Masterclass at USC
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In communication, the S-gens are here. The strategy generation, that is, at the USC Annenberg School for Communication in Los Angeles. No longer for gurus and grey hair, influence strategy is for a new breed of masters-prepared playmakers.
Welcome to the playmaker's classroom blog and JOUR 599, STRATEGIES OF INFLUENCE. It's the first of its kind -- a frontier graduate course based on The Playmaker's Standard and its breakthrough web tools and periodic table of influence. Scroll through the student posts to see how 12 MA-track professionals, pioneers in the discipline of playmaking, are changing today how strategy will be practiced tomorrow.
Course announcement and syllabus.
Preempt
Preempt: PE
Definition
Action that reverses competitive position, giving the player a superior advantage, limiting a rival's ability to exploit a player's weakness, or both. Preempts are usually decisive and swift so as to surprise and disable the competition.
Red Herring
Red Herring: RD
Definition
An action or communique that draws an opponent - usually a competitor - away from its preferred position or intended course of action.
Venezuela-Colombia Diplomatic Dispute
April 3, 2008
Diplomatic Play Action Map
During his two terms in office, Colombian President Alvaro Uribe has made steady gains in marginalizing the FARC, a leftist-guerilla movement that has fought the federal government of Colombia for more than 40-years in its effort to impose a communist state. Uribe''s gains have forced the FARC to retreat to bases just within the borders of Venezuela and Ecuador to regroup and plan its operations.
On March 1, 2008, Uribe attacked a FARC base 2 km inside of Ecuador. The attack triggered a regional dispute that saw Ecuador and Venezuela amass toops on Colombia''s border for a tense one-week period.
The attack on the FARC-hideout killed a top rebel commander along with 22 other guerillas, and yielded a laptop that contained information detailing Venezuelan and Ecuadorian support to the guerilla group.
The following play action map details the diplomatic showdown between President Alvaro Uribe of Colombia, President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, and their regional and international allies.
Posted by: John Koval
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Call Out
Call Out: CT
Definition
An overt public expression of doubt or concern, usually aimed at a competing person or organization, intended to call into question a flaw in the opponent's position or message set. Call Outs often have a tone of moral authority; they're judgmental and direct.
Draft
Draft: DR
Definition
An attempt by a player to feed off the energy of a developing marketplace, innovation or best practice with the intent of overtaking incumbent leaders.
Congress Has Big Questions for Big Oil
April 2, 2008
Political Play Action Map
As gasoline nears $4.00 a gallon, Congress has questions about Big Oil’s big profits.
On April 1, 2008, top executives of the country’s five biggest oil companies were questioned by U.S. lawmakers about the industry’s record profits.
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Crowd
Crowd: CW
Definition
The attempt by a player to match or adopt an opponent's position in a marketplace or to affiliate with a trend, idea, or issue.
Recast
Recast: RC
Definition
The reinterpretation of an action, event, information, message, or symbol by a player so as to lend support to that player's position or agenda or to neutralize or weaken that of its rival.
McCain-Huckabee Squeeze Play:
April 1, 2008
Political Play Action Map
Throughout the 2008 Republican presidential primary, candidates John McCain and Mitt Romney traded insults and attacks as each vied for the nomination. However, as McCain pulled ahead, Romney was forced to consider his options -- he chose to withdraw from the race in order to unite the Republican Party. After his concession, the Romney/McCain interactions shifted. The two men joined forces to demonstrate the presumptive nominee’s conservatism and to keep Mitt’s political aspirations alive (in the form of a potential VP nomination).
This map depicts the plays these 2 Republican candidates ran against each other as they competed for votes in the primary election, highlighting their transition from pointed attacks to a collaboration against the Democrats.
Post by Nicole Mednick, MA candidate
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Draft
Draft: DR
Definition
An attempt by a player to feed off the energy of a developing marketplace, innovation or best practice with the intent of overtaking incumbent leaders.
Filter
Filter: FL
Definition
The selective retransmission of information, where a player promotes and/or withholds information to build or defend its position. A Filter is typically employed to reshape characterizations so that their impact or relevance is minimized or, better, put to work for the player.
Northern Rock & The British Gov't
March 29, 2008
Business Play Action Map
Rumors and speculation first began to circulate in May 2007 that Northern Rock, a well-known British bank, had over-extended itself in the mortgage markets, leaving its liquid assets dangerously depleted, which had the potential to threaten the solvency of the bank.
The affair immediately became a British sensation, with thousands of people queuing up to extract their savings. The British government eventually found itself sucked into the affair not as a political player in the traditional-sense, but rather, as a business-entity, capable of nationalizing the bank as a means of last resort.
Although the affair is still on-going, once the bank was nationalized, the British government no longer became a market-player, therefore, ending this playaction map.
Note: For the sake of space, abbreviations have been used in this map. They are as follows:
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Mirror
Mirror: MI
Definition
A specialized form of a Call Out, a Mirror introduces new facts or information into a marketplace which contradicts a rival's position or point of view. Like forcing someone to look at her own reflection, a Mirror typically prevents a rival from credibly pursuing its agenda.
Red Herring
Red Herring: RD
Definition
An action or communique that draws an opponent - usually a competitor - away from its preferred position or intended course of action.
Plays of Nations? Strategy Wars of Tibet and China
March 26, 2008
Political Play Action Map
On March 10, Tibet observed the 49th anniversary of the failed 1959 Tibetan uprising against Beijing’s rule. On this day, Tibetan monks staged a protest to free other imprisoned monks. However, by March 14, the activity escalated into riots, burning and looting. This ignited a firestorm of activity between two camps: Tibetans and those who support Tibetan rights versus the Chinese government.
In the attached play action map, the Chinese government engages in aggressive play action to maintain its authority, while Tibetans work to reveal the truth of their situation and the opponent’s actions to the world. Wen Jiabao, the Premiere of the People’s Republic of China, accuses the Dalai Lama of being behind the protest. The fact that there is tension between these two players prior to the 2008 Olympics in Beijing has garnered attention from the international press as well as political leaders.
Post by Patrice Duecker, MA candidate
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Preempt
Preempt: PE
Definition
Action that reverses competitive position, giving the player a superior advantage, limiting a rival's ability to exploit a player's weakness, or both. Preempts are usually decisive and swift so as to surprise and disable the competition.
Video Game Giant Electronic Arts Wants to Acquire Take-Two
March 13, 2008
Business Play Action Map
Video Game giant Electronic Arts wants to acquire Take-Two, another video game manufacturer. Take-Two has not been profitable of late, but does own several successful games, including the Grand Theft Auto series. EA made an unsolicited bid for Take-Two only two months before the release of Grand Theft IV.
While the bid was at a significant premium to Take-Two''s recent stock price, Take-Two still believed the offer was too low and rejected it. EA tried to appeal to Take-Two shareholders by releasing its offer letter. Take-Two immediately fired back with responses from the company''s CEO, large shareholders as well as an SEC filing announcing that it had other merger possibilities. EA remined relatively quiet while Take-Two was running defensive plays; however, once EA moved it flaunted its action with an ad in The Wall Street Journal. Take-Two asked its shareholders to hold off on responding to the EA offer.
Post by Megan Klein, MA candidate
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Partner
Partner: PN
Definition
A third party aligned with the player but who operates as a coequal. Partners typically receive reciprocal levels of support in pursuit of a common agenda or business purpose.
Screen
Screen: SN
Definition
The attempt by a player to borrow issues, ideas, events, or other symbolic references to advance its agenda or thwart a competitor's movements.
Funny Deodorant?
February 27, 2008
Entertainment Play Action Analysis
The sweet smell of money – that’s what Proctor and Gamble hopes for after Partnering with Will Ferrell as Jackie Moon, a frisky 1970s basketball player featured in New Line Cinema’s upcoming comedy “Semi-Pro.” Ferrell recently taped a series of farcical commercials to promote Old Spice’s newest product line, Pro Strength antiperspirant. In turn, the R-rated comedy will undoubtedly receive additional marketing benefit from the ads.
Proctor and Gamble hopes that their comedic Screen will reach Pro Strength’s young male consumer target audience, a high fit move since young men prefer humorous forms of communication according to the Feb. 27 L.A. Times article
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