'Making Marketing Happen' is prompted by needs of practising managers who have found the traditional marketing planning texts to be "fine in theory, but hard to apply to my special market." In short, it holds that marketing planning fails for most companies because it either does not fit their organizational culture, their market conditions or both. Successful companies do not plan. They use a hybrid strategy making process including vision, incrementalism and planning. The ratio of these three things is critical and the right ratio is unique to every company. The author develops this argument and explains how companies can construct the right hybrid strategy making process for their situation. The book has been designed for those practising managers who need more than the planning text book. It will tell you: * Why attempts at planning are foiled by the market, the company culture or both.* How effective strategists don't plan, but use organizationally tailored strategy making processes * How to design the right process for your company and your market* How to know if the strategy you make is strong before you implement it. "An incredibly practical and hands-on book concerned with the realities of doing strategic marketing planning to enhance customer and shareholder value. It is packed with new ideas and practical tools and should be on every marketing manager's desk." Professor Nigel F Piercy, Professor of Marketing, Warwick Business School This book starts where most others finish making the theory work in the real world. Having done an MBA and held several Senior Marketing positions, I recommend it both to practising marketers who already have athorough understanding of marketing theory and also to MBA students who are eager to apply their knowledge within their own organisations framework. Mathias Aeberhardt, Director Business Intelligence Europe, Zimmer GmbH As a strategic marketing professionals working

Preface: Making Marketing Happen. Part 1: The Failure of Strategic Marketing Planning; Chapter 1: We know what strategic marketing planning is ... . Chapter 2: And it does work ... . Chapter 3: But most of us can't use it ... . Chapter 4: Pause for thought - strategic marketing planning as a failed technology. Part 2: What Great Companies Do; Chapter 5: We know what a strong marketing strategy looks like. Chapter 6: We know that real companies are not entirely rational. Chapter 7: We know that what works is what fits. Chapter 8: How great companies make strong marketing strategies. Part 3: How Your Company Can Make a Strong Marketing Strategy; Chapter 9: Understanding the market. Chapter 10: Choosing the best way to make marketing strategy in your market. Chapter 11: Adapting your organizational culture to support your strategy making. Chapter 12: Making Marketing Happen. Author's afterword: a continuing journey