Wiktionary
prep.phr. 1 (context idiomatic English) Changing before competitors. 2 (context idiomatic English) Above average; generally performing well.
Wikipedia
Ahead of the Curve: Two Years at Harvard Business School (in the United Kingdom and elsewhere, the book is called "What They Teach You at Harvard Business School: My Two Years in the Cauldron of Capitalism") is a non-fiction book by author and journalist Philip Delves Broughton. It was published by Penguin Press in 2008. The book covers the author's two year experience at the Harvard Business School (HBS).
Usage examples of "ahead of the curve".
As a commodities trader, and as a currency arbitrageur, he'd been ahead of the curve almost from the beginning, sensing the momentary valuation differences—.
He is in touch with certain Powers, after all, and they've kept him ahead of the curve (as mid-level executives such as Frank DeFelice and George Patella might say) in most respects.