NextExec: Competitive Dynamics: Driving Sustainable Advantage by Effectively Analyzing Markets and Competitors

Scott began his career as a strategy consultant for Monitor (now Monitor Deloitte) working with Fortune 50 companies to chart paths to sustainable competitive advantage. He holds an MBA with Distinction from Harvard Business School, where he studied strategy with some of the leading scholars in business strategy including Clayton Christensen (“Innovators Dilemma”) and Michael Porter (“Competitive Strategy”).

Today he serves as President of Eddyline Kayaks. In this session, Scott will discuss how your company can create a sustainable advantage over competitors by effectively analyzing individual competitors and specific competitive battles. Scott’s goal with this session is to help each attendee know how to select relevant rivals, perform competitive analysis, and synthesize implications. 

Speaker Bio

Scott Holley is the President of Eddyline Kayaks, a leading US manufacturer of kayaks, paddles and accessories located in Burlington, Washington.  Scott joined Eddyline after leading the buyout of the company from the founders in June 2017 through his special purpose investment firm Finchbrook Partners.

Prior to forming Finchbrook, Scott was Managing Director and founding team member of Harken Capital Securities, LLC. Scott helped the firm grow from a new broker/dealer into a leading specialty private markets investment bank. While at Harken, Scott helped his clients raise $1.7 billion to pursue investments in small growing companies, and along the way helped launch several leading investment partnerships in financial services, healthcare, and software/technology. Prior to Harken, Scott was a strategy consultant for Monitor Group (now Deloitte Consulting) and OCC Strategy Consultants.

He also worked as an investment associate for FLAG Capital (now Aberdeen Asset Management).  Scott holds a BA in Finance from the University of Utah, and an MBA with Distinction from Harvard Business School.  Scott lives in Mount Vernon, Washington with his wife and three children. He is active in the local community, having served in leadership roles with Community Action of Skagit County, the Economic Development Alliance of Skagit County, and his local Cub Scout program.