindthatthreerulesareneededbycompaniestosustainperformanceandtowinthecompetitiverace.MichaelE.RaynorisaPHDoncorporatemanagement,andMumtazAhmedisoncetheChiefStrategyOfficerofDeloitteLLP.Thebookisanexampleofrealbusinessresearch.Itrepresentsthemostcomprehensiveresearchprojecttodatethatlooksatthefactorsbehindsustainedbusinessperformance.MichaelRaynorandMumtazAhmedinvestigatedmorethan25,000companiesformorethanfortyyearstoidentifythecorerulesforsustainedexcellentperformance.RaynorandAhmedfoundthreerules:First,BetterbeforeCheaper,whichaskscompaniestosustaintheirperformancebynon-pricebenefitssuchasagreatbrand,style,functionality,experienceetc;Second,RevenuebeforeCost,whichsaysthatsustainingperformanceinvolvesmorethanjustcreatingvaluebutalsocapturingthatvalueintheformofprofits;Third,ThereAreNoOtherRules.MakingdecisionsandexecutingstrategiesthatputBetterbeforeCheaperandRevenuebeforeCostarethefundamentalsforsustainedsuccess.ThefirstchapterofthebookistitledMoreThanaFortuneCookieandthesecondchapteristitledFindingSignalintheNoise.Inthosetwochapters,RaynorandMumtazhaveinformedthereadershowtheanalysiswhichisbasedondataonmorethan25,000uniquecompaniesforforty-fiveyearsbeganandhowtheauthorssafelyarrivedattheconclusionofthreegoldenrules.Inchapterthree,RaynorandMumtaztalksabouttheruleBetterbeforeCheaperwithdetailedinformationoncompaniessuchasLinearTechnology,MicropacIndustriesandInternationalRectifier.Respectively,theyarecategorizedbytheauthoras“MiracleWorker”,“LongRunner”and“AverageJoe”.RaynorandMumtazfoundthat“companieswithnon-price4 positionstendedtobeMiracleWorkers,thatcompanieswithin-the-middlepositionstendedtobeLongRunners,andcompanieswithprice-basedpositionstendedtobeAverageJoes.”(RaynorandMumtaz,2013,p33)Companiesthatsustaintheirperformancethroughtimestandoutbynon-pricebenefitssuchasagreatbrand,styleandfunctionality.Beforecompaniestrytosqueezeoutextramoney,it’smoreimportantforcompaniestolocatetheircompetitivepositionandpursuenon-profitvalue.2.2.2TheStylisticFeaturesoftheSourceTextTheThreeRules:HowExceptionalCompaniesThinkisapopularbookonbusinessmanagement.Itspurposeistoinformthereadersoftherulesforrunningacompanyforsustainableandhealthydevelopment.AccordingtoReiss’texttypologytheory,itisaninformativetext.Therefore,ithasthedistinctivefeaturesofaninformativetext.First,theSLtexthasmanyprofessionaljargonssuchas“price-basedcompetitor”,“competitiveposition”,“annualrevenue”,“ROA”andsoon.Thesetermscanbeverydifficultforthetranslator,assheknowslittleaboutbusinessmanagement.However,asatranslationmajor,thetranslatorknowswheretogettheChineseequivalentsfortheseterms,andiftherearenoreadyChineseexpressionsforthoseterms,sheknowstheprocedurestohavethemtranslatedintoacceptableChinese.Second,theSLtexthasmanylongandcomplexsentences.AsEnglishisalanguagethatfrequentlyemployshypotacticsentencestructure,thisisnotverysurprising.Longandcomplexsentences,however,canbeintimidatingforthetranslator,fortheChineselanguage,whichisthenativelanguageofthetranslator,generallyabhorslongandcomplexsentences,particularly,ifthelongandcomplexsentencesareabouttopicunfamiliartothetranslator.Nevertheless,thetranslatorhasbeentakingtheMTIprogramwhichembracestranslationskillsasoneofitscorecurriculum.Third,theSLtextusesmanyrhetoricaldevicestomakethetheoriesofbusiness5 managementeasytounderstand.Partingwiththeold-fashioneddescriptiveclichés,theauthorflavorshiswritingwithbothasenseofAmericanhumorandaseriesofprovocativethoughts,whichexertsanenduringcharmonthepartoftargetaudiences.Inthetext,therearesimile,metaphor,personification,andotherfigureofspeech.Infact,themetaphorofarollerskaterisusedtolikenthegrowthofbusinesses.Figureofspeechismoreidiosyncratic,soitisnoteasytohaveevencommonfiguresofspeechintheSLtexttranslatedappropriatelyintoChinese.Thetranslatormustbecreativeindoingthatjob.Fromallmentionedabove,chapterthreefromTheThreeRules:HowExceptionalCompaniesThinkisofpracticalvalueasthesourcetextofthistranslationproject.UndertheguidanceofNida’sfunctionaltranslationtheory,thetranslationmustbedonewithprudenceandcarefulness.Decodingsentenceandrestructuringsentenceshouldbenatural,expressiveandcontext-oriented.Basedonthefactsoftranslation,chapterthreeinthistranslationprojectwillillustratedifficultiesandproblemsthatstandinthewayoftranslationwork.Besides,therewillbemorerelevantdetailsandexamplestoshowhowthetranslatoruserelatedskillstosolveproblemsinthistranslationproject.6 ChapterThreeTranslationProblemsandSolutions3.1Pre-translationPreparations3.1.1TheoreticalPreparationBeforestartingthetranslationproject,thetranslatormadeboththeoreticalandprofessionalpreparations.Thetranslatorreviewedbooksontranslationtheories,includingChinesethtranslationtheoriesin20century,KatherinaReiss’sfunctionaltranslationtheoryandPeterNewmark’scommunicativetranslationtheory,andNida’sfunctionalequivalencetheory.AccordingtoKathrinaReiss,aninformativetextisintendedtoinform.Thus,tobesttranslateaninformativetext,thetranslatorshouldfocusonthemessage,orinformationofthetext.ThetranslatordecidedtoadoptNida’sfunctionalequivalencetheorywhentranslatingatextofthistype,forshebelievesthattheSLtextisnotintendedtoinformthereader,buttopersuadethereadertobuytheirtheory.Functionalequivalencetheorywasfirsttermedas“dynamicequivalence”theory.AccordingtoNida,dynamicequivalenceisthe"qualityofatranslationinwhichthemessageoftheoriginaltexthasbeensotransportedintothereceptorlanguagethattheresponseofthereceptorisessentiallylikethatoftheoriginalreceptors."(Nida,1969,p:200)Thedesireisthatthereaderofbothlanguageswouldunderstandthemeaningsofthetextinasimilarfashion.Inlateryears,Nidadistancedhimselffromtheterm“dynamicequivalence”andpreferredtheterm"functionalequivalence".[2][3][4]Theterm"functionalequivalence"suggestsnotjustthattheequivalenceisbetweenthefunctionofthesourcetextinthesourcecultureandthefunctionofthetargettext(translation)inthetargetculture,butthat"function"canbethoughtofasapropertyofthetext.Itispossibletoassociatefunctionalequivalencewithhowpeopleinteractincultures.Thetranslatorbelievesthatifthetranslatedversionisgoingtobeaspersuasive7 astheSLtext,theChineseversionmustcatertotheculturalneedsoftheChinesereaders.Themeans,thetranslatormustendeavortomaketheSLtext’sinformationunderstoodwhilekeeptheTLtextculturallyappropriate.3.1.2ProfessionalPreparationThetranslatoralsomadeadequateprofessionalpreparationbeforestartingthetranslationproject.Shefirstsearchedontheinternettheauthors’bibliographyandbookviewsontheSLtext.ThishelpedherinbetterunderstandingofthetheoriesputforthbytheauthorsintheSLtext.Then,thetranslatorreadthroughthetextmanytimes,lookingupunfamiliarterms,jargonsandwordsindictionaries,encyclopedia,andglossariesofbusinessmanagement.ShealsoreadsimilarbookswritteninChinese.Alltheseworkaddedknowledgeofbusinessmanagementintoherstockofinformation.Besides,thetranslatordiscussedwithhersupervisorsaboutissuesontranslationtheoryandstrategies,whichhelpedtoclarifymisunderstandingsoftranslationtheoriesandstrategies.Inshort,thetranslatormadebothprofessionalandtheoreticalpreparationbeforeshestarteddoingthetranslationproject,andthatwasturnedouttobeveryhelpfulduringtheprocessoftranslating.3.2TranslationProblemsTherearethreecategoriesofdifficultiesworthnoticingduringthetranslationprocess.First,understandingandtranslatingitalicizedwordsandphrasesinthesentenceisofchallenge.Frequentappearancesofitalicizedpartsinsentencescanbeanimpediment,onthepartofthetranslator,tocomprehendthemeaningandimplicationsofthewholesentence.Thereby,a,thoroughandsound,context-based,pre-translationreadingofthesourcetextisamustandpreconditiontoidentifyreasonsfortheuseofitalicization.Isitforemphasisorexplanation?Forinstance,8 whentranslatingthesentence-“Betterbeforecheaperdistillstoitsessencewhatourresearchrevealsabouttherelationshipbetweencompetitivepositionandexceptionalperformance”thetranslatormustfigureoutwhy“Betterbeforecheaper”isitalicized?AndthetranslatormustfindoutappropriatewaystohavethemeaningbehindtheitalicizationexpressedinChinese.Second,translatingthepropernounsinthesourcetextisnoeasyjob.Forexample,“PerhapsabettercompetitivesetforFourSeasonsconsistsoftheRitz-Carlton,LeMéridien,andConradchains”,thetranslationofhotelnamesinthissentencedemandsnecessarybackgroundknowledgeofthosehotelnames,asthosearenotnameswell-knowninChina.Thetranslatorhastoberesourcefultotackletheseproblems.Third,thehandlingoflongandcomplexsentencescanbeanotherchallengeforthetranslator.TherearemanysentencesintheSLtextwhichstretchesaslongasawholeparagraph.Thesesentenceshaveverycomplicatedcompositionswhichcloudsthelogicorthemainstructureofthesentence.Thetranslatorhastocomeupwiththerighttranslationskilltogetthesentencesuntangled.3.3SolutionstotheTranslationProblemsObviously,thesourcetextisaninformativetextinwhichthecontentisthemainfocus.Thistextactsonplaincommunicationoffacts,information,knowledge,opinionetc.Thatistosay,thetranslatorneedstoproduceatargettextwhichislogicalandinformative.Forthispurpose,thetranslatorusedmanytranslationskills.3.3.1AmplificationTheItalicizationofcertainpartsofasentencecanbedealtwithbyamplification.Amplificationmeanstoaddwordsorphrasesorevensentencestomaketheoriginalinformationeasytounderstandfortheaudience.Thisskillisoftenusedfortranslatingwords,phrasesorsentenceswithextensiveandconnotativemeaningsthatareexplicitonlywhenathoroughandcontextually-basedreadingofsourcetextisdone.Amplificationcanhelptoproduceatargettextthatisexpressive,naturalandabove9 all,logicallycohesive.Example1SL:Betterbeforecheaperdistillstoitsessencewhatourresearchrevealsabouttherelationshipbetweencompetitivepositionandexceptionalperformance.(RaynorandMumtaz,2013,p31)TL:“先质量后价格原则”揭示了竞争力与绩效之间的关系，是我们此次研究得出的重要结论。Inthissentence,betterbeforecheaper,ifunderstoodcontextually,canbeashortenedformfortheprincipleofbetterbeforecheaper.Amplificationmeanssupplyingnecessarywordsinourtranslationonthebasisofaccuratecomprehensionoftheoriginal.Forthepurposeofexpressivenessandfaithfulness,thetranslatoroftenresortstoamplification.Therefore,theChineseversionadded“原则”after“质量第一，价格第二”。Example2SL:Forus,competitivepositiondefineshowacompanycreatesvalueforcustomers,andthusthemoreusefulofthesetwotraditionaldimensionsisnon-pricevalue.(RaynorandMumtaz,2013,p.31)TL:我们认为，竞争力即一家公司为顾客创造价值的能力，所以上文提到的竞争力所包含的两要素中，“与价格无关的价值”这一要素更为重要。Inthissentence,thetranslatoradds“上文提到的竞争力所包含的两要素中”inthetargettextinordertomakethetranslationsemanticallyclear.Asamatterofprinciple,thetranslatorisnotsupposedtoaddanymeaningtoorsubtractanymeaningfromtheoriginalwork.Ifthetranslationis“我们认为，竞争力即一家公司为顾客创造价值的能力，‘与价格无关的价值’这一要素更为重要”,targetreadersmayfeelconfused.Wheredoesthe“‘与价格无关的价值’要素”comefrom?Fromthecontextitisapparentthattheauthormeanstwotraditionaldimensions“non-price10 valuethecustomerreceives”and“relativecostofproductionofcompetingsuppliers”.Thusthetranslatoradds“上文提到的竞争力所包含的两要素中”before“‘与价格无关的价值’这一要素更为重要”tomakethetargettextmoreunderstandable.3.3.2AnnotationTheSLtexthasmanypropernouns.Propernounsarenamesofpeople,places,andthings.ThepropernounsintheSLtextaremainlynamesofcompaniesorinstitutesortermsusedinthemanagementprofession.AssomeofthepropernounsareneverheardofinChina,atransliterationisnotadequate.Totranslatethosepropernounsadequately,thetranslatorkepttheEnglishversionofthepropernounandaddedanannotationafterthewordinabracket.ThistranslationskillsuppliestheChinesereaderswithnecessaryinformation,anditalsomakesiteasyforthosewhoareinterestedtofindoutmoreaboutthecompaniesorinstitutesconcernedinEnglish.Example3SL:Similarly,ifaskedtoputMotel6somewhereintheprice/non-pricespace,weexpectthatmostpeoplewouldsayitisaprice-basedcompetitorbecauseitspricesarelowerthanthoseofmanyotherhotels.(RaynorandMumtaz,2013,p.32)TL:同理，如果将Motel6（六号汽车旅馆，美国经济型旅馆名）放在价格/非价格因素上考虑，很多人会认为Motel6是以价格取胜，因为它的价格要比同类酒店低。Intheaboveexample,thewordMotel6isahotelname.Iftranslateddirectlyinto“6号汽车旅馆”，theChinesereaderswouldstillhavenoclearideawhythishotelisspecial.ButanannotationinbracketwillgivethereaderafullpictureofwhattheSLtextauthoristalkingabout.Andifareaderwantstoknowmoreaboutthehotel,hewouldhavetheconvenienceofsearchitontheinternetwithitsEnglishname.11 Example4SL:Bythemid-1980sthecompanyhadfocusedentirelyonsemiconductors,thankslargelytoitsproprietaryMOSFETtechnology,atransistorinbothanaloganddigitalcircuits.(RaynorandMumtaz,2013,p.40)TL:到了二十世纪八十年代中期，多亏了专利的金属-氧化物半导体场效应晶体管（MOSFET，简称金氧半场效晶体管,以金属层（M）的栅极隔着氧化层（O）利用电场的效应来控制半导体（S）的场效应晶体管）技术，公司开始专注于半导体材料的生产模拟晶体管和数字电路。IntheSLtext,thereisapropernounMOSFET.Atransliterationofthepropernounwouldgivenocluetowhatitstandsfor.CopyingtheEnglishnounsandsupplyinabracketanannotationofthepropernounwillsolvetheprobleminasatisfactoryfashion.3.3.3SplittingandReorderingLongandcomplexsentencesarefrequentlyfoundintheSLtext.Thesentencesarefeaturedwithlongmodifiers,manydependentclauses,andnon-linearlogicalreasoning.AsChineseisalanguagefavoringloosesentencestructures,theselongandcomplexsentencesareawkward.Whenthetranslatordoesmakeoutthemeaningofthesentences,heorshemaybeconfrontedwithdifficultyinhavingthemeaningexpressedingoodChinese.Thetranslatoroftheprojectappliedthetranslatingskillofsentencesplittingandrestructuringinsolvingthisproblem,anditturnedouttobesatisfactory.SplittingmeanstocutalongEnglishsentenceintoshortersentencesorclauses,andrestructuretheshortersentencesintooneorseveralChinesesentences.Example5SL:Theseconddimensionoftraditionalapproachestopositioninganalysis,12 relativecostofproduction,isnotdirectlyrelevanttobetterbeforecheaperbecauseitdoesnotdescribehowcompaniescreatevalueforcustomers.(RaynorandMumtaz,2013,p.31)TL:对竞争力的两个传统要素中的第二个要素，即生产成本问题，并不直接反应企业如何为顾客创造价值的，因此与我们这里所提的“质量先于价格”原则关系不明显。BecauseEnglishandChinesearetwoentirelydifferentlanguagesandeachhasitsownhistoricalandculturalbackground.Therefore,whentranslatingEnglishsentences,divisionandreorderingisnecessary.Inthesentencementionedabove,thetranslatorusesreorderingtotranslatethissentence.“Becauseitdoesnotdescribehowcompaniescreatevalueforcustomers”isputbefore“relativecostofproductionisnotdirectlyrelevanttobetterbeforecheaper”,sotheChineseversionofthissentenceis“生产成本问题，并不直接反应企业如何为顾客创造价值的，因此与我们这里所提的‘质量先于价格’原则关系不明显”.Example6SL:Acarthatwasbetterthanallothercarsonalldimensionsofvalueintheeyesofallcustomerswouldhave100percentmarketshare.Nocarhas100percentmarketshare,however,becausedifferentcustomersegmentswantcombinationsofdimensionsofvaluethatarenecessarilynegativecorrelated.(RaynorandMumtaz,2013,p.31)TL:如果一款汽车，在顾客的眼中各方面价值都要高于其它汽车，那么这款汽车应占有百分之百的市场份额。然而，没有哪一款汽车可以占有百分之百的市场份额，因为不同的顾客群体所需的价值要素组合可能是相互矛盾的。Intheaboveexample,ifthetranslatorputitinsequence,thetargettextwillbe“如果一款汽车各方面价值都要高于其它汽车在所有顾客的眼中，那么这款汽车13 应占有百分之百的市场份额”.Apparentlythistranslationisnotsemanticallycorrect,sothetranslatorusesreorderingtotranslatethesentence.“Intheeyesofallcustomers”isputbefore“thatwasbetterthanallothercarsonalldimensionsofvalue”,andthefinalChineseversionis“如果一款汽车，在顾客的眼中各方面价值都要高于其它汽车，那么这款汽车应占有百分之百的市场份额”.Example7SL:Thankstotheexistenceoftrade-offsamongatleastsomedimensionsofvalue,differentiatedcompetitivepositionscanbeprofitablewhilepositionsbasedonbeingbetteralongalldimensionsofperformancesimultaneouslyarerare.(RaynorandMumtaz,2013,p.31)TL:通过选择重点价值要素组合，企业可以获得差异化的竞争优势，从而实现盈利,相反，若企业在各价值要素上均衡发展，则很难取得理想的绩效。SplittingisthenecessarydivisionofalongsentenceintoshorteronesforlogicandclarityinEnglish.Inthissentence,thetranslatordividestheoriginaltextintoseveralpartsandreconstructsthesourcetextsothatthetargettextisacceptablefortargetreaders.“Thankstotheexistenceoftrade-offsamongatleastsomedimensionsofvalue”isdividedintothreeparts(“通过选择重点价值要素组合”,“企业可以获得差异化的竞争优势”and“从而实现盈利”)forlogic.“Differentiatedcompetitivepositionscanbeprofitablewhilepositionsbasedonbeingbetteralongalldimensionsofperformancesimultaneouslyarerare.”isdividedintotwosegments(“若企业在各价值要素上均衡发展”and“则很难取得理想的绩效”)andthetranslatoradded“相反”beforethesetwosegmentsasaconjunctionword.SotheultimateChineseversion“通过选择重点价值要素组合，企业可以获得差异化的竞争优势，从而实现盈利,相反，若企业在各价值要素上均衡发展，则很难取得理想的绩效”isacceptableforChinesereaders.14 3.3.4OmissionByomissionwemeanweproperlyomitsomewordsorexpressionsinordertomakethetranslatedversionbrief,conciseandclear.ProperomissioninEnglish-Chinesetranslationofteninvolvestheomittingofsomewords(suchasprepositions,articles,conjunctions,etc.)thatareindispensableintheSLtextbutnotintheTLtext.OmissionisbasedonthedifferencesbetweenEnglishandChinese.Forexample,Chinesehasnoarticlesorinfinitivemarkers.Pronouns,conjunctionsandprepositionsarenotusedasfrequentlyasthoseinEnglish.SowhenwetranslateEnglishsentenceswitharticlesandinfinitivemarkersintoChinese,weoftenomitthesearticlesorinfinitivemarkers.Example8SL:Noproductorservicecanbeallthingstoallpeople,andeverythingweknowaboutthepowerofmarketsegmentationandfocusisbasedonthisinescapablefact.(RaynorandMumtaz,2013,p.31)TL:没有任何一种产品或服务是能满足所有人的价值诉求，所以企业必须有所侧重。正是以此为依托，我们才提出了“市场划分”和“市场重心”这些概念。Inthissentence,thetranslatorusesbothamplificationandomission.“Noproductorservicecanbeallthingstoallpeople”istranslatedinto“没有任何一种产品或服务是能满足所有人的价值诉求，所以企业必须有所侧重”,and“everythingweknowaboutthepowerofmarketsegmentationandfocusisbasedonthisinescapablefact”istranslatedinto“正是以此为依托，我们才提出了‘市场划分’和‘市场重心’这些概念”.Intheformersentence,“所以企业必须有所侧重”isaddedaccordingtothelogicoftargettext.Inthelattersentence,“everything”and“know”areomittedinthetransformation.Example9SL:Insummary,thedimensionsofpositionarepricevalueandnon-pricevalue.15 Productsorservicesoccupydifferentlocationsincompetitivespacetotheextentthatdifferalongthesedimensions.(RaynorandMumtaz,2013,p.31)TL:总之，竞争力包含两要素，价格价值和非价格价值要素，所以一个产品或一项服务只能二选一。Inthisexample,thetranslatoromits“totheextent”inthetranslation.“Differentlocations”meanseither“products”or“services”,and“competitivespace”isanotherwaytosay“locations”.Ifthetranslatorput“到这样的程度”intheChineseversion,thetranslationwillberedundanttoChinesereaders.Sothefinaltranslationis“总之，竞争力包含两要素，价格价值和非价格价值要素，所以一个产品或一项服务只能二选一”.3.4SummaryBeforestartingtranslation,thetranslatorwasveryseriouswithherowntheoreticalandprofessionalpreparation.Shereadbooksontranslationtheoryandchosetherighttranslationdoctrinetoguideherpractice.Shealsopreparedthetranslationtoolsthatmaybeneeded,includingbooksonmanagement,dictionaries,glossariesandinternetsurfingtools.Whentheactualtranslationpracticestarted,sheusedthetoolssheprepared,andwasconsciouslyusingtranslationstrategiesandskillslearntinthepasttwoyearsinaddressingthetranslationproblems.Thoughthetranslationprocesslastedaboutthreemonths,theworkwassuccessfullyaccomplished.16 ChapterFourConclusion4.1LessonsDrawnfromtheTranslationProjectTheaccomplishmentofthistranslationproject,forthetranslator,isarduousbutproductive.Intheprocessoftranslating,thetranslatorappliedthetranslationtheoriesandskillslearnedinoroutsideclassintopractice.Whenmakingtranslationpreparations,thetranslatorharvestedabetterunderstandingoftexttypology,andwhenreadingbetweenthelinesoftheSLtextthetranslatorwashappilyexposedtoauthenticEnglishexpressionsforbusinessmanagement.Meanwhile,thetranslationprojectimprovesthetranslator’ssenseoftimemanagement.Thecompletionofatranslationprojectrequiresinvestmentbothintimeandenergy.Thetranslatorfailedtomakeapropertimearrangementatthefirststageoftheproject.Theselectedsourcetextforthistranslationprojectisstronglyflavoredwiththecharmofbusinessandglamourofwesternculture,therefore,ittakestimeandefforttofindtherightChinesewords.Fortunately,thetranslatorfinallymanagedtokeepupthescheduleoftheproject,andcompletedtheprojectontime.Nowlookingbackatthetranslatingprocess,thetranslatorwithsatisfiedwiththelessonsgainedandislookingforwardcomingupwiththesolutionstotheunsolvedproblems.4.2LessonsDrawnfromDoingthisTranslationProjectThetranslationprojecttaughtthetranslatorseverallessons.Firstly,aqualitytranslationprojectrequirestimedevotionandpainstakingpreparation.Agoodknowledgeoftranslationtheoriesandcultureisamustforthepreparation..Secondly,thetranslatormusthaveacomprehensiveunderstandingofdifferencesinEnglishlanguageandChineselanguagesothatfluentandnaturaltranslationcouldberealized.17 Thirdly,agoodtranslationcanbenefitfromahelpinghandwhomaybeyoursupervisor,yourclassmateorafriend.Indoingthistranslationproject,thetranslatorreceivedguidancefromhersupervisorandsupportfromher.Finally,thetranslatorshouldaccomplishthetranslationwithagoodworkingethicanddiscipline.Whendoingthistranslationproject,thetranslatorwascarefulnottomakemistakesintranslatingnumbers,figures,chartsandmeasurementsorthelike,forsheknewsometimesthemisplacementofapointinanumberthoughisnotaseriouscrime,itstillreflectstheinadvertencyofthetranslator.4.3ProblemsUnsolvedThetranslationprojectiscompleted,butthereisroomforfurtherimprovement.Firstly,howtominimizetranslationeseisstillaconcern.Guidedbyfunctionalequivalencetheory,thetranslatorhasstrivedtoproduceanaturalandfluentChineseversionoftheSLtext;however,duethelimitedexperienceintranslatingandalackofrelevantknowledgeofthetopicdiscussedintheSLtext,therearemanypartsoftheTLtextswantingimprovement.Secondly,propernounsinthesourcetextneedsfurtherresearchonthewebsitetohaveabetterunderstanding,andmoreappropriatetranslationskillsareneededtobetterrenderthosepropernames.Besides,assomeofthelongandcomplexsentencesarehardtocomprehend,therearetranslatedsentencethatarenotclearandpreciseenough.Finally,theunderstandingoftranslationtheoriesandtheuseoftranslationskillsarestillatamediocrestage.ThetranslatorneedstoimprovehergraspoftranslationtheoriesandskillsinthefuturetohaveabettercontrolofthequalityoftheTLtext.18 ReferencesHornby,A.S..(2009).AdvancedLeaner’sEnglish-ChineseDictionary.Beijing:theCommercialPress.Munday,J.(2008).IntroducingTranslationStudies:TheoriesandApplication(SecondEdition).London&NewYork:Routledge.Newmark,Peter.(2001).ATextbookofTranslation.Shanghai:ShanghaiForeignLanguageEducationPress.Nida,E.A.(1964).TowardaScienceofTranslating.Leiden:E.J.Brill.Nida,EugeneA.,andCharlesR.Taber.(1969).TheTheoryandPracticeofTranslation,WithSpecialReferencetoBibleTranslating,200.Leiden:Brill.Raynor,MichaelE.andMumtazAhmed.(2013).ThreeRules:HowExceptionalCompaniesThink.NewYork:PenguinGroupReiss,Katherina.(2000).TranslationCriticism:ThePotentialsandLimitations:CategoriesandCriteriaforTranslationQualityAssessment.Manchester:St.JeromePublishing.郭建中.（2000).当代美国翻译理论.武汉：湖北教育出版社.廖七一.(2004).当代英国翻译理论.武汉：湖北教育出版社.王宏志.(2015).翻译史研究.上海：复旦大学出版社.谢天振等.(2009).中西翻译简史.北京：外语教学与研究出版社.19 Appendix1:TheOriginalTextChapter3BetterBeforeCheaperBetterbeforecheaperdistillstoitsessencewhatourresearchrevealsabouttherelationshipbetweencompetitivepositionandexceptionalperformance.Ofcourse,competitivepositionhasbeenthesubjectofresearchanddiscussionfordecades.Foralltheseemingdifferencesamongthevariousapproaches,competitivespacehastypicallybeendefinedinthetermsofthenon-price1valuethecustomerreceivesandtherelativecostofproductionofcompetingsuppliers.Forus,competitivepositiondefineshowacompanycreatesvalueforcustomers,andthusthemoreusefulofthesetwotraditionaldimensionsisnon-pricevalue.Forexample,whenbuyingacar,customerstypicallyconsideravarietyofattributes,includingsafetyfeatures,reliabilityofoperation,carbonemissions,styling,acceleration,topspeed,handling,comfort,customizablefeatures(forexample,colororinteriorupholstery),thesalesexperience,easeandaccessibilityofservicing,andsoon.Mostelementsofnon-pricevaluecanbemeasured,albeitwithdifferentdegreesofprecision:acar’saccelerationishighlyquantifiable,safetyratingslessso,and“stylishness”canbegivenatbestperhapstheappearanceofspecificity.Toolssuchasconjointanalysiscanusethesemeasurementstoestimatetherelativeimportanceofeachdimension,allowingcompaniestoassessonwhichaspects,aloneorincombination,theyshouldseektosurpassthecompetitionin2ordertowinbusinessofspecificcustomersorcustomersegments.Theseconddimensionoftraditionalapproachestopositioninganalysis,relativecostofproduction,isnotdirectlyrelevanttobetterbeforecheaperbecauseitdoesnotdescribehowcompaniescreatevalueforcustomers.Companiescanchoosetoexploitalower-costpositiontoenjoysuperiorprofitabilityatpricessimilartotheircompetitors’.Inthatsituation,althoughlowerproductioncostisgoodforthecompany,itisirrelevanttothecustomer.Sincebetterbeforecheaperisaboutcreatingcustomervalue,ourseconddimensionofpositionisrelativepricevalue,3wherepricevalue(asperceivedbycustomers)typicallygoesupaspricegoesdown.Price—whatacustomerpaysforsomethinginmoney—isreadilyquantifiable,soonecanusuallydeterminefairlyeasilywhichoftwoofsufficientlysubstitutableofferingsislessexpensive(hassuperior20 pricevalue).Acarthatwasbetterthanallothercarsonalldimensionsofvalueintheeyesofallcustomerswouldhave100percentmarketshare.Nocarhas100percentmarketshare,however,becausedifferentcustomersegmentswantcombinationsofdimensionsofvaluethatarenecessarilynegativelycorrelated.Somecustomerswantalargercar(say,forseatingcapacity)andsomewantasmallercar(say,tofitinsmallparkingspaces).Inanypair-wisecomparison,nocarcanbebothlargerandsmaller.Similarly,speedandenergyconsumptionarenegativelycorrelated(allelseequal)becauseittakesmorepowertomoveagivenmassfaster.Stillotherlimitationsareentirelycontingent:creatingaminivanthathasmoresexappealthanasportscarrequiresonlythatpeople’stasteschange.Inotherwords,constraintsimposetrade-offs.Noproductorservicecanbeallthingstoallpeople,andeverythingweknowaboutthepowerofmarketsegmentationandfocusisbasedonthisinescapablefact.Companiesthatrefusetoaccepttrade-offsamongdifferentdimensionsof4performanceveryoftenendup“splittingthedifference”inwaysthatmakefewpeoplehappy.Insummary,thedimensionsofpositionarepricevalueandnon-pricevalue.Productsorservicesoccupydifferentlocationsincompetitivespacetotheextentthatdifferalongthesedimensions.Thankstotheexistenceoftrade-offsamongatleastsomedimensionsofvalue,differentiatedcompetitivepositionscanbeprofitablewhilepositionsbasedonbeingbetteralong5alldimensionsofperformancesimultaneouslyarerare.TheRelativityofPositionCompetitiveposition,likephysicalposition,isentirelyrelative.Thereisnoabsoluteframeofreferencetowhichonecanappeal.Wecannotanswerthequestion“WhatiscompanyX’sposition?”withoutalsospecifyingtowhichcompanyorcompanieswearecomparingcompanyX.Takethehotelbusiness.WhatwouldyousayisthecompetitivepositionofFourSeasons?Youwouldbeararebirdifyousaiditcompetesonprices.Thecompany’shotelsarerenownedfortheirluxuryandservice,thequalityofwhichisreflectedintheirprices,whicharetypicallyhigherthanmostofthehotelswithwhichmostpeoplearefamiliar.Similarly,ifaskedtoputMotel6somewhereintheprice/non-pricespace,weexpectthatmostpeoplewouldsayitisaprice-basedcompetitorbecauseitspricesarelowerthanthoseofmanyotherhotels.Thesequalitative,commonsensejudgmentsarebasedonimplicitcomparisonswithsome21 unspecified“average”hotelormotelthatweconjureupinourminds.Suchcomparisons,however,areoflittlepracticalaverage.Theymakechoicesamongspecificalternatives.ItissimplynotgoodenoughtosaythatFourSeasonscompetesonnon-pricevalue;wemustfirstspecifyagainstwhatitcompetesonnon-pricevalue.IfwecompareFourSeasonswithMotel6,fewpeoplewoulddisagreethatFourSeasonsisthenon-pricecompetitorwhileMotel6competesonprice.However,thevalidityofthatassessmentturnsonhowcloselysubstitutablearetheservicesbeingprovidedbyeachcompany.Wehaveasensethatbothcompaniesareinthehospitalitybusiness,andsowecansaywithastraightfactthattheyare,broadlyspeaking,substitutesforeachother:shouldyouneedaroomforhire,theyeachofferaviablesolution.Buttheyarenotespeciallyclosesubstitutes.HowmanypeoplewhoseriouslyconsiderbookingaroomattheFourSeasonsforaspecifictripsometimeschooseMotel6insteadforthatsametripbecauseitislessexpensive?HowmanypeoplelookingforaMotel6happentodrivebyaFourSeasonsandimpulsivelydecidetosplurgealittle?Itisabigworld,sobothofthesescenarioshavealmostcertainlyplayedout,butithardlyseemstypical.PerhapsabettercompetitivesetforFourSeasonsconsistsoftheRitz-Carlton,LeMéridien,andConradchains.Facedwiththesechoices,wemightgiveFourSeasonsadifferentpositionbasedontherelativepriceandnon-priceattributesofeachofthesealternativesthanitgotwhencomparedwithMotel6.Similarly,ifMotel6wascomparedwithLaQuinta,RedRoofInn,andBestWesternwemightnotbequitesoquicktoconcludethatitisaprice-basedcompetitor.Thereisnorightorwrongcomparisonuponwhichtobaseanassessmentofacompany’scompetitivepositionanymorethanthereisarightorwrongframeofreferencewhendeterminingphysicalposition.Instead,thereisabroadrangeofapplicablechoicesboundedbyextremesoflimitedutility.Acomparisonbetweentwocompaniesthataretoodifferentisallbutuseless.WhatistherelativepositioningofToyotaautomobilescomparedwithProcter&Gambleshampoos?Acarandahairproductaresuchweaksubstitutesthatcomparingthemseemspointless.Ifanything,theyservesuchdifferentneedsthateachcompeteswiththeotherfordiscretionaryspendingbasedentirelyonnon-pricedimensionsofvalue:youchooseaPriustodrivesomewhereandPantenetowashyourhair.Comparisonsthataretooclosearealsounlikelytoyieldmuchinsight.Ifweinsistonperfect22 substitutabilityalongnon-pricedimensions,thenbydefinition,thereisnobasisofcompetitionleftsaveprice,andsothereisnolatitudetolearnanythingaboutnon-pricedifferentiation.Despitetheirdifferences,then,comparingFourSeasonsandMotel6canrevealmuchaboutthealmostcertainlyverydifferentoperationalchoicestheymakeintheireffortstoprovidesuperiorlevelsofnon-priceandpricevalue,respectively.WecanlearnsomethingelsequiteusefulbyunderstandinghowFourSeasonsandRitz-Carltoncompetewitheachother.Theirmuchcloserpositionsinprice/non-pricespacerevealthefiner-grainedtrade-offsthateachmakesamongthosedimensionsofvaluethatallowdifferentiationwithinamorenarrowlydefinedsegment.Ineachcase,wemustbecarefultointerpretwhatwelearnentirelywithinthecontextofthecomparisonwearemaking.PositionandPerformanceThereisnologicallynecessaryrelationshipbetweenanyparticularcompetitivepositionandexceptionalperformance.Therearecompellingargumentsinfavorofbothprice-basedand6non-price-basedcompetition,andacademicresearchonthisquestionhasyieldedmixedresults.Inourattempttounderstandtherelationshipbetweenpositionandperformanceweassessedthepositionofeachcompanyinourtrioscomparedwitheachoftheothertwo.Ourassessmentsarebased,insofaraspossible,onobjectivedata.Whenweclaimthatonecompanycompetesonpricecomparedwithanother,wetypicallyhaveevidenceoflowerpricesforproductsorservicesthatconstitutethebulkofthatcompany’ssales.Claimsofanon-pricepositionaresupportedbyevidenceofsuperiornon-pricevalueondimensionsrelevanttotheappropriateproductmarketsandcustomersegments.Keepinmindthatpositioncanbeassessedonlyrelativetoaspecificalternative.Ifwehadexaminedduosineachindustrywewouldhavehadnochoicebuttohavenamedonecompanythe7non-pricecompetitorandtheothertheprice-basedcompetitor.Withthreecompanies,oneofthe8canbe“inthemiddle.”Also,withthreecompanies,noteverycompanyneedoccupyadifferentposition:twocompaniescanbedifferentfromathirdcompanyinthesameway,andhenceoccupythesamecompetitivepositioneveniftheyarenot,strictlyspeaking,identical.Forexample,aLongRunnerandanAverageJoecouldbothbeprice-basedcompetitorscomparedwiththenon-price-positionedMiracleWorker,withtheremainingdifferencesbetweenthemdeemedimmaterial.23 TABLE5:CompetitivePositionsWithinTriosIndustryNon-PriceIntheMiddlePriceMW-FLR-KAJSemiconductorLinearMicropacInternationalRectifiersMW-FLR-KAJMedicalMedtronicStrykerInvacareDevicesMW-LLR-LAJElectricalThomas&BettsHubbellEmriseWiringLR-KAJClothingAbercrombie&FinishLineSymsMW-KFitchAJMW-FLR-KConfectionaryRMCFWrigleyTootsieRollMW-LGroceriesWholeFoodsPublixSuperWeisMarketsAJLR-FMarketsMarketsMW-OTHAJPharmaceuticaMerckKVPharmaceuticalLR-KlsEliLillyMW-KLR-LTruckingHeartlandWernerAJPAMMW-LAJAppliancesMaytagWhirlpoolLR-LHMIIndustriesSource:Author’sanalysisPerformancecategory:MV=MiracleWorker;LR=LongRunner;AJ=AverageJoe.Performancetrajectory:K=KeptIt;F=FoundIt;L=LostIt;OTH=Other.Finally,measuringcompetitivepositionisnotlikemeasuringheightorweight,andsothepositionwegivetoanyparticularcompanyisnotbeyonddispute.Inthecourseofthisandthenexttwochapterswewillexplainatlengthwhywebelievetable5capturesaccuratelythecompetitivepositionsofthecompaniesinourtrios.Fornow,weaskthatyoutaketheseclaimsatfacevalue,knowingthatyouwillhaveachancetoassessthemasourargumentunfolds.Basedonthesecategorization,differencesinperformanceappeartobestronglyrelatedtodifferencesinposition:wecanbemorethan90percentsurethatcompaniesfromdifferent24 performancecategorieswillhavedifferentcompetitivepositions(seeAppendixG,“TheStatisticalAnalysisofSmallSamples”).Furthermore,andfarmoreimportant,wefoundthatcompanieswithnon-pricepositionstendedtobeMiracleWorkers,thatcompanieswithin-the-middlepositionstendedtobeLongRunners,andcompanieswithprice-basedpositionstendedtobeAverageJoes.Thesignificanceoftherowscapturesthelikelihoodofarelationshipbetweencategoryandposition;thatis,thereisa97.5percentchancethattheMiracleWorkersinoursamplearenotrandomlydistributedacrossthethreepositiontypesandinsteadtendtohavenon-pricepositions.Thesignificanceofthecolumnscapturesthelikelihoodofarelationshipbetweenpositionandcategory;thatis,thereisa94.1percentchancethatthecompanieswithprice-basedpositionsinoursamplearenotrandomlydistributedacrossthethreeperformancecategoriesandinsteadtendtobeAverageJoes.Recallthatwehavefourpossibletrajectories(KeptIt,LostIt,FoundIt,Other)foreachofourtwocategoriesofexceptionalperformance(MiracleWorker,LongRunner).Thisallowsustocharacterizeeachcompany’spositionduringitsperiodsofhigherandlowerrelativeperformance.Forexample,MaytagisaLostItMiracleWorker.Itsperiodofhigherrelativeperformancewasfrom1966to1989,duringwhichtimeithadanon-price-valueendofthespectrumintheearly1980s,andbythetimeitsperiodofhigherrelativeperformanceendedithadbecomelargelyaprice-basedcompetitor,apositionitheldthroughoutitsperiodoflowerrelativeperformancefrom1990to2005.ThisisapatternamongLostItexceptionalcompanies:shiftingawayfromanon-pricepositionappearstobeakeycauseofafallinrelativeperformance.Incontrast,FoundItexceptionalcompanies,especiallyMiracleWorkers,typicallybreakthroughintoaperiodofhigherrelativeperformanceasaconsequenceofshiftingtowardanon-priceposition.TABLE6:WhichPositionsTendtoPerformBetter?CategoryPriceIntheMiddleNon-PriceLikelihoodofaRelationshipBetweenCategoryandPositionMiracleWeisMarketsWrigleyAbercrombie&97.5%25 WorkerFitchHeartlandLinearTechnologyMaytagMedtronicMerckThomas&BettsLongRunnerTootsieRollHubbellEliLilly56.5%WernerFinishLineHMIIndustriesPublixSuperMarketsStrykerAverageJoeEmriseRocky97.5%KVMountainPharmaceuticalsChocolateInternationalFactoryRectifierWholeFoodsInvacareMarketsPAMSymsWhirlpoolLikelihoodof94.1%94.7%88.4%aRelationshipBetweenPositionandCategorySource:Author’sanalysis26 ThefigurebelowsummarizestheregressionanalysisdetailedinAppendixH,“ChangeinPositionandChangesinPerformance.”Theverticalaxiscapturesanychangeinacompany’spositionovertime:doesitshiteithertowardamoreprice-basedposition,towardamorenon-price-basedposition,oristherenochangerelativetotheothercompaniesinitstrio?Fromchapter1,recallthatHeartlanddidnotchangeitspositionovertimewhileMaytagdid,shiftingtowardprice-basedcompetition.Thehorizontalaxisisourdependentvariable,relativeperformance,andcapturesacompany’strajectory.LostItcompaniessufferadecreaseinperformance,KeptItcompanieshavenomaterialchange,andFoundItcompaniesenjoyanincreaseinperformance.TowardLinearnon-pricebasedTechnologydifferentiation(MW)Stryker(LR)*PublixSuperMarkets(LR)*NochangeWeisAbercrombie&Wrigley(MW)MarketsFitch(MW)Medtronic(MW)Merck&Co.(MW)ChangeinHubbell(MW)**Position(LR)HeartlandWernerExpress(MW)EnterprisesMicropac(LR)Industries(LR)TowardThomas&price-basedBetts(MW)differentationMaytag(MW)27 HMI(LR)LostItKeptItFoundItPerformanceTrajectoryKEY:MW=MiracleWorker,LR=LongRunner;K=KeptIt,F=FoundIt,LostIt,OTH=Other*PubixandStrykerjustmissourformalthresholdsforupwardshiftsinperformance,buttheirqualitativeresultssuggeststronglythattheymightbeFoundItMiracleWorkers.Strykerisdiscussedinthischapter,Publixinchapter4.AppendixHprovidesregressionresultswithPublixSuperMarketsandStrykerasFoundItandKeptIt.**AlthoughMerck’strajectoryisOtheritistreatedhereasKeptIt.Seechapter5fordetail.Source:Authors’analysisFIGURE1:ChangesinPositionandChangesinPerformanceWhatthismeansisthat:1.Positionmatters.a.Differencesinpositionareassociatedwithdifferencesinperformance.2.Non-pricepositionstendtobemoreprofitable.a.Companieswithnon-pricepositionsarethelikeliesttobeMiracleWorkers.b.Companieswithin-the-middlepositionsarethelikeliesttobeLongRunners.c.CompanieswithpricepositionsarethelikeliesttobeAverageJoes.3.Themostprofitablecompaniestendtohavenon-pricepositions.a.MiracleWorkersarethelikeliesttohavenon-pricepositions.b.LongRunnersarenomorelikelytohaveonetypeofpositionthananother.c.AverageJoesarethelikeliesttohavepricepositions.4.Changesinpositionareassociatedwithchangesinperformance.a.Shiftingtowardaprice-basedpositionisassociatedwithadeclineinperformance.b.Shiftingtowardanon-pricepositionisassociatedwithanincreaseinperformance.Wefindtheconnectionbetweenpositionandperformanceinourdatahighlysuggestive,especiallysincethereisgoodreasontothinkthatpositioncontributesinamaterialwaytoperformance.Butweneedstillmoreevidencebeforewecanconcludethatitispositionthat28 causesperformanceandnotviceversa.Thatmeansdiggingdeepintothespecificsofeachcase.Ifthereisaconsistent,plausible,andcompellingnarrativeconnectingpositionandperformanceinwaysthatexplainperformanceoutcomes,thencausalclaimshaveawholenewlevelof9credibility.Inthecourseofthisbookwewillrecountallofourrelevantcaseevidence.Fornow,wewilldouble-clickonthreetriosthatillustratetheposition-performancerelationshipespeciallyclearly:semiconductors,medicaldevices,andelectricalwiring.Ifyourpositionis:Thenyouaremostlikelytobea:Non-priceMiracleWorkerInthemiddleLongRunnerPriceAverageJoeTheBottomLine:BetterBeforeCheaperAsweattemptedtosortouthowpositioncontributedtoperformance,wewereforcedtotacklewhathaslongseemedanintractablequestioninthescienceandpracticeofmanagement;namely,howdoposition,execution,andindustryinteracttodeterminecompanyperformance?Wefoundthattheconnectionsamongthethreecanbecapturedusingthemetaphorofarollercoaster.Onarollercoaster,thegoalistogofast,andhowfastyougoisafunctionlargelyoftwofactors:howhighyouclimbandhowefficientlyyouridedowntheotherside.Thehigheryouclimbthemorepotentialenergyyouarestoringup.Youturnthatpotentialenergyintokineticenergybyscreaming(actuallyandmetaphorically)downtheotherside.Notallthepotentialenergycreatedbytheclimbisconvertedtokineticenergyonthewaydown,however.Someofthatenergyisnecessarilylosttofriction,andifyourrideispoorlydesigned,thiscanmateriallydetractfromthethrilloftheplunge.Competitivepositionistheheightoftheclimb.Executioniswhatallowsyoutoturnpotentialenergyintokineticenergybyridingdowntheotherside.Boththeheightoftheclimbandtheefficiencyoftheridedownareindispensabletotheoverallexperience.Abigclimbwithnodescentisessentiallyworthless,andatrainthatstuttersdowntheothersideisarguablynotmuchbetter.Thesmoothestcarintheworldcannotmakeupforapunydrop.Similarly,youcannotcompensateforapoorpositionwithgreatexecutionwhilepoorexecutioncancompromiseeventhemostpromisingposition.29 Inshort,positiondetermineshowfastyoucango;executiondetermineshowfastyouactuallygo.Butwait:wheneveryoutalkaboutmotion,youmustspecifyyourframeofreference.Whenyoucrestintherollercoasterdoyouthenrushtowardthegroundordoesthegroundrushtowardyou?Changingtheframeofreferencecanturnarapiddescentintocompletemotionlessness.Industryistheframeofreferenceforthepotentialandkineticenergy.Asanindustry’sstructurechanges—newtechnologies,newregulations,newentrants,andsoon—exceptionalcompaniesunderstandthatallperformance(ormotion,intheroller-coastermetaphor)isrelative,andsotheyadaptinwaysthatpreservetheirabilitytostorepotentialandreleasekineticenergy.Averagecompanies,andexceptionalcompaniesthatlosetheirway,seemtoforgetthatthekeyisrelativepositionwithinanindustryandinsteadbeginmatchingtheirbehaviortoindustry-levelforces.Ifanindustryisconsolidating,theygoonanacquisitionsbinge;ifanindustryissufferingadownturn,theybegincuttingcostandprice;ifanindustryisexpanding,theyinvestandgrow.Thatallseemsreasonable,butitamountstomovinginthesamedirectionandwiththesamevelocityastheframeofreferenceitself—inotherwords,itamountstostandingstill.Exceptionalperformanceisbuiltonbeingdifferent,andmakingchoicesdominatedbyindustry-levelconsiderationsmakesyouaverage.Position:PotentialEnergyForperhapsadecade—fromthemid-1990stothemid-2000s,whenthepersonalcomputerwasmakingthecrossoverfromfancynewgadgettomainstreamconsumerelectronicsdevice—thesemiconductorwastopicofeverydayconversation.ThankstoIntel’ssuccess,prominence,andmarketingsavvy,manyofushadatleastacocktail-partyleveloffamiliaritywithtermssuchas“clockspeed”and“x86architecture.”Thereismuchmoretothechipbusiness,however,thanIntelandthepersonalcomputer.Semiconductorscomeinawidevarietyofflavorsandareanintegralpartofcountlessdevicesofallkinds.Thechipsinourpersonalcomputersandsmartphonesaredigitallogicintegratedcircuits,similartotheproductsmadebyMicropacIndustries(Micropac),theLongRunner(KeptIt)inoursemiconductortrio.InternationalRectifier(IR),theAverageJoe,focusedondiscretesemiconductorswhileLinearTechnology(Linear),ourMiracleWorker(FoundIt),concentrated10onhigh-performanceanalogintegratedcircuits.Competitionintheindustryiskeenestwithin30 eachsegment,buttechnologicaladvanceshaveincreasedsubstitutabilityacrosstheseboundaries.Asof2010,LinearandIRwerebothbillion-dollarcompanieswiththousandsofemployees.Micropacgeneratedlessthan$50millioninannualrevenuewithfewerthantwohundredemployees.Fromtheirrespectiveinitialpublicofferings(IPOs)until2010,Linearmultiplieditsequityvaluesixty-two-fold,IRsixteen-fold,andMicropactenfold.Ourbeliefisthesedifferencesinsize,shareholderreturns,andofcourseprofitabilityaretheconsequencesofarelativelysmallnumberofcriticalchoicesthatdefinedeachcompany’scompetitiveposition.Micropacwasfoundedin1963andenteredourdatabasein1974.BasedinGarland,Texas,thecompanyhasanenviablethirty-five-yearhistoryofgraduallyincreasingROAandsteadyrelativeperformance.Thistrackrecordisallthemoreimpressiveinlightofthecompany’ssmallsize.Thecompaniesthatdominatethedigitallogicsemiconductorsegmentarethetitansoftheindustry:Intel,AMD,Cyrix,andothers—companieswithtensofbillionsinrevenue,andcapitalexpenditure(capex)andresearchanddevelopment(R&D)budgetstomatch.TABLE7:DescriptiveStatisticsfortheSemiconductorTrioCompaCategorYearObservaReveAverCompouCompounyyFoundtionnueagendednded(TrajectoredPeriodGrowtAnnuaAnnualAnnualy)hlROATSRRevenueGrowthLinearMiracle19811985to$17M16.920.0%18.4%TechnologWorker2010Mto%y(FoundIt)$1.2BNMicropaLong19631974to$4M6.8%10.2%5.2%cRunner2010MtoIndustries(KeptIt)$23MMInternatiAverage19471966to$29M1.5%5.6%8.1%onalJoe(N/A)2010MtoRectifier$895M31 MSource:Companydocuments;Compustat;DeloitteanalysisCarvingoutanicheinthissegmentseemstohavebeenakeytoMicropac’ssuccess.Specifically,thecompanyfocusedonrelativelylow-volume,fixed-pricecontractswiththeU.S.DepartmentofDefense(DoD).Manyofthesecontractsrequiredmilitarycertifications,whichrestrictedtheusestowhichequipmentanddesignexpertisecouldbeput.Consequently,takingongovernmentcontractswasnotonlytechnicallychallenging,italsoimposedaveryrealgrowthtrade-off:thevolumeswerelow,andtheinvestmentsmadetosecurethoselimitedvolumeshadlimitedapplicabilitybeyondthegovernmentbusinessthatjustifiedthem.Itwasbyembracingtheimplicationsofthesetrade-offs,however,thatMicropacwasabletotranslateconstraintsintoasourceofsuperiorprofitability.Byfocusingitsinvestmentsononlythosetechnologiesrequiredbyitschosencustomersegment,Micropacwasabletokeepitscapexat5to8percentofrevenue,belowtheindustryaverageof6to12percent,anditsR&Dspendat5to10percentagepointsofsalesbelowtheindustryaverageof10to14percent,withoutsacrificingtheperformanceofitsproducts.ThesejointR&DprojectswithcustomerscoupledwiththecarefulhusbandryofitsfacilitiescombinedtogiveMicropacalevelofassetturnoverthatwasmateriallybetterthanthatofbothLinearandIR.11Inshort,Micropacappearstohavebeenawell-runandhighlyfocusedcompany.Itmanagedtowalkatightropestrungbetweentheneedtodelivercutting-edgetechnologyandthedisciplinerequiredtoremainconsistentlywelloverdecadeswarrantsnotmerelyrespectbutalsoadmiration.Whatmakesthesechoicesgenuinetrade-offs,however,isthatMicropacwasunabletoescapethedownside.FocusingontheU.S.militarymadeitdifficultforthecompanytogrowinternationallyduetosecurityissuesassociatedwithtechnologytransfer:barely10percentofthecompany’srevenuecamefromcustomerslocatedoutsidetheUnitedStates.Inaddition,becausesomuchofthecompany’sprofitabilityturnedonfocusingitsinvestmentandproductdevelopmentonitsprimarycustomers,therewasverylittleslackthatmighthaveservedasthefoundationfordiversifyingintoothermarketsorproductsegmentsoftheindustry.Consequently,Micropac’ssuccesswithfixed-pricecontractsledtoincreasedrelianceonfixed-pricecontracts,which32 accountedforupwardsoftwothirdsofthecompany’srevenue.ContrastMicropac’sgildedcagewiththegrowthandsteadilyincreasingprofitabilityofLinear,ourMiracleWorker.Foundedin1981andgoingpublicin1985,Lineargotitsstartasasecond-sourcesupplierofanalogsemiconductorsfocusingonthemorestandardizedproducts,suchasvoltageregulators.WithhalfitssalescomingfromtheU.S.governmentandanotherthirdfromtheindustrialandautomotivesector,LinearinmanywayslookedverymuchlikeMicropac:awell-runandprofitablenicheplayer.Thesesimilaritieswerereflectedintheirsimilarrelativeththperformance,asbothcompanieslandedinthe5to8decilesinthelatterhalfofthe1980s.Bytheearly1990s,however,itwasclearthatthetwocompanieswereonradicallydifferentgrowthandprofitabilitytrajectories.Linear’sROAwasroutinelyindoubledigits,andforseveralyearswasover20percentwhileMicropaccontinuedtodeliversteady,ifrelativelypedestrianperformanceinthehighsingledigits.Relativerankingsrevealthesignificanceoftheseshifts:thfrom1991through2010Lineardeliveredaneffectivelyunbrokenstringof9-decilerankswhileMicropacwasstillchurningoutannualranksof6through8.Linearhad“foundit”—namely,itsparticularrecipeforexceptionalperformance.Sowhatchanged?First,notethatLineardidnotpullawayfromMicropacbecauseofanyfailingsonMicropac’spart:itisoneofthefewKeptItLongRunnersinoursample.Rather,Linearmateriallyimproveditsperformancebyfundamentallychangingitspositionandcompetingmoreonnon-pricedimensionsofvalue.Incontrast,Micropacremainedbothvictimandbeneficiaryoftheconstraintsthatdefineditspositionclosertotheprice-valueendofthecontinuum.Specifically,Linearreinvesteditsprofitsfromearlysuccessasasecond-sourcesupplierintocapexandR&D,deliberatelydiversifyingitscustomerbaseandproductportfolio.Theshiftwasgradual,butsteadyandunrelenting:by2006over70percentofrevenuescamefromoutsidetheUnitedStates,andgovernmentsaleswerelessthan3percentoftotalrevenue.Althoughnosinglecustomeraccountedformorethan10percentofsales,Linearwasfocusedonhigh-performance,mission-criticalintegratedcircuitsthattypicallywerenotahighproportionofitscustomers’totalcost.ThiscombinationofattributesallowedLineartochargerelativelyhigherpricesandsocapturemuchofthevalueitcreated.Forexample,arepresentativeLinearcustomersoldhigh-performancemobiledatascanners33 forthousandsofdollars.Linear’schipsimprovedbatterylife,akeydifferentiatorforthisproduct,yetonethataccountedforlessthan5percentofthetotalmaterialscostforeachscanner.Consequently,thiscustomertypicallylookedelsewheretoensurethecostcompetitivenessofitsproducts,whichallowedLinearsignificantpricingpower.Inaddition,withahighlydiversifiedcustomerbase,ifthisorprettymuchanyothercustomerbecameespeciallypricesensitive,Linearwaslesscompelledtoaccedetopricingpressuresthan,say,Micropac,whichhadamuchmoreconcentratedcustomerbase.Generalizedacrossitsportfolioofmorethanfifteenthousandcustomers,Linearwasconsistentlyinapositiontocaptureagreaterproportionofthevalueitcreatedthroughhigherpricesthanmostothercompetitorsintheindustry.WecanseethefinancialimpactofthesechoicesinthestructureofLinear’sperformanceadvantageoverMicropacacrossthetwostreaksofrelativeperformance.Linear’sstreakoflowerrelativeperformanceranfrom1986to1991.Linearaveraged5.8ppperyearaheadofMicropaconROA,anadvantagethatisdrivenentirelybyitsreturnonsales(ROS)advantage.Thisinturnisdrivenbyagrossmarginleadofmorethan18ppperyear,whichiserodedbyanSG&Adisadvantage,higherrelativetaxes(aconsequenceofbeingmoreprofitable),andcurrentandfixedassetturnoverdisadvantages.Linear’ssubsequentstreakofhigherperformance,from1992to2010,hasasimilarcomplexionbutgeneratesmuchlargerperformancedifferencesandearnsthecompanyitsMiracleWorkerstatus.ThecompanygeneratedagrossmarginadvantageoverMicropacofmorethan25ppperyear,offsetbydisadvantagesinR&D,depreciation,taxes,andcurrentandfixedassetturnover.ThisshiftinperformanceisentirelycoincidentwithLinear’shavingestablisheditsnon-priceposition.TABLE8:Linear’sElementsofAdvantageVersusMicropacElementsofROAContributiontoROAAdvantageinPercentagePointsperYearPeriodofLowerPeriodofHigherPerformance:1986-1991Performance:1992-2010GrossMargin20.225.7SG&A-9.02.834 R&D0.0-5.2Other(incl.taxes)-2.5-7.1ROS8.716.2CAT-2.3-4.2FAT-0.5-0.9Other-0.0-0.2TAT-2.9-5.3ROA5.811.0Source:Compustat;DeloitteanalysisFiguremaynottotalduetoroundingItisworthunderliningthatby2010LinearhadmorethanfiftytimesMicropac’srevenueyetsufferedfromafixedassetturnoverdisadvantage—theoppositeofwhatonemightexpect,sincethankstoeconomiesofscale,assetturnoveroftenincreaseswithrevenuegrowth.ThatLinear’sR&DexpenseswerearelativedragonprofitabilitycomparedwithMicropacisperhapsalsosurprising,sinceeconomiesofscalecouldhavehadanimpactthere,too:atmorethan$1billioninrevenue,whywouldLinearneedtospendahigherpercentageofrevenueonR&Dwhenitsabsolutespendwouldbesomuchhigherevenatlowerrelativelevels?TheanswerseemstobethatLinearandMicropacweremakingpreciselythetrade-offsrequiredbytheirverydifferentcompetitivepositions.WithitsleanassetbaseandhighlyfocusedR&D,Micropackeptitscostslowandassetturnoverhighdespiteitsrelativelylowrevenue.Linearspentaggressivelyonintellectualandrealassetsbecausethatwashowitcreatedproductswiththenon-pricevaluerequiredtocommandthepricepremiumsthattranslatedintosuperiorandsustainedprofitability.Thelessonwetakeawayfromthisanalysisisthattherearelimitstohowfargreatexecutioncantakeyou.Micropacrarelysetafootwrong,copingwiththeupsanddownsofdefenseandspaceprogrambudgets,thechallengesoffixed-pricecontracts,andtheexigenciesofthequalityandsecuritydemandsofasmallnumberofcustomersonwhomitwashighlydependent.Itssuccessisatestamenttoitsabilitytoperformacomplexsetofactivitiesconsistentlyandwell.ButhowevereffectiveMicropacmighthavebeeninrisingtothechallengesitfaced,the35 company’sperformancewaslimitedbyitscompetitiveposition.ForcedtocompeteonpricetoalargerextentthanLinear,Micropachadlittlechoicebuttodriveprofitabilitythroughsmartcostcontainmentandjudiciousinvestment.ThatitsperformancefellshortofMiracleWorkerstatusisnoindictmentofMicropacasacompany,butinsteadisaninherentlimitationofitsposition.Toreturntoourroller-coastermetaphor,Micropacdeliveredamongthesmoothestofrides,makingthemostoutofitsclimb.ButLinearfoundawaytoclimbhigherstill.Initsearlydaysasasecond-sourcesupplier,Linearwasdependentonasmallnumberofcustomers,andsoithadtorelyonexecutiontodriveprofitability.Overtime,Linearcraftedanon-pricepositionthatheldmuchmorepotentialenergy,andwhenitcrestedthatclimb,itwasabletotranslatethatpotentialintokineticenergythroughconsistentlystrongexecution.Theresultwasseventeenofnineteenthyearsinthe9decileandatwenty-six-yearhistoryofexceptionalperformance.InternationalRectifier,theAverageJoeofthetrio,shedsadditionallightontherelationshipbetweenpositionandexecutionandrevealsthedangersofrespondingtoindustryforcesattheexpensedofboth.Foundedin1947andpublicsince1958,IRisthelongest-livedofthetrio,andthatlongevitywarrantsitsownformofrespect.Thesemiconductorindustrycanchangerapidlyanddramatically,12andsimplystayingaliveformorethansixtyyearsisanoteworthyachievement.LikesomanyAmericancompaniesofitstime,throughthe1979sIRbuiltupadiversifiedportfolioofoperatingbusinesses,includingnotonlysemiconductorsbutalsopharmaceuticals,metallurgicaltechnology,andmedicaldevices.Bythemid-1980sthecompanyhadfocusedentirelyonsemiconductors,thankslargelytoitsproprietaryMOSFETtechnology,atransistorinbothanaloganddigitalcircuits.ItisworthunderliningthateventhoughitistheAverageJoeofthetrio,itwasnotnecessarilyafollow-the-leader,price-basedcompetitor.Inadditiontoleading-edgetechnology,IRastutelyfollowedthediversificationoftheindustrybeyondgovernmentapplicationsinthemilitaryandspaceprogramsintoawidevarietyofconsumerandindustrialapplications.This,too,meritsmention:howmanycompaniesthatfindearlysuccessinanevolvingindustryfailtochangewiththerimesandgetleftbehind?Inotherwords,IRwasclearlyabletoinnovateinanindustrythatdemandedinnovation,andtochangedramaticallyinanindustrythatdemandeddramaticchange.How,then,doweexplainIR’sentirelyunremarkableperformance?WewillmeetotherAJsin36 oursamplethatwerefoiledbybadluckoravoidablypoorchoices.Incontrast,IRprovidesacompellingexampleofattendingtoalltherightissues,inlargelytherightway,yetfailingtostandout.TakeR&D,forexample.IRwashardlyignorantoftheimportanceofR&Dinsemiconductors,butsoughttofindawaytoreduceexpenditureswithoutsacrificingitscompetitiveness.Tothatend,itfundeditsR&Djointlywithitscustomers.ThisallowedthecompanytoremainaviablecompetitorwithanR&DspendthatwaslessthanhalfLinear’srelativespend:4percentofsalescomparedwith9percent.However,bycollaboratingwithcustomersinthisway,IRwasunabletocommandthesortofpricepremiumthatLinearcouldthroughextremenon-pricevalueorthatMicropaccouldthroughextremecustomerfocus.InternationalRectifier’streatmentoflicensingwassimilarlyreasonably,butultimatelycounterproductive.Thecompany’sMOSFETbreakthroughwasmarketedundertheHEXFETtrademark.ThedesignprovedsopopularthatIRwascapacityconstrained,andsolicensedthetechnologytoothermanufacturers.Thismighthavebeenagoodstopgapmeasure,butIR—perhapsattractedbytheseeminglyhighROAassociatedwithlicensingrevenue—madelicensingacentralpartofitsstrategy.Bythemid-1990s,75percentofthemarketwasusingitspatents.Thismighthavelookedgoodonastand-alonebasis,butbylicensingitskeydifferentiatingtechnologysoextensively,IRprovedunabletogeneratetheprofits(inabsolutedollars)requiredtoreinvestinitsowncapabilities.ThiseventuallysawIRcompetinginproductmarketsagainstitsowntechnology,whichleftlittlelatitudefornon-pricedifferentiation.Recognizingthebenefitsofcompetingonnon-pricevalue,IRattemptedtoshiftfromdiscretetoanalogsemiconductors,whereitwasperhapspossibletocarveoutamoreprofitableniche.DifferencesinthenecessarydesignandfabricationcapabilitiesmeantthatIRhadtoshedmanyofitslegacyassetswhilesimultaneouslyacquiringnewones.Theresultwasastringofeightmajoracquisitionsbetween2000and2004thatdrovea70percentincreaseinitsassetbaseandresultedinmorethan$400millioninrestructuringcharges.37 Appendix2:TheTargetText第三章“先质量后价格”原则“先质量后价格”原则揭示了竞争力与绩效之间的关系，是我们此次研究得出的重要结论。几十年来公司如何保持竞争力优势一直是学术研讨的主题。尽管所采取的研究方法各有不同，但所有的这些研究都认为竞争力包含两个要素：顾客获得的与价格无关的价值以及为提供此价值供应商所付的成本。我们认为，竞争力即一家公司为顾客创造价值的能力，所以上文提到的竞争力所包含的两要素中，“与价格无关的价值”这一要素更为重要。例如，顾客在买汽车的时候肯定会考虑相当多的因素，包括汽车的安全性能、操作的灵活性、碳排放量、款式、加速器、最高行驶速度、方向盘、舒适度、特征（比如汽车的颜色和车内的装饰）、买车体验、售后服务是否方便等等。虽然在精确度上有差异，非价格价值要素，大都是可以量化的。比如，车的加速性能是完全可以精确测算的，其次是安全性能，最后是款式和外形。企业可以使用综合分析法来测量每个要素的比重。这样企业就能找出在哪个要素，或哪个要素组合上要努力胜过竞争对手。对竞争力的两个传统要素中的第二个要素，即生产成本问题，并不直接反应企业如何为顾客创造价值的，因此与我们这里所提的“质量先于价格”原则关系不明显。企业可以在保持售价不变的情况下用降低成本的方式来打败竞争对手。在此情形下，公司虽然降低了成本，但与顾客所获得的价值无关。对顾客而言，产品售价越低，其价值越高。而产品的售价是很容易量化的，因此，通常在两个类似产品中，我们可以轻松判定哪一个更便宜（或者说价值价格更高）。如果一款汽车，在顾客的眼中各方面价值都要高于其它汽车，那么这款汽车应占有百分之百的市场份额。然而，没有哪一款汽车可以占有百分之百的市场份额，因为不同的顾客群体所需的价值要素组合可能是相互矛盾的。一些顾客想买大一点的车（从座位数量上来说），另一些顾客则青睐小一点的车（因为更适合小点的停车位）。当然，也有一些要素是弹性的：要设计一款小货车，使其比跑车更具魅力，只要改变人们的欣赏习惯即可。没有任何一种产品或服务是能满足所有人的价值诉求，所以企业必须有所侧重。正是以此为依托，我们才提出了“市场划分”和“市场重心”这些概念。那些不能在所有顾客价值诉求中找出重点价值要素组合的公司，只能对各价值要素“平均使力”，结果却是其生产的38 产品让所有顾客都不满意。总之，竞争力包含两要素，价格价值和非价格价值要素，所以一个产品或一项服务只能二选一。通过选择重点价值要素组合，企业可以获得差异化的竞争优势，从而实现盈利,相反，若企业在各价值要素上均衡发展，则很难取得理想的绩效。企业地位的相对性企业的竞争地位和物理地位一样，是相对的。没有绝对的框架结构供我们参考。在不具体说明哪一家或哪几家公司和X公司作比较的情况下，我们无法回答“X公司的竞争地位是什么”这个问题。就拿酒店行业来说，你觉得四季酒店的竞争力如何？如果你说它是靠价格优势赢得地位的话，那么你就外行了。这家公司的酒店因其奢华和优质服务而闻名，价格反应质量，这家酒店的房间价格比我们大多数人熟知的酒店要高得多。同样的，如果要求以价格/非价格的因素来评论连锁酒店Motel6的话，很多人肯定会说它是以低价竞争获得成功的，因为该酒店入住价格比其它很多酒店都要低。我们的这种印象性的、常识性的判断，是建立在我们将这两家店与一些抽象的“普通”酒店或汽车酒店的下意识比较基础上。然而，这样的比较几乎没有实际用处，因为顾客不会在具体选项（四季酒店或Motel6）和一般抽象假设之间做选择。他们只在面临具体选项的时候才会做选择。仅仅说四季酒店在非价格价值方面竞争是不太合理的，我们必须首先界定非价格价值的标准。如果把四季酒店和Motel6两家酒店做比较，大多数人都会赞同四季酒店不是依靠价格竞争而Motel6正是依据“价格竞争获得市场”的观点。然而，论断的有效性和公司提供的服务是紧密相关的。我们知道，两家公司在业内都是很受欢迎的，因此我们可以坦诚地说，大体上来讲，在预定房间的时候，因二者是互补的关系，所以无论选择哪一家都是可行的。但他们不太可能互换。试想，原本要预定四季酒店的顾客，有多少人会因为Motel6更便宜而突然改变主意？同样，又有多少原本打算预定Motel6的顾客就因为冲动消费的一个念头会突然改定四季酒店？也许这两种情形都会发生，但肯定是极少的案例。四季酒店更强劲的竞争对手可能是丽思卡尔顿、艾美和康莱德连锁酒店。我们将四季酒店和这些高档酒店进行比较时，就会发现四季酒店在其价格与非价格因素方面的不同之处；而这些不同之处与我们比较Motel6与四季酒店的不同之处又不一样。同样，当我们将Motel6和它们相似的拉昆塔、红顶客栈、贝斯特韦斯特连锁酒店时，我们可能就不会认为Motel6酒店是以低价为竞争力的。39 根据对比评估来判定公司的竞争地位是无关对错的，就像确定物理定位时，选择参照系也无对错之分一样。因此，根据比较的具体需求，我们可以选择的参数众多。把两家完全不同的公司拿来做比较是完全没有作用的。丰田汽车公司和宝洁洗发水有什么相关性呢？一辆汽车和一种洗发产品之间的替代性是微弱的，那么它们之间的对比就显得毫无意义。如果说他们之间有任何一个共同点，那就是它们在非价格价值方面凭借自身竞争力满足了人们不同时段的需求：普锐斯是人们外出时的选择，而潘婷是洗头时的选择。两种太过相近的物品之间的对比也同样没有多大意义。如果在非价格领域追求完全的可替换性，那么这两样物品之间除了价格之外，不存在比较的基础，也没有了解他们之间的差异的必要，因为他是“完全可替代”的。而四季酒店和Motel6之间的对比，显示了两家酒店在非价格要素方面给顾客提供了何种服务及在价格价值方面各自的服务。从分析四季酒店和丽思卡尔顿酒店的竞争中，我们也能学到一些其它有用的东西。它们在价格/非价格方面的竞争力相差无几，这表明二者都在价值因素间取得了良好的平衡。他们是在一个相对狭小的区域内允许各自保留差异。但无论哪种情况，我们都需首先明确我们比较的围度，才能正确吸取教训。位置和绩效竞争力和绩效之间没有必然的关联。有人强烈支持以价格为核心的竞争力，也有人支持以非价格价值为核心的竞争力，关于这两关系的学术研究显示，既可能相关，也可能无关。在试图理解竞争力绩效的关系时，我们用三元法对每家公司进行了分析并进行了对比。我们的评估都是基于目前所有存在的客观数据而进行的。当我们说一家公司在同其它公司激烈竞争时采取了价格竞争的方法，我们就有证据表明构成该公司主要销售业绩的产品和服务的价格低于同行。非价格竞争地位有与之相关的产品市场和消费群体作支撑。我们必须牢记，竞争力的评估是建立在特定的“比较条件”之上的。我们若用“二元法”来衡量一个行业的所有公司，则这些公司要么是以“非价格价值”为竞争力的公司，要么就是以“价格”为竞争力的公司。在三家公司中，其中一家可以是处于中间地位的。同样的，也不是每家公司都需要占据不同的竞争地位：其中两家可以不同于第三家，就算前两家并不完全一样，但他们的竞争力相同。例如，较之非价格竞争的奇迹缔造型企业，我们可以说长跑型企业和一般型企业是基于价格的竞争者，它们之间的差异的确不重要。表5:竞争力三元素比较行业非价格介于价格和非价价格40 格之间MW-FAJ半导体凌力尔特公司麦克罗帕克公司美国国际整流器公司LR-K（Micropac）MW-FLR-KAJ医疗用具美敦力公司史塞克公司英维康公司MW-LLR-L电线美国通贝公司哈勃公司埃姆莱斯公司（Emrise）AJAJ服装爱贝费奇公司费丽来公司西姆斯公司LR-K（Abercrombie&Fitch）（FinishLine）MW-KLR-K糖果落基山巧克力工厂美国箭牌糖果有同笑乐糖果公司AJMW-F(RMCF)限公司AJMW-L杂货美国全食超市公司美国大众超级市Weis超市公司LR-F场公司MW-OTH药品默克公司KV制药公司（KVLR-KAJ礼来公司Pharmaceutical）LR-L货运哈特兰公司美国沃纳公司MW-KAJ（Heartland）PAM公司MW-LAJ器械美泰克公司惠而浦公司LR-L美国HMI公司来源：作者分析公司表现类型：MV=表现优异的公司；LR=经营时间较长的公司；AJ=普通公司公司产品销售轨线：K=与先前持平；F=上升；L=下降；OTH=其它衡量竞争地位不像测量高度和称重那么精确，所以我们对各家公司的竞争力评级也许会有出入。在这一章和接下来的两章当中，我们会详细阐释为什么图表5是三家公司竞争地位的准确解读。各位读者只需初步了解我们的结论即可，我们会在后面逐一详解。基于这些分类，绩效差异和竞争地位差异是紧密相关的：我们有九成以上的把握确信，绩效不同的公司其竞争地位也不同（见附录G，样品数据分析）。此外，值得一提的是，我们发现奇迹缔造者是以非价格价值赢得地位的公司，长跑型是处于中间地位的公司，以价格竞争力的公司是一般企业。41 图表中横排分类的意义在于它表明了行业分类和竞争位置之间的可能关系。换言之，有97.5%的几率表明，案例中分析的奇迹缔造者在三元评定表上不是随意分布的，而是倾向于“非价格价值”竞争要素。竖排的意义在于其揭示了竞争力对分类的可能影响，也就是说，从上述分析来看，在三种绩效分类中，94.1%以价格为竞争力的公司属于一般企业。两种绩效分类（奇迹缔造者和长跑型）都有四种可能的发展轨迹（保留，丢失，寻找，其它）。我们用这些术语来描述公司相对绩效较高或者较低时的特点。例如，美泰克是一家丢失型的奇迹缔造者。该公司相对绩效较高时间段是从1966年到1989年，在这23年里，他的竞争力是“非价格价值”。在这段时间内，其资产收益率逐步下滑。在20世纪80年代早期，该公司开始转为以“价格”为核心竞争力的经营策略。在较高相对绩效结束的时候，该公司基本完全变成了以价格竞争为基础的公司。从1990年到2005年，该公司绩效相对较低。在丢失型一类公司中，这是一个典型模式：从“非价格价值”竞争者转变是相对绩效下滑的主要原因。相反，找回型一类公司，特别是对奇迹缔造者型的公司来说，较高相对绩效的出现是其向非价格价值位置转变的结果。表6：哪种竞争要素有助于提高公司绩效？类型价格价格+非价格非价格公司类型与所处地位的关系奇迹缔造型韦氏超市公司美国箭牌糖爱贝费奇公司97.5%公司果公司哈特兰公司凌力尔特公司美泰克公司美敦力公司默克公司美国通贝公司长跑型公司同笑乐糖果公司哈勃公司礼来公司56.5%美国沃纳公司费丽来公司美国HMI公司美国大众超级市场公司史塞克公司42 普通型公司埃姆莱斯公司落基山巧克力97.5%KV制药公司工厂美国国际整流器美国全食超市公司公司英维康公司PAM公司西姆斯公司惠而浦公司公司类型与94.1%94.7%88.4%所处地位的关系来源：作者分析下图是一个简要的回归分析，详见附录H“竞争要素变化与绩效变化”。竖轴显示了随着时间的变化，公司竞争要素的转变：从“价格”竞争转向“非价格价值”竞争？亦或相反？或者在“三元法”评估表中没有发生竞争力的变化？从第一章得知，随着时间的推移，哈特兰（Heartland）公司没有改变其竞争要素而美泰克转为价格竞争者。横轴显示了相对绩效的变化情况，也表明了一家公司的发展轨迹：丢失型的公司绩效下滑，保持型的公司绩效基本没有实质变化，找回型的公司绩效上升。基于差异向价格凌力尔特公司转变(MW)史塞克公司(LR)*美国大众超级没有改变市场公司(LR)*位置的改变韦氏公司爱贝费奇公司美国箭牌糖果(MW)(MW)公司(MW)哈勃公司默克公司美敦力公司(LR)(MW)**(MW)沃纳公司哈特兰公司43 (LR)(MW)麦克罗帕克公司(LR)基于差异向价格美国通贝转变公司(MW)美泰克公司(MW)美国HMI公司(LR)丢失型保持型找回型公司发展轨迹注：MW=奇迹缔造型公司,LR=长跑型公司，K=保持型，L=丢失型，OTH=其它*大众超市和史塞克只是错过了提升临界值向绩效转变的机会，但定性结果又表明他们是找回型企业里的奇迹缔造者。我们在这一章节讨论了史塞克，第四章附录H将提供大众超市和史塞克退化为找回型和保持型的论据。**虽然默克公司的轨迹图属其它这一项，但在此我们还是把它归为保持型。详见第五章。上述资料来源于作者分析上图说明：1.选择“竞争要素”很重要a.竞争要素差异关系着绩效差异2.选择“非价格价值”竞争要素更易产生效益a.非价格竞争型的公司最有可能成为奇迹缔造型公司b.处于中间地位的公司最有可能成为长跑型企业c.价格竞争地位的公司最有可能成为一般企业3.获利最多的公司倾向于选择“非价格价值”竞争要素44 a.奇迹缔造型公司最有可能采用非价格竞争要素b.长跑型企业可能既选“非价格价值”也会选“价格价值”因素c.一般企业最可能用“价格竞争”4.竞争要素改变关系绩效变化a.向价格竞争转变和绩效下滑有关b.向非价格竞争转变和绩效上升有关以上数据表明了企业竞争力要素和绩效之间的联系，因为我们有理由证明前者能对后者产生影响。但证据还不完全。这就意味着我们需要对每一案例都进行深入挖掘。如果我们能从中找出系列的令人信服的连贯证据，说明竞争要素的选择对企业绩效有影响，那么上述结论更有说服力。我们将回顾本书中所提及的所有相关案例。现在，我们将再次对三个行业半导体、医疗器械和电极导线的相应企业进行“三元”分析，以明确竞争要素选择对企业绩效的影响。如果你公司选择的竞争要素是：那么你公司最有可能成为的公司类型：非价格因素奇迹缔造型介于非价格和价格之间长跑型价格因素一般型底线：先质量后价格尝试分析竞争要素如何影响绩效的时候，我们需要回答管理学科和实践长期存在的棘手问题，即竞争要素、执行和行业三者之间如何相互作用并决定公司绩效的。我们发现，这三者的关系可以用过山车来比拟。对于过山车来说，目标就是快速行驶，而行驶速度大体上又是由两方面决定的：起点的高度和俯冲至另一方的时间。爬上的起点越高，积聚的势能就越多。你尖叫着（事实或比喻）冲向另一端就是把势能变成动能的过程。然而，并不是往上爬的所有势能都会在俯冲的过程中转化为动能。有些能量和摩擦力相互抵消了，并且，如果车身设计不够好，也会减少俯冲的刺激。竞争要素就是爬行高度，执行就是通过冲向另一端把势能变为动能的东西。实现整个过程二者必不可少。爬得越高而不下降是没有用的；而缓缓驶向另一端也不比前者好。行驶再稳，也不能让一辆普通车变成过山车。同样的，若选错了竞争要素，再完美的执行也于事无补；反之，若选择了最正确的竞争要素，没有执行，也是枉然。45 简言之，选择竞争力要素决定你发展的潜力，而执行决定你发展的实际速度。但稍等：每当谈到运动，你必须指定参照系。当过山车上从顶峰往下冲时，是你冲向地面还是地面冲向你呢？改变参照物可以将快速下降的画面变为完全静止不动的画面。产业是势能和动能的参照系。当一个产业的结构发生了变化——新技术、新规则、新入行者等等，优秀的企业明白，所有的绩效（即过山车的运动比喻）都是相对的。因此他们采取相应措施来保存他们的势能和动能。由优秀企业沦为一般企业的公司，他们忘记了一点，即在一个产业中，关键是相对位置，而不是全力追赶产业发展的动向。如果一个行业出现整合，他们就掀起收购狂潮；如果一个行业出现低迷现象，他们就开始削减成本和降低价格，如果一个行业出现扩张，他们就投资助其成长。这些行为虽然看起来合理的，但这其实是参照体系本身以同样速度往同一方向移动，换言之，它其实是静止不变的。卓越的绩效源自与众不同的决定；紧跟行业潮流只会让你流于普通。竞争要素：势能大概在20世纪90年代中期到21世纪初当电脑从稀奇玩意儿变成大众消费品的十年间，半导体成了日常交谈的焦点。但由于英特尔公司的成功和有策略的营销，我们开始对一些电脑术语，例如核心频率和X86架构熟悉起来。然而，芯片产业不仅仅只由英特尔公司和个人电脑产品组成，半导体的种类丰富，而且是很多设备中必不可少的构件。电脑和智能手机上的芯片是数字集成电路，麦克罗帕克公司（Micropac）就制造此类芯片，它是半导体三巨头中的长跑型公司。国际整流器公司主要生产离散半导体，它是半导体三巨头中的普通公司。凌力尔特公司主要生产高性能的模拟集成电路，它是半导体三巨头中的奇迹缔造型公司。在同一水平上的企业，相互竞争最为激烈；但随着技术的发展，这种竞争可能演化为不同水平的企业之间的竞争。截止2010年，凌力尔特公司和国际整流器公司都有数千名员工，资产都超过几十亿。只有200名员工的麦克罗帕克公司年收益却达五千万美元。从首次公开募股到2010年，凌力尔特公司，国际整流器公司和麦克罗帕克公司的股价分别翻了62倍，16倍和10倍。我们认为他们三者在公司规模、股东分红和公司收益方面的差异是由少量关键决策不同造成的，这些决策决定了每家公司的竞争力。麦克罗帕克公司成立于1963年，1973年被纳入我们数据库。其总部位于德克萨斯州加兰市。35年来，该公司资产收益率稳步增长，相应绩效也不断攀升，对于一家小型公司而言，这一成就实在难能可贵。英特尔，AMD超微半导体公司，赛瑞克斯公司（Cyrix）和其46 它主要生产数字集成电路的企业都是芯片产业的支柱。这些公司的收益高达几十亿美元，其投资支出和研发资金也十分庞大。表7：半导体三巨头的数据对比公司公司成立发展期收益增长平均复合复合分类时间（美元）年资产股东总年收入收益率回报率增长率凌力尔奇迹19811985-20101700万-1216.9%20.0%18.4%特公司缔造者亿麦克罗长跑19631974-2010400万-23006.8%10.2%5.2%帕克公司型公司万国际整普通19471966-20102900万1.5%5.6%8.1%流器公司公司-89500万数据来源：电子计算机会计数据库里由德勤分析的公司文件麦克罗帕克公司的成功似乎应归功于开拓了可观的数字集成电路市场，其主要业务是为美国国防部生产小批量、价格稳定的数字产品。这些产品需要军方认证，因此用于生产这些产品的设备和技术都受到限制。与政府做生意不仅技术上存在挑战，而且会对公司发展产生负面影响：政府订单小，用于完成这些小额订单的投资除了用于完成政府订单外，很难有其它用途。尽管面临上述困难，麦克罗帕克公司却迎难而上，赚取了巨大财富。专注于为特定的小群体服务。麦克罗帕克公司公司在不牺牲产品性能的前提下将资本支出保持在收入的5%至8%，低于行业6%-12%的平均支出水平，其研发经费为销售额的5%-10%，低于行业10%-14%的平均研发经费。采取与客户联合开发，精简设备的策略，麦克罗帕克公司的资产周转率高于凌力尔特公司和国际整流器公司。简而言之，麦克罗帕克公司是一个有着良好运作和鲜明特色的公司。它懂得如何在提供尖端技术的同时又不断从固定价格合同中获取利润。几十年来，公司都运行良好，这不仅令人尊敬而且让人崇拜。然而真正让这些决定变成交易的，是因为麦克罗帕克公司不能躲避的下降趋势。专注于生产美国军用产品让公司因安全问题和技术转移问题很难在国际上发展：公司财政收入的百分之十来源于美国之外的客户。另外，因为公司将大部分收益用于主要客户的投资和产品升47 级，导致几乎没有多余的资金丰富其产品，打入其它市场或同行业的其它产品领域。麦克罗帕克公司的成功让公司的固定合同越来越多，最后，公司有三分之二的收益都来自于定价固定合同。与捧着金饭碗束缚的麦克罗帕克公司不同，1981年成立并于1985年上市的凌力尔特公司最初是一家模拟半导体的二级供应商。主要生产标准产品如稳压器。它在许多方面都与麦克罗帕克公司相似，因为它销售额的一半来自政府，另外30%来自工业和汽车行业。20世纪80年代末，凌力尔特公司和麦克罗帕克公司的工作绩效相当，分别排第5位和第8位。然而到了20世纪90年代初，麦克罗帕克公司和凌力尔特公司在发展方向和收益上有了巨大差别。凌力尔特公司的资产收益率一直保持在两位数，有几年甚至超过了20%，而麦克罗帕克公司的资产收益率却一直保持在一位数。相对排名反映出两者的差异，从1991年到2010年凌力尔特公司连续9年排名，麦克罗帕克公司只是挣扎着从第8名跃居到了第6名。这就是说，凌力尔特公司找到了另一条特别的发展道路。凌力尔特公司有了哪些变化？第一，凌力尔特公司因自身不足没能在军用电路领域取代麦克罗帕克公司。麦克罗帕克公司是少有的能在某一领域一直保持领先地位的企业。然而凌力尔特公司通过转型和提高非价格价值的竞争力大大提升了公司的业绩。相反，麦克罗帕克公司一直得益于自身局限性，也受制于这一局限性，而正是它所受到的限制，使其一直保持“价格”竞争立场。具体来说，凌力尔特公司用第一桶金投资和做产品研发，努力开拓更多顾客群，丰富产品种类。凌力尔特公司的转型以渐进方式持续进行，到2006年，公司70%以上的收入来自美国以外的市场，与政府的交易额低于总收入的3%。凌力尔特公司一直注重研发高性能的线性集成电路，即使高性能线性集成电路的订单没有一单是超过了总销售额10%。由于上述原因，凌力尔特公司能够对此类产品设定高价从而获得巨大的利润。例如，凌力尔特公司的一位代表性客户的一项业务是销售价值数千元的高性能移动数据扫描仪。凌力尔特公司为其生产的芯片延长了电池的寿命，但其成本却不到扫描仪总材料成本的5%，这使得该扫描仪比同类产品更胜一筹。凌力尔特公司有价格决定权，因为这位顾客想寻求有效方法来提高其产品的竞争力。另外，相比于麦克罗帕克公司高度单一的消费群体，凌力尔特公司的消费群体多种多样。当许多消费者对价格敏感时，凌力尔特公司的压力没有麦克罗帕克公司的大。凌力尔特公司的客户超过一万五千名，并且它用高于行业竞争者的产品价格保持着其产品的价值。公司的选择会影响其绩效，凌力尔特公司的绩效相对好于麦克罗帕克公司。1986年到48 1991年凌力尔特公司的绩效相对较差。凌力尔特公司的年平均资产收益率高于麦克罗帕克公司5.8%。凌力尔特公司的总利润比麦克罗帕克公司高出18%，但却被高额的销售、管理、行政费用、税金以及目前固定资产周转率抵消了。公司获得巨大利润的同时也需交纳高额的税金。从1992年到2010年凌力尔特公司的绩效与前5年类似，但该公司的绩效与麦克罗帕克公司的绩效差距更为显著，从而为公司赢得了奇迹缔造者的称号。这段时期，凌力尔特公司每年的总利润比麦克罗帕克公司高出25%，但其研发，折旧，税收以及目前固定资产周转率方面的开支将这部分盈利抵消掉了，所以该公司转型为一家以“非价格”价值为竞争力的公司，纯属偶然。表8：凌力尔特公司与麦克罗帕克公司各方面的比较资产收益率的内容资产收益率各组成部分的年百分点低绩效时期：1986-1991高绩效时期：1992-2010总利润20.225.7销售、管理及行政费用-9.02.8研究与开发费用0.0-5.2其它（包括税金）-2.5-7.1销售回报率8.716.2流动资产转移-2.3-4.2固定资产转移-0.5-0.9其它-0.0-0.2资金周转率-2.9-5.3资产收益率5.811.0表的来源：电子计算机会计数据库里由德勤分析的公司文件注：因数据有变动所以不完全准确值得强调的是，到2010年凌力尔特公司的收益是麦克罗帕克公司的50倍，但因其固定资产收益较差。这与普遍预期相反。通常情况下，随着生产规模化，企业收入增加，其资产收益也会增加。同样，在规模经济的情况下，为什么凌力尔特公司的研发费用会对其盈利形成拖累，而相比之下麦克罗帕克公司的研发费用对其利润的负面影响要低？在年营业额1049 亿美元的情况，凌力尔特用于研发的绝对经费，即使是在其绩效相对较差的时段，也是十分巨大的。答案在于凌力尔特公司和麦克罗帕克公司因为选择不同的竞争力要素，而不得不做出相应的牺牲。尽管麦克罗帕克公司的总营业额较低，但是它资产投资少，研发项目少而精，因此保持了低成本和高资产周转率。凌力尔特公司在智力产品和实体资产方面投资太大，这是因为它需要通过提升“非价格价值”来弥补产品价格较高的劣势获得利润。通过以上分析，我们明白了一个道理，即一家公司的成功仅有良好的执行是不够的。麦克罗帕克公司一直亦步亦趋地紧跟其几个大客户的需求，满足他们对国防和航天产品的需求，满足他们对固定产品价格的需求，满足他们对质量和国家安全方面的需求，满足他们预算需求。因为这家公司必需以这几家客户为生。其成功反应了公司在执行方面的卓越表现。但无论麦克罗帕克公司在解决其所面对的困难时期时，表现得何等高效，该公司选择竞争力要素决定了该公司的绩效始终是有限的。相较于凌力尔特公司，麦克罗帕克公司更多地选择了“价格”作为其竞争力，因此只能通过精算的成本和明智的投资来增加收益。与奇迹缔造型公司相比，麦克罗帕克公司的绩效比较差。这一事实并不意味麦克罗帕克公司是一家糟糕的公司，但其反映出选择“价格”为其竞争力要素有其本质上的局限性。回到我们过山车的比喻，麦克罗帕克公司在最流畅的过山车上，利用它极力的爬升，但凌力尔特公司找到了爬的更高的路。在最初，该公司只是一家授权生产厂商，其客户群非常小，所以需凭管理来提高利润。随着时间的推移，凌力尔特公司转变竞争，从价格竞争转为“非价格竞争”，尽可能多的储备能量。当爬到顶峰时，它能通过强大的管理，将储备的能量变成动能。这样它在19年中，有17年的绩效都位于同行的10%之列，且在26年内取得了极佳的绩效。国际整流器公司，是我们“三元分析法”中提到的普通企业。该企业的发展历程进一步说明了“竞争力要素”与执行之间的关系，同时也说明如果一个企业一味跟着行业发展的趋势前进，则必定会将这两者都输掉。国际整流器公司成立于1947年，于1958年上市。它是三巨头中最老的公司，其悠久的历史已经足以让人肃然起敬。半导体产业发展非常迅速，而该企业能60年屹立不倒，已经是了不起的成就了。与美国其它公司一样，在20世纪70年代的12年里，国际整流器公司成了一个有多元化投资组合的经营企业，涉及半导体，医药，冶金技术，以及医疗设备。凭借其金属氧化层半导体场效应晶体管技术，这种技术主要用于模拟电路晶体管和数字电路晶体管，到20世纪80年代中期，国际整流器公司的主营业务改为半导体生产。50 值得强调的是，即使国际整流器公司是三巨头中的普通企业，但它并不是一个紧跟行业领导者，完全靠低价求生的企业。该公司除了有领先技术，还有多元化的产业，不仅涉及政府的军事和航天计划还涉及各种各样的消费者和工业应用。有不少企业成功很早，最后却没有跟上行业发展而遭淘汰。但国际整流器公司能紧跟行业发展的步伐，在需要创新时创新，需要转型时大胆转型。但国际整流器公司却表现平平，我们又该如何解释呢？我们所选的调查对象中，还有不少表现平庸的企业，这些企业因运气不佳或做出了错误的决策而败下阵来。与这些企业不同，国际整流器公司却是与众不同：它没有选错方法，该注意的问题都注意到了，但为什么依然没有胜出？以研发为例，国际整流器公司非常重视半导体的研究与开发，但它一直努力在不牺牲竞争力的情况下，削减研发费用。为此，它与客户共同资助研究和开发，是的国际整流器公司能够只用低于凌力尔特公司一半有余的研发资金，就获得了强大的竞争力。凌力尔特公司的研究开发资金占销售额的9%，而国际整流器公司仅占4%。然而通过与消费者合作的方式，国际整流器公司无法获得溢价收益而凌力尔特公司和麦克罗帕克公司可分别通过非价格价值和特定的消费者获得溢价收益。国际整流器公司出售专利的做法似乎是合理的，但最后却适得其反。它的金属氧化层半导体场效应晶体管（MOSFET）通过HEXFET商标进入市场。金属氧化层半导体场效应晶体管非常受欢迎，但国际整流器公司产能有限，于是它将技术授权给其它制造商。这是一个不错的权宜之计，但它可能被技术授权的高资产收益迷惑了，于是将技术授权作为公司发展的一个重要策略。到20世纪90年代中期，市场上75%整流器产品都使用了国际整流器公司的专利技术。单看之下，这么做效益很好。但如此一来，该公司所获得的利润不足以让其有足够的资金来扩大自己的产能。这样一来，其生产的产品必须与自己提供技术、其它厂商生产的产品进行竞争，所以其产品与其它厂家生产的产品在“非价格”价值方面没有区分度。国际整流器公司意识到以“非价格”价值竞争的优势，便尝试从分立元件向模拟半导体领域转型。因为模拟半导体更有可能为之带来可观的市场。在关键设计和制造能力方面的不足，要求国际整流器公司抛弃一些资产，同时购进新设备。于是，从2000年到2004年该公司连续完成了八次并购，使其资产规模扩大70%，其重组费用高达4亿美元。51'