Evaluating Firm

Strengths and Weaknesses

What Does Internal Analysis Tell Us?
Internal analysis provides a comparative look at a firm’s capabilities
• what are the firm’s strengths? • what are the firm’s weaknesses?

• how do these strengths & weaknesses compare to competitors?

Why Does Internal Analysis Matter?
Internal analysis helps a firm:
• determine if its resources and capabilities are likely sources of competitive advantage • establish strategies that will exploit any sources of competitive advantage

Traditional research on firm strengths and weaknesses • Theories of distinctive competence
– General managers as distinctive competencies – Institutional leadership as a distinctive competence

• Ricardian economics • Penrose’s theory of firm growth
Research on the skills of general managers, institutional leaders, economic rents and firm growth have been brought together to develop a rigorous

model to analyze a firm’s strengths and weaknesses: the resource-based view of the firm

The Theory Behind Internal Analysis
The Resource-Based View
• developed to answer the question: Why do some firms achieve better economic performance than others? • used to help firms achieve competitive advantage and superior economic performance • assumes that a firm’s resources and capabilities are the primary drivers of competitive advantage and economic performance

The Resource-Based View
Resources and Capabilities
Resources: • tangible and intangible assets of a firm
» tangible: factories, products ; intangible: reputation

• used to conceive of and implement strategies
Capabilities: • a subset of resources that enable a firm to take full advantage of other resources
» marketing skill, cooperative relationships

The Resource-Based View
Four Categories of Resources
• Financial (cash, retained earnings)
• Physical (plant & equipment, geographic location) • Human (skills & abilities of individuals) • Organizational (reporting structures, relationships)

The Resource-Based View
Two Critical Assumptions of the RBV
• Resource Heterogeneity » different firms may have different resources • Resource Immobility » it may be costly for firms without certain resources to acquire or develop them » some resources may not spread from firm to firm easily

The Resource-Based View
What do these assumptions really mean?
• if one firm has resources that are valuable and other firms don’t, and… • if other firms can’t imitate these resources without incurring high costs, then… • the firm possessing the valuable resources will likely gain a sustained competitive advantage

The Resource-Based View
Resource Heterogeneity
• heterogeneity of resources typically occurs as the result of ‘bundling’ the resources and capabilities of a firm
• managers of a firm could take resources that seem homogeneous and ‘bundle’ them to create heterogeneous combinations • competitive advantage typically stems from several resources and capabilities ‘bundled’ together

The Internal Analysis Tool
The VRIO Framework Four Important Questions:
• Value • Rarity • Imitability • Organization

The VRIO Framework
If a firm has resources that are:
• valuable, • rare, and • costly to imitate, and…

• the firm is organized to exploit these resources,

then the firm can expect to enjoy a sustained competitive advantage.

The VRIO Framework
Applying the Tool
• a resource or bundle of resources is subjected to each question to determine the competitive implication of the resource • each question is considered in a comparative sense (competitive environment)

Applying the VRIO Framework
The Question of Value
• in theory: Does the resource enable the firm to exploit an external opportunity or neutralize an external threat? • the practical: Does the resource result in an increase in revenues, a decrease in costs, or some combination of the two? (Levi’s reputation allows it to charge a premium for its Docker’s pants)

Applying the VRIO Framework
The Question of Rarity
• if a resource is not rare, then perfect competition dynamics are likely to be observed (i.e., no competitive advantage, no above normal profits)

• a resource must be rare enough that perfect competition has not set in
• thus, there may be other firms that possess the resource, but still few enough that there is scarcity (several pharmaceuticals sell cholesterol-lowering drugs, but the drugs are still scarce—look at prices)

Applying the VRIO Framework
Valuable and Rare
If a firm’s resources are:
Not Valuable Valuable, but Not Rare Valuable and Rare

The firm can expect:
Competitive Disadvantage Competitive Parity Competitive Advantage (at least temporarily)

Applying the VRIO Framework
The Question of Imitability
• the temporary competitive advantage of valuable and rare resources can be sustained only if competitors face a cost disadvantage in imitating the resource

» intangible resources are usually more costly to imitate than tangible resources (Harley-Davidson’s styles may be easily imitated, but its reputation cannot)

Applying the VRIO Framework
The Question of Imitability
• if there are high costs of imitation, then the firm may enjoy a period of sustained competitive advantage » a sustained competitive advantage will last only until a duplicate or substitute emerges  if a firm has a competitive advantage, others will attempt to imitate it

Applying the VRIO Framework
The Question of Imitability Costs of Imitation
Unique Historical Conditions • first mover advantages
• path dependence

Applying the VRIO Framework
The Question of Imitability Costs of Imitation
Causal Ambiguity • causal links between resources and competitive advantage may not be understood • bundles of resources fog these causal links

Applying the VRIO Framework
The Question of Imitability Costs of Imitation
Social Complexity • the social relationships entailed in resources may be so complex that managers cannot really manage them or replicate them

Applying the VRIO Framework
The Question of Imitability Costs of Imitation
Patents
• patents may be a two-edged sword • offer a period of protection if the firm is able to defend its patent rights • required disclosure may actually decrease the cost of imitation, and the timing

Applying the VRIO Framework
Value, Rarity, & Imitability
If a firm’s resources are: Valuable, Rare, but not Costly to Imitate
Valuable, Rare, and Costly to Imitate

The firm can expect: Temporary Competitive Advantage
Sustained Competitive Advantage (if Organized appropriately)

Applying the VRIO Framework
The Question of Organization
• a firm’s structure and control mechanisms must be aligned so as to give people ability and incentive to exploit the firm’s resources • examples: formal and informal reporting structures, management controls, compensation policies, relationships, etc. • these structure and control mechanisms complement other firm resources—taken together, they can help a firm achieve sustained competitive advantage (3M Company)

The VRIO Framework
Costly to Exploited by Competitive Valuable? Rare? Imitate? Organization? Implications Economic Implications Below Normal Normal

No

No

Disadvantage

Yes

No

Parity

Yes

Yes

No

Temporary Advantage Sustained Advantage

Above Normal Above Normal

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Entrepreneurial and International Application of the VRIO Framework
The Logic Remains the Same
• small firms and start-ups can apply the VRIO framework to their resources and capabilities
» competitive advantage vis-à-vis larger firms can often be identified  recognizing if and why larger firms face high costs of imitation can be critical to small firm success

Entrepreneurial and International Application of the VRIO Framework
The International Context
Two Reasons for International Expansion: 1) to exploit current resource and capability advantages in a new market
2) to develop new resources and capabilities in a foreign market

Entrepreneurial and International Application of the VRIO Framework
The International Context
Critical Caveat: • resources and capabilities that generate an advantage in one market may or may not generate an advantage in a new market

Firms should re-apply the VRIO framework when entering new markets!!

Entrepreneurial and International Application of the VRIO Framework
The International Context
As a firm enters a new market: • a disciplined learning mentality is imperative for success » what resources and capabilities meet the VRIO criteria in the new market? » what can the firm learn from partners in the new market?

Competitive Dynamics of Resource Imitation
Competitive Dynamics:
• the strategic decisions and actions of firms in response to the strategic decisions and actions of other firms Firm B’s Possible Responses Firm A (strategy decisions lead to competitive advantage) No Response Change Tactics Change Strategy

Competitive Dynamics
“No Action” Response
A firm may decide to take no action because: • the other firm is serving a different market • a response may hurt its own competitive advantage

• it does not have the resources and capabilities to mount an effective response
• it wants to reduce or manage rivalry in the market through tacit collusion

Competitive Dynamics
“Change” Responses
Tactics • specific actions » tweaking product characteristics • usually imitated so quickly that there is no advantage • a ‘leap frog’ move may create advantage Strategy • a fundamental change in a firm’s theory

• may be necessary if current strategy becomes obsolete
• a mimetic change may achieve parity, but not advantage

Competitive Dynamics
Imitation will seldom lead to competitive advantage
• firms should use resources and capabilities to fill unique competitive space
Price
Focal Firm Offering Competitor Offerings Customer Needs Quality

Competitive Dynamics
Similar strategies may lead to competitive advantage
• some firms can achieve competitive advantage even if they are second movers
Price Focal Firm Offering Competitor Offerings Customer Needs Quality

» higher quality/ lower cost offering may lead to advantage

Internal Analysis
Assumes:
• determinates of economic performance are firm-level characteristics (resources & capabilities) » firms may be different (heterogeneity) » differences may be enduring (immobility)

• competitive advantage stems from resources and capabilities that meet the VRIO criteria

The Resource-Based View
Resources & Capabilities
• Valuable • Rare • Costly to Imitate • Organized to Exploit Competitive Advantage CA will be sustained if: • other firms’ costs of imitation are greater than benefit of imitation • the firm is organized to exploit advantages

Internal Analysis
Tells us:
• what the firm should do, given the relative strengths and weaknesses of resources and capabilities

Managers’ Job:
• bundle resources and capabilities to achieve competitive advantage

VRIO Framework Helps Managers Recognize Sources of Competitive Advantage