"Bruce called a staff meeting for a Saturday morning in the fall of 1965. He explained that to survive, much less grow, in a competitive landscape occupied by hundreds of larger and better-known consulting firms, we needed a distinctive identity. He had concluded that we shouldn't fight the competitive battle as generalists, but should instead stake out a special area of expertise.
"He asked what we thought that specialty should be. Many suggestions were offered, but in each case we were able to identify several other firms that already had strong credentials in that particular area. The discussion began to stall. Then Bruce asked a momentous question: 'What about business strategy?' I objected: 'That's too vague. Most executives won't know what we're talking about.' Bruce replied, 'That's the beauty of it. We'll define it.'"
—Robert E. Mainer Boston 1964-1967