Strategy is about sustainable competitive advantage. Create massive value for customers and protect your profits. Strategy is about winning. Play your own game and use your unfair advantage.
Mastering Business Essentials: Strategy
Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.
Beginner level
Recommended experience
4 hours to complete
3 weeks at 1 hour a week
Flexible schedule
Learn at your own pace
What you'll learn
Learn the difference between strategy and planning. Be able to explain why strategy can be scary, and while it's more like poker than chess.
Details to know
Shareable certificate
Add to your LinkedIn profile
Recently updated!
April 2025
Assessments
2 assignments
Taught in English
See how employees at top companies are mastering in-demand skills
Earn a career certificate
Add this credential to your LinkedIn profile, resume, or CV
Share it on social media and in your performance review
There are 5 modules in this course
Strategy is about sustainable competitive advantage; it's about winning. It's about playing the long-game, knowing what you do well, creating massive value for customers, and finding your unfair advantage. It applies to everyone.
What's included
2 videos1 reading1 discussion prompt
Industries don’t change overnight. They have structural dynamics and players that push/pull for profits. If we were Coca Cola, it's natural to think of rivals (e.g., Pepsi, Dr. Pepper), but also consider other players: a) suppliers (aluminum, glass providers) who want to raise prices; b) distributors (grocery, retail, gas stations) who want discounts; c) new entrants (energy drinks) who want to get into your industry, your business; d) substitutes (water, tea) that offer different kind of value. Business is a wrestling match for profits, so we should always remember who we are wrestling with.
What's included
3 videos1 assignment2 discussion prompts
Strategy is how we deal with competition. Customers have high expectations and competition (rivals, suppliers, distributors, new entrants, and substitutes) are always knocking on the door. So our strategy needs to be a "flywheel" that gets stronger over time. . . sustainable, enduring, and hard to copy.
What's included
2 videos1 reading1 discussion prompt
Positioning is a marketing concept that also applies to strategy. When your customers think of their top 3 choices, how would they describe you, and how would they describe their other choices. Question: How are Dell and Apple different? Don't they both make electronics? Answer: They use their core competencies - what makes them truly unique to "be the best versions of themselves" and "play their own game."
What's included
3 videos1 assignment2 discussion prompts
Strategy is not a straight line. Your customers have opinions and choices; they don't have to like your products. They don't have to pay for your service. Competitors are always eager to out-best you, work harder, copy your success. Steal your market share. Free markets are great for customers and terrible for lazy companies. Strategy involves trade-offs. You cannot be all things to all people. Strategy involves innovation, risk, and potential failure. As Roger Martin, ex-Dean of Rotman Business School (Toronto) said, "If you're not scared, it probably means your strategy is no good."
What's included
2 readings1 peer review1 discussion prompt
Instructor
Offered by
Why people choose Coursera for their career
Felipe M.
Learner since 2018
"To be able to take courses at my own pace and rhythm has been an amazing experience. I can learn whenever it fits my schedule and mood."
Jennifer J.
Learner since 2020
"I directly applied the concepts and skills I learned from my courses to an exciting new project at work."
Larry W.
Learner since 2021
"When I need courses on topics that my university doesn't offer, Coursera is one of the best places to go."
Chaitanya A.
"Learning isn't just about being better at your job: it's so much more than that. Coursera allows me to learn without limits."
New to Business Essentials? Start here.
Open new doors with Coursera Plus
Unlimited access to 10,000+ world-class courses, hands-on projects, and job-ready certificate programs - all included in your subscription
Advance your career with an online degree
Earn a degree from world-class universities - 100% online
Join over 3,400 global companies that choose Coursera for Business
Upskill your employees to excel in the digital economy
Frequently asked questions
Strategy is about having a sustainable competitive advantage, which is incredibly important to companies and your personal career. What are you uniquely good at? What are customers willing to pay you for? How can you create an "economic moat" around yourself? What lessons can we learn from Reliance Jio, Apple, Dell Computer, Trader Joe's, and Southwest airlines.
In the age of GenAI (ChatGPT, CoPilot, LLM) where machines learn by themselves, how can you stay relevant and earn $$$. Strategy is about making difficult choices = investing your time with customers, skills, experiences that gain in value.
Tactics are always important, but strategy helps you win long-term. I teach strategy every year to Emory students, here is a sample of the questions we tackle together in the classroom, in discussions, and online here.
John Kim, is an associate professor in the practice, at Emory University. He is a management consultant by experience and passion. He's been teaching strategy, healthcare, and consulting since 2017.
He has a Management Consulting specialization here with 1,300+ reviews with a weighted average 4.9 star rating here.
His teaching style is interactive - yes, even with online videos - and wants you to succeed. See his teaching philosophy here.
Access to lectures and assignments depends on your type of enrollment. If you take a course in audit mode, you will be able to see most course materials for free. To access graded assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience, during or after your audit. If you don't see the audit option:
The course may not offer an audit option. You can try a Free Trial instead, or apply for Financial Aid.
The course may offer 'Full Course, No Certificate' instead. This option lets you see all course materials, submit required assessments, and get a final grade. This also means that you will not be able to purchase a Certificate experience.
More questions
Financial aid available,