Success in business has traditionally meant having a strategy and excelling at the hard skills: controlling costs, boosting speed, effectively managing the supply chain, and superior number-crunching and analytics. For years, mastering these hard factors was enoughbut in todays climate, its not so simple. The very appeal of the hard stuff, the fact that it can be measured and quantified, also means it can be analyzed and copied by the competition. So what does it really take to get ahead, and stay there? THE SOFT EDGE argues that certain key soft" factors are the only remaining edge to any businesss ability to succeed in the modern economy for the long run. They move beyond strategy and the hard, to the next level - seeing companies through the disruption of a rapidly changing environment. Five key advantages make up THE SOFT EDGE: Trust: Customers must trust that your product or service is authentic and robust enough to withstand the immediacy of todays media.