Four Zones

Geoffrey Moore model from book Zone To Win

management needs to segregate investments in disruptive innovation from those in sustaining innovation, and at the same time to separate its mission-critical activities from its enabling ones. These two divisions result in four zones of management activity, each internally aligned around its own goals and objectives, each demanding a different style of leadership to achieve those ends.

2x2:

Four Zones

• Performance Zone: The fact that financial investors scrutinize these reports so intensely has given rise to the mistaken conclusion that quarterly performance is all shareholders care about, and that therefore Horizon 1 (see Three Horizons) mandates—and by consequence the Performance Zone’s local playbook—should be prioritized above all others. Such an approach, however, leads inexorably to a slow and steady harvesting of the enterprise’s good will and brand power. As mission-critical as this zone is, therefore, it is still only one of four and must be managed to interoperate effectively with the other three for modern business success.
• Productivity Zone
• Incubation Zone
• Transformation Zone