1001 Listes: Strategic breakthroughs by a low-tech company in a high-tech world

Chris Kimble (1, 2) , Isabelle Bourdon (3)

1 MRM - Montpellier Research in Management
2 Euromed Marseille - École de management
3 Système d'Information

Most articles on strategic breakthroughs tend to concentrate on large, high-tech organizations. Yet the French firm 1001 Listes, which creates and manages wedding lists, has shown that it is possible for even a relatively small organization to generate strategic breakthroughs with standard off-the-shelf information technology. Its experience highlights two points that previous studies have overlooked: Breakthrough strategies are based on innovations in business models as well as innovations in technology, and breakthrough strategies may actually reduce a company's reliance on high-tech solutions as a means of maintaining its competitive advantage. Using Henderson and Venkatraman's (1993) model of strategic alignment, this article also outlines the nature of breakthrough strategies.

Mots clés: information systems; strategic alignment

Domaines: Gestion et management

Chris Kimble, Isabelle Bourdon. 1001 Listes: Strategic breakthroughs by a low-tech company in a high-tech world. Global Business and Organizational Excellence, 2012, 31 (3), pp.58-68. ⟨10.1002/joe.21424⟩. ⟨halshs-00804328⟩