Based on a study of four UK industry sectors this book provides an analysis of how UK companies manage strategic change and how it impacts on their competitive performance. The authors focus on the key question of why firms operating in the same industry produce varying performances over time; as a result they pinpoint the differences in the way that change is managed from business to business and the common problems across industry sectors. Five central problems stand out: environmental assessment; leading change; linking strategic and operational change; human resources; and coherence. The central chapters examine in detail the relevance and effects of these key features combining core theory with real practice to give an overview of a highly uncertain process. There is no single best practice but the authors are able to advance an important new approach to the process: the creation of intangible assets. The research programme examined the assessment and implementation of strategic change in automobiles, publishing, banking and life assurance. The results should be of interest to both managers and those who study and analyze modern business.