...BIS5101 Strategic IT-Management Prof. Dr. Karl-Heinz Rau WS 2013/14 Term Paper Topic: How Companies Could Achieve Sustainable Competitive Advantage Gahn, Philip MACFA, ID# 309601 gahnphil@hs-pforzheim.de Kominek, Lukas MACFA, ID# 300953 komluk@hs-pforzheim.de Wenz, Eugen MACFA, ID# 300636 weneug@hs-pforzheim.de th Submission date: November 2 2013 2 Table of Contents 1 Purpose and Structure ......................................................................................... 5 2 Definition and Origin of Competitive Advantage .............................................. 6 3 Approaches and Methods to Achieve Competitive Advantages......................... 8 3.1 The Traditional Approach According to Porter ........................................... 8 3.1.1 Cost Leadership ................................................................................. 10 3.1.2 Focusing on Priorities ........................................................................ 10 3.2 Modern Approaches .................................................................................. 10 3.2.1 The Strategy as a Compilation of Simple Rules ................................ 11 3.2.2 The Blue Ocean Strategy ................................................................... 12 4 Ways to achieve Sustainable Competitive Advantage...................................... 13 5 Conclusion ............................................................................
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...diamond model by Michael Porter 3 1.1 Introduction 3 1.2 Diamond model Theory 4 1.2.1 Factor Condition 4 1.2.2 Demand conditions 5 1.2.3 Firm strategy, structure and rivalry 5 1.2.4 Related and supported industries 6 1.2.5 The role of Government 6 1.3 Criticism of the framework 7 1.4 Practical Example 7 1.5 Conclusion 8 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1. The diamond model by Michael Porter 1 1.1 Introduction According to Recklies (2001), increasingly corporate strategies have to be seen in global context and even if an organization does not plan to import or to export has to look at an international business environment, in which actions of competitors, buyers, sellers, new entrants of providers of substitutes may influence the domestic market and information technology has been reinforcing this trend. The classical models and theories related to international trade before Michael Porter’s Diamond theory, mainly proposed that the comparative advantage resides in the factors endowments that a country may be fortunate enough to inherit and these factors mainly consisted of land, natural resources, labour and the size of the local population but Porter argued though his diamond model that a nation can create new advanced factor endowments such as skilled labor, a strong technology and knowledge and knowledge base, government support and culture, in short Porter used a diamond shaped diagram...
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...discussions', 'critical discussions'] - “The contribution by Porter (1990) on the competitive advantage of nations has led to an extensive discussion among academics and practitioners on the sources of international competitiveness (Grant, 1991; Gray, 1991). However, in order to understand why so much emphasis is placed on the diamond framework in the management literature, this essay will discuss Porter’s concept of the Diamond and the factors that contribute to the development of national competitive advantage. This paper will begin with a theoretical approach followed by the reception of different authors and schools of thoughts who disagreed with his management thinking, and then goes on to consider empirical issues which have arisen subsequently, followed by a conclusion.” Theoretical Discussions (explain the 'main theory' [such as 'Late/Early industrialization', 'Managerial enterprise', 'Weber's theory about impacts of culture'] in this question) - “Porter’s theory of national competitive advantage is based upon a study of the characteristics of the national environment which identifies four sets of variables, and an additional two, which influences a company’s ability to establish and maintain competitive advantage within international markets. These interacting determinants are: factor conditions; demand conditions; related and supporting industries; and firm strategy, structure and rivalry and form what Porter refers to as the “national diamond.” The four main determinants...
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...Chapter 1 Mastering Strategy: Art and Science LEARNING OBJECTIVES After reading this chapter, you should be able to understand and articulate answers to the following questions: 1. What are strategic management and strategy? 2. Why does strategic management matter? 3. What elements determine firm performance? Strategic Management: A Core Concern for Apple The Opening of the Apple Store Image courtesy of Neil Bird, http://www.flickr.com/photos/nechbi/2058929337. March 2, 2011, was a huge day for Apple. The firm released its much-anticipated iPad2, a thinner and faster version of market-leading Apple’s iPad tablet device. Apple also announced that a leading publisher, Random House, had made all seventeen thousand of its books available through Apple’s iBookstore. Apple had enjoyed tremendous success for quite some time. Approximately fifteen million iPads were sold in 2010, and the price of Apple’s stock had more than tripled from early 2009 to early 2011. Saylor URL: http://www.saylor.org/books Saylor.org 4 But future success was far from guaranteed. The firm’s visionary founder Steve Jobs was battling serious health problems. Apple’s performance had suffered when an earlier health crisis had forced Jobs to step away from the company. This raised serious questions. Would Jobs have to step away again? If so, how might Apple maintain its excellent performance without its leader? Meanwhile, the iPad2 faced daunting competition. Samsung...
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...1.1) Project management is always showing up in the business media today. It seems that every few months, something hits the news that has to do with project management. Maybe it’s a demand that every business should have a PMO. Or maybe, another major project that has hit major overruns because of poor project management. project management is the collection of tools, and system design and people skills necessary to lead, support, guide and control temporary endeavors. However, while that definition is both accurate and complete, you really need to take it to the next level in order to understand how it is different from normal management. First off, let’s correct a 200-year-old mistake. Traditionally, business thinkers have explained the structure of management by referring to the old military structure of strategic, tactical and administration. Strategic groups put the business in the right place, tactics dealt with the customer and competition, and administration was focused on doing the stuff that wasn’t really important. Unfortunately, that description of the Napoleonic army was wrong in 1812 and it was still wrong in 2012. However, there is a better view of the organization. It is based on the time view of the parts. Again, there are three groups within an organization. There is a strategic group. Their function is to think in terms of the future of the organization. Effectively, they navigate and steer the organization. They look for...
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...IN AN article entitled “Strategy and the Internet” published in the March 2001 edition of the Harvard Business Review, Michael Porter outlined six principles that he believes companies need to follow if they want to establish and maintain a distinctive strategic position in the market place. Since the internet is a business platform with low barriers to entry, these six strategic principles are particularly relevant to any company that wants to be profitable online: 1. Stand for something In order for a company to develop unique skills, build the right assets, and establish a strong reputation it is important to define what the company stands for so that the company will have continuity of direction. 2. Focus on profitability This point seems obvious, however many internet based companies have instead focused on “unique visitors” and “page views” as measures of performance. At the end of the day, sustainable profits will only be possible where goods or services can be provided at a price which exceeds the cost of production. 3. Offer consumers a unique set of benefits Good strategy involves being able to provide a distinct set of benefits to a particular group of consumers. Trying to please every consumer will not give a company a sustainable competitive advantage. 4. Perform core activities differently If a company is able to establish a distinctive value chain by performing key activities differently from its competitors, then this will help...
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...Kudler Fine Foods Sonia Shelby MMPBL 502 January 15, 2012 Dr. Patricia Anderson Abstract In the wake of growth, expansion, and overcoming temporary closing some departments for renovations, Kudler Fine Foods (Kudler) made the right business decisions to renovate its store sequentially; thereby eliminating the need to downsize its workforce. Management temporarily relocated affected employees to one of the other stores not under renovation offered the best solution for its customers, employees, and the community. This paper will discuss how changes in technology have created business opportunities for Kudler; the generic strategy Kudler is pursuing and how Kudler management should constantly scan the fine foods industry for ideas that will allow it to update its strategy. Table of Contents Introduction……………………………………………………………….…..4 Technology and Business Opportunities……………………………………...4 Generic Business Strategy…………………………………………………….6 Multiple Business Strategies…………………………………………………..7 Conclusion………………………………………………………………….....8 References………………………………………………………………….....9 Kudler Fine Foods Kudler Fine Foods (Kudler) is the vision of Kathy Kudler, founder and owner. She was certain that combining the convenience of one-stop shopping with reasonable prices would be a recipe for success because gourmet food shops are rare in the San Diego metropolitan area. Kudler represents the finest ingredients for gourmet cooking. Kudler opens its first store on June 18, 1998...
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...strategy in a highvelocity world by Rita Günther McGrath 62 Harvard Business R ARTWORK Tara Donovan, Untitted (Styrofoam Cups), aoo8, Styrofoam cups •and glue, installation dimensions variable SPOTLIGHT ON STRATEGY FOR TURBULENT TIMES Each month we illustrate our Spotlight package with works from an accomplished artist. We hope that the lively, cerebral creations of these photographers, painters, and installation artists will infuse the pages with additional energy and intelligence and amplify what are often complex and abstract concepts. This month we showcase Tara Donovan, a Brooklynbased artist known for her large sculptures and installations. Donovan, whose work is composed of everyday objects like pencils and toothpicks, has explained, "It's all about perceiving this material from a distance and close up and how the light interacts with it." View more of the artist's work at pacegaUery.com. S R T G IS STUCK. For too long the business world an inflection point. Thefieldof strategy needs to acT AE Y has been obsessed with the notion of building a sus- knowledge what a multitude of practitioners already tainable competitive advantage. That idea is at the know: Sustainable competitive advantage is now the core of most strategy textbooks; it forms the basis exception, not the rule. Transient advantage is the of Warren Buffett's investment strategy; it's central new normal. to the success of companies on the "most admired" lists. I'm not arguing that it's a bad idea—obviously...
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...Rogers’ Chocolates Formulation and Implementation in Single Business Firms 1. Strategic issue or problem statement With the mission of committing towards the production and marketing of fine products that reflect/maintain excellence and quality, Roger’s chocolate company has an opportunity to attain this in the premium chocolate market which has been growing annually at a rate of 20%. The success determinant of the premium market is quality and brand market, prerequisites (excellence, quality and brand) which Roger’s has the ability to meet this criterion. 2. Explanation of the Strategic issue or problem statement Identification of opportunities has been considered by various scholars, Shane & Venkatraman (2000), Gaglio & Katz (2001) and Ardichvili, Cardozo & Ray (2003) as a fundamental component in business formulation and implementation strategy. In addition, opportunity is identified in form of unsolved problems, creation of opportunities via ingenuity and creativity, inefficient processes or unmet needs. In Rodgers’ Chocolates case, opportunity exists in form of unmet needs. As indicated, even though premium chocolates are more like the imported roses in the sense that they are not considered as life’s necessities, more people still want them. Such is the case of Canada,( the major Rogers market share) where more people appreciate chocolates hence increasing the premium chocolate market share by 20% each year with a market size amounting to millions (US$ 167) in year 2006...
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...Essay: Value chain analysis Value chain analysis (VCA) refers to the process whereby a firm determines the costs associated with organizational activities from purchasing raw material to manufacturing products to marketing those products. Further, according to Porter he stated that “a firm’s value chain and the way it performs individual activities are a reflection of its history, its strategy, its approach to implementing its strategy, and the underlying economics of the activities themselves.” There are two major types’ activities of a company’s value chain describe by Porter: primary activities and support activities. Primary activities are the transforming of inputs into outputs further to delivery and after-sales support. On the other hand, support activities support primary activities and other supporting activities that are undertaken to aid individuals and groups of these activities. The importance of using the VCA in strategic decision-making is to analyze, coordinate and optimize linkages between activities in the value chain, by focusing on the interdependence between these activities. VCA is a mechanism which facilitates the optimization and coordination of interdependent activities in the value chain, which may cross organizational boundaries and accounting information is an important constituent of value chain analysis. The main idea of the analysis is to break up the chain of activities which avoid basic raw materials to end-use customers into strategically...
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...IT STRATEGIC PLANNING “You’ve got to be very careful if you don’t know where you are going, because you might not get there.” Yogi Berra BACKGROUND Henry Mintzberg, former president of the Strategic Management Society, points out that “strategy can not be planned because planning is about analysis and strategy is about synthesis.” 1 Failure to recognize this basic distinction accounts for the frequent failure of such exercises, as does an excessive focus on technical detail, lack of suitable leadership, and perhaps most important, failure to align technology to institutional mission and priorities. Strategic planning involves a structure or framework, a set of procedures (both formal and informal), and of course content. Beyond these basic elements, the underlying assumptions about strategic planning are that the future can be anticipated, forecasted, managed or even controlled, and that the best way to do so is to have a formal and integrated plan about it in place. The process of planning itself may turn out to be more important than the results, and that process requires, as Mintzberg suggests, both analysis and synthesis. Planning simply introduces a formal “discipline” for conducting long-term thinking about an institution, and for recognizing opportunities in and for minimizing risks from the external and internal environments. Among the hundreds available, perhaps the most well-know model of strategic planning has the SWOT (for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities...
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...Introduction 1.1 Briefly describe of company Amway is a one of the America multinational direct-selling company selling most variety of product such as heath, beauty and home care needs. 2.1 The General Environment 2.1.1Pestles Environmental factor are 2.1.2 Application to the company 2.2 The competitive environment 2.2.1 Poter 5 forces 2.2.2Applicable to the company 2.3 Internal Analysis 2.3.1 Value Chain Activities The Real Estate Value chain (REIT), which can be extract more activities that list in these 5 step which is Holding/Ownership, Finance, Construction, Transaction(Buy/Sell) and Use. Residential- Housing, society, apartment etc commercial- offices, complex, hotel, hospital industrial- Factory plant 2.3.1 Resources based view 2.3.3Assessing Organization Performance 2.4 Resources based view 2.4.1 Core competences 2.4.2 Distinctive Capabilities 2.4.3 Resources, Capablelities and strategy formulation 2.4.4 Sustainable Competitive Advantages 2.4.5 Application to the company 2.5 Assessing performance organization 2.5.1 Contesting Profit maximization 2.5.2Application to the company 3.0 Strategy formulation 3.1 Business Level Strategy 3.1.1 Genetic competitive strategy 3.1.2Resources Based Approach 3.2 Corporate level strategy 3.2.1 Ansoff strategy 3.2.2 Application to the company 4.0 Strategy implementation 4.1.1 Ghoshal (1987) 4.1.2 International Strategy 4.1.3 Entry Mode Strategy 4.1.4 The diamond of national Advantages 4...
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...Manlilisid Javier, Leyte (hereinafter known as "Buyer"). Buyer and Seller shall collectively be known herein as "the Parties". BACKGROUND WHEREAS, Seller desires to sell the vehicle described below, known herein as the "Acquired Vehicle", under the terms and conditions set forth below; WHEREAS, Buyer desires to purchase the Acquired Vehicle offered for sale by Seller under the terms and conditions set forth below; and, therefore, TERMS AND CONDITIONS IN CONSIDERATION of the mutual promises and other valuable consideration exchanged by the Parties as set forth herein, the Parties, intending to be legally bound, hereby agree as follows: A. Description of Acquired Vehicle. 1. Make: HYUNDAI PORTER 2. Model: 1997 3. Serial No.: LMC94-00228-C 4. Motor No.: D4BXL248555 5. Plate No.: UND512 6. File: 1304-00000118567 B. Consideration. 1. Purchase Price. The total purchase price to be paid by Buyer to Seller for the Acquired Vehicle is ONE HUNDRED FORTY THOUSAND PESOS (P140,000.00) (hereinafter "Purchase Price") consisting of the following components: i. Down-payment: P40,000.00 (Due to Seller on or before execution of this agreement.) ii. Remaining balance worth P80,000 payable within one year on installment basis. IN WITNESS WHEREOF and acknowledging acceptance and agreement of the foregoing, Seller and Buyer affix their signatures hereto...
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...Porter’s Diamond Theory The diamond model is an economical model developed by Michael Porter in his book The Competitive Advantage of Nations, where he published his theory of why particular industries become competitive in particular locations. Porter believes that the following factors can decide a country’s competitiveness:- * Factor conditions are human resources, physical resources, knowledge resources, capital resources and infrastructure. Specialized resources are often specific for an industry and important for its competitiveness. Specific resources can be created to compensate for factor disadvantages. * Demand conditions in the home market can help companies create a competitive advantage, when sophisticated home market buyers pressure firms to innovate faster and to create more advanced products than those of competitors. * Related and supporting industries can produce inputs that are important for innovation and internationalization. These industries provide cost-effective inputs, but they also participate in the upgrading process, thus stimulating other companies in the chain to innovate. * Firm strategy, structure and rivalry constitute the fourth determinant of competitiveness. The way in which companies are created, set goals and are managed is important for success. But the presence of intense rivalry in the home base is also important; it creates pressure to innovate in order to upgrade competitiveness. Apart from the above mentioned four...
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...evaluate the article “Crafting Strategy “ written by Henry Mintzberg. The essay will evaluate the difference between deliberate and emergent strategies and will compare the article against wider debate about processes of strategy. Strengths and weaknesses of the article will be critically reviewed by comparing with previous academic journals and conclusions will be made upon findings. Wider Debate Of Strategy Mintzberg (1984, pp. 69) argues that “strategies can form as well as be formulated” he believes they can emerge due to an ever changing environment” In contrast Porter (1987) takes a more deliberate strategy approach he believes there are 3 types of strategies, low cost, differentiated or focus. “Strategy is the creation of a unique and valuable position involving a different set of activities”. Porter (1996) Porter believes strategy works best with a top down approach. Mintzberg (1987) argues that Porters model may only be suited to more stable markets that have been established over time. Ansoff (1987) strongly argued against Mintzbergs theory on emergent strategy, Ansoff believed strategic plans should be formulated beforehand by anticipating what...
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