...The Advantages of Competitive Strategies Abstract This paper will look at Competitive Strategies as they are described by Michael Porter. It will define and describe how Competitive Strategies create a competitive advantage. The Advantages of Competitive Strategies According to Michael Porter, an organization preparing to enter the market place must have in its core competencies the ability to create a competitive advantage (Robbins & Coulter, 2009). Yet, if an organization is to remain a viable entity throughout the turbulent terrain that accompanies the ever evolving market place, it will not suffice for an organization to just create or have a competitive advantage; the organization must be able to maintain a “long-term, sustainable competitive advantage” (Robbins & Coulter, 2009, p. 171). An organization can obtain this goal by discovering the niche that gives them a “distinctive edge” (Robbins & Coulter, 2009, p. 170). Robbins and Coulter noted in their 2009 work, that an organization’s “distinctive edge comes from the organizations core competencies because the organization does something that others cannot do or does it better than others can do it.” Once this distinctive edge is established, the organization now has a competitive advantage, “which is what sets an organization apart” (Robbins & Coulter, 2009, p. 170). An organization can gain a competitive advantage by providing its customers with some level of convenience. “Southwest Airlines”...
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...3.0 Findings This article aimed at determining components of CRM strategy and its effects to competitive advantage achievement. The findings of this article highlight the effects of CRM on competitive advantage and the components of CRM strategies. The findings were synthesized and summarized from few previous researches’ results which studied the topic of CRM. There are few components of CRM such as the components of perception and customers’ separation, attracting and protecting customers being faithful (making loyalty), emphasis on quality, improving and specializing the relations with the customers (customization), complaint investigation, invest in internal people, and relationship-based interfaces (Mehrdad & Hallaj, 2011; Aihie & Az-Eddine,...
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...SUMMARY: FROM COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE TO CORPORATE STRATEGY: 1. Passing the Essential Tests a) How Attractive Is the Industry? An attractive industry with a high ROI will be difficult to enter because entry barriers are high, suppliers and buyers have only modest bargaining power, substitute products or services are few, and the rivalry among competitors is stable. An unattractive industry like steel has flaws i.e. many substitute materials, powerful and price-sensitive buyers and excessive rivalry that may be state supported. b) What Is the Cost of Entry? Diversification cannot build shareholder value if the cost of entry into a new business eats up its expected returns. A company can enter new industries by acquisition or start-up. The more attractive a new industry, the more expensive it is to get into. c) Will the Business Be Better Off? A corporation must bring a competitive advantage to the new unit, or the new unit must offer potential. When the benefit to the new unit comes only once, the parent company has no reason to keep the new unit over the long term. Once the results of the one-time improvement are clear and the diversified company no longer adds value, sell the unit and free up corporate resources. 2. Four Concepts of Corporate Strategy – (a) Portfolio Management: Is based primarily on diversification through acquisition. The corporation acquires sound, attractive companies with competent managers who agree to stay on. The acquired units are autonomous...
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...The impact on competitive advantage on McDonalds One of the competitive advantages is the strategy used in a company. In McDonalds Company, the strategies can be divided into several parts which are the strategies of competitors, globalization, health issues and how McDonalds overcome them, respect towards cultural differences among every different countries, and they put a strong focus on children. There are many international fast food franchises such as Burger King, KFC, Subway and etc. However, McDonalds are one of the international fast food and they are struggling that the consumers start to switch to their competitors in the year of 2002 (Han, 2008). It is because most of their competitors put a strong emphasis on offering healthier, hotter and higher quality of food yet cheaper. In this case, McDonalds used the strategy of adapting environmental change, that they start promoting healthier and affordable prices to satisfy the customer’s demands. Besides that, McDonalds also faces the impact of health issue. Some claims that McDonalds provide oily and unhealthy food that will lead a person to become an obese. However, McDonalds came out with the strategy of changing their menu to by adding salads and other lighter options into the menu. Other than that, McDonalds serve McGriddles sandwiches for breakfast in United States and Canada. Furthermore, they provide the customers to access the internet with the technology of wireless platform. This strategy of McDonalds has...
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...Chapter # 5 Building Competitive Advantage Through Business-Level Strategy Business Level Strategy Is the objective of developing a firm specific business model that will allow a company to gain a competitive advantage over its rivals in a market or industry. The way that strategic managers define their company’s business is the first step in crafting business level strategy. Customer Needs and Product Differentiation Customer needs are desired, wants or cravings that can be satisfied by means of the attributes or characteristics of a product a good or service. Two factors determine which product a customer chooses to satisfy these needs: The price of the product and the way a product is diffetentiated from other products of its type. Product differentiation is the process of designing products to satisfy customers needs. A company obtains a competitive advantage when it creates, designs, and supplies a product in a way that better satisfies customer needs than its rivals do and chooses the correct pricing option the one that results in the level of demand that optimizes profitability. Customer Groups and Market Segmentation Market Segmentation is the way a company decides to group customers, based on important differences in their needs or preferences, in order to gain a competitive advantage. One principal way of grouping customers and segmenting the market is by what customers are able and willing to pay for a particular product, the other principal method of segmenting...
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...Business Operations In My Organization: Strategies for Achieving Competitive Advantage Lionel Bryan Small Walden University Business Operations in Your Organization: Strategies for Achieving Competitive Advantage Introduction This Praxis paper focuses on four areas that can improve Royal Dutch Shell Group’s (Shell) ability to be more competitive with other integrated oil majors in the global supply chain. Shell’s goal is to be “the world’s most competitive and innovative energy company” (Shell 2013). First, the macro-processes involved in the supply chain of Shell are introduced. Forecasting techniques were researched to see how these can be applied to demand management in Shell. Third, business process integration was investigated to improve the supply chain in Shell. Finally, operations and production strategy was synthesized to respond to the changing demands in the modern global environment. Discussion The Macro-processes Involved in the Supply Chain of Shell Company Chosen and the Reason. The company I chose for this assignment is Shell. The key reason is I work for Shell. I have access to global supply chain managers who will help with this assignment. I contribute to the planning operations in the global supply chain. My contribution is the production of petroleum liquids for refinery processing. Gas produced is sold directly to customers as fuel. I believe a lot was learned during the review and analysis of Shell’s global supply chain. Shell’s...
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...Testing a winning strategy: 1) Goodness of fit test: How well does strategy fit the firm’s situation? 2) Competitive advantage test: does strategy lead to sustainable competitive advantage? 3) Performance test: does strategy boost firm performance?Testing a winning strategy: 1) Goodness of fit test: How well does strategy fit the firm’s situation? 2) Competitive advantage test: does strategy lead to sustainable competitive advantage? 3) Performance test: does strategy boost firm performance?Testing a winning strategy: 1) Goodness of fit test: How well does strategy fit the firm’s situation? 2) Competitive advantage test: does strategy lead to sustainable competitive advantage? 3) Performance test: does strategy boost firm performance?Testing a winning strategy: 1) Goodness of fit test: How well does strategy fit the firm’s situation? 2) Competitive advantage test: does strategy lead to sustainable competitive advantage? 3) Performance test: does strategy boost firm performance?Testing a winning strategy: 1) Goodness of fit test: How well does strategy fit the firm’s situation? 2) Competitive advantage test: does strategy lead to sustainable competitive advantage? 3) Performance test: does strategy boost firm performance?Testing a winning strategy: 1) Goodness of fit test: How well does strategy fit the firm’s situation? 2) Competitive advantage test: does strategy lead to sustainable competitive advantage? 3) Performance test: does strategy boost firm performance...
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...A WORD FROM THE METABOLIC KITCHEN RECIPE TITLE Hands down, one of the most common protein sources that many people choose to turn to on their fat loss diet is chicken and poultry. Not only are there literally thousands of different ways that you can prepare these protein-rich foods, but because they are also low in fat and so high in protein, they are ideal for creating the perfect fat loss diet. Poultry is also a terrific source of trypophan, vitamin B3, selenium, vitamin B6, and phosphorus, so not only are you getting an outstanding protein intake, but you’re getting all of these great nutrients as well. Choosing to eat poultry or chicken for at least one meal throughout the day will give your metabolism a boost and ensure that you prevent lean muscle mass loss making sure you maintain great muscle tone and definition as you go progress through the diet. With just a few simple ingredients in many of these recipes, you can easily and quickly create delectable dishes that have you amazed at just how tasty eating healthy can be. So experiment a little and be sure to try all of these recipes. The more you can break away from your usual preparation method, the more you’ll enjoy sticking with your diet. Metabolic Cooking ©2011 Dave Ruel | Page 2 CHICKEN & POULTRY RECIPE INDEX RECIPE TITLE Click on recipe to navigate 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. Creamy Mustard-Pecan Chicken ............Page 15 Spicy Peanut Chicken .............................Page 16 Super Spicy Citrus Chicken ......
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...01 What Is Strategy, and Why Is It Important? Multiple Choice Questions 1. | Keeping in mind Apple's competitive advantage, which of the following products was introduced by Apple in 2007? A. | iPad | B. | iPhone | C. | iPod | D. | iTunes | | 2. | _____ is best described as an integrative management field that combines analysis, formulation, and implementation in the quest for competitive advantage. A. | Supply chain management | B. | Integrated technology management | C. | Strategic management | D. | Inventory management | | 3. | _____ is best described as a set of goal-directed actions a firm takes to gain and sustain superior performance relative to competitors. A. | Behavior modification | B. | Strategy | C. | Credo | D. | Competency management | | 4. | Which of the following stages of the strategic management process involves an evaluation of a firm's external and internal environments? A. | Strategy analysis | B. | Strategy implementation | C. | Strategy formulation | D. | Strategy control | | 5. | In _____, a firm frames a guiding policy to address the competitive challenge. A. | strategy control | B. | strategy implementation | C. | strategy formulation | D. | strategy analysis | | 6. | Through _____, a firm puts its guiding policy into practice by employing a set of coherent actions. A. | strategy control | B. | strategy implementation...
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...Strategy & International Business Introduction There has been a rapid modification in the business environment in the past decade as a result of privatization and globalization leading to difference in company’s strategies. A strategy can be defined in many ways and has many different viewpoints. This article aims to explain and critically evaluate the approaches of Jay Barney and Michael E. Porter, two leading strategy theorists, in-turn explaining the basis leading to the difference. What is Strategy & Competitive Advantage? Strategy is the creation of unique and valuable position involving a different set of activities.1 A firm is said to have competitive advantage when it is implementing a strategy which is not is being implemented by it’s current or potential competitors and also sustains profits that exceed the average for it’s industry. " Is Competitive Advantage enough? The goal of much of business strategy is to achieve a sustainable competitive advantage which is the same as competitive advantage but the advantages of the strategy cannot be duplicated by the competitors. (Barney, 1989). Different authors have different viewpoint in regard to sustainable competitive advantage. A sustained competitive advantage is simply a competitive advantage that lasts for a longer period of calendar time (Porter, 1985). A competitive advantage is sustained only after the efforts to duplicate the advantages of the strategy have been ceased (Lippman and Rumelt,1982). ...
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...CONCEPT OF COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE IS CENTRAL TO THE STUDY OF STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT, AND EXAMINE THE USE OF PORTER’S GENERIC STRATEGEIS BY COMPANIES TO COMPETE. KEY TERMS Competitive advantage. This is the favourable position an organization seeks in order to be more profitable than its competitors. Strategic management. It is the systematic analysis of the factors associated with customers and competitors (the external environment) and the organization itself (the internal environment) to provide the basis for maintaining optimum management practices. The objective of strategic management is to achieve better alignment of corporate policies and strategic priorities. Porter’s generic strategies. These are three general types of strategies developed by Michael Porter that are commonly used by businesses to achieve and maintain competitive advantage. Company. It is a voluntary association formed and organized to carry on a business. Types of companies include sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability, corporation, and public limited company. INTRODUCTION The concept of competitive advantage is central to the study of strategic management, since a company or an organization must follow an aligned strategy to outperform their rivals in the industry. Michael Porter introduces three generic strategies that a firm may apply in order to do so they include; overall cost leadership, Differentiation and Focus. In order to create and sustain competitive advantage, companies...
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...Chapter 01 What Is Strategy and Why Is It Important? Multiple Choice Questions 1. | Managers in all types of businesses must address the central strategic question A. | Where are we now? | B. | Where do we want to go from here? | C. | How are we going to get there? | D. | When will we know we are there? | E. | All of these | | 2. | A company's strategy consists of A. | actions to develop a more appealing business model than rivals. | B. | plans involving alignment of organizational activities and strategic objectives. | C. | offensive and defensive moves to generate revenues and increase profit margins. | D. | competitive moves and approaches that managers have developed to grow the business, attract and please customers, conduct operations, and achieve targeted objectives. | E. | its strategic vision, its strategic objectives, and its strategic intent. | | 3. | The competitive moves and business approaches a company's management is using to grow the business, compete successfully, attract and please customers, conduct operations, respond to changing economic and market conditions, and achieve organizational objectives is referred to as its A. | strategy. | B. | mission statement. | C. | strategic intent. | D. | business model. | E. | strategic vision. | | 4. | A company's strategy is most accurately defined as A. | management's approaches to building revenues, controlling costs, and...
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...The Past and Future of Competitive Advantage By Clayton Christensen The author introduces to us that the concept of competitive advantage has inspired strategists in imitating the strategies of successful companies. However, the success of strategies is relative to the conditions of a particular place at a particular time— that not all strategies used by successful companies will work for others. Some companies that have economies of scale, integration and nonintegration, and process-based core competencies gain competitive advantage over others. For companies to gain competitive advantage, their strategies must not be modeled after those that have worked for others, rather, they must know the determinants as to which conditions those strategies would be able to give them competitive advantage. The concept of economies of scale is one wherein companies are able to cover fixed costs through broader scale of production. However, the problem of fixed costs are solved by managerial and technological progress. This leads to the dissolution of one’s competitive advantage through economies of scale. The concept of economies of scope is one in which firms are able to gain competitive advantage through diversification of product offerings. However, the author presents that focus strategies have become more efficient than diversification strategies. For a company to outsource a value-added activity, it must meet three conditions: (1) specify the needed attributes; (2) access to reliable...
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...Essay by Mashell Chapeyama University of the People Competitive advantages of Chipinge Banana Company A competitive advantage refers to any asset or capabilities that a company has that gives value to it or its products and services, which competitors do not have. Competitive advantage creates cost leadership to a firm or enables the firm to produce differentiated products. An example of a competitive advantage is being able to sell the products at low price but still be able to get some profits. This essay explores the competitive advantages which Chipinge Banana Company has. Chipinge Banana Company is a company that is found in Zimbabwe. The company produces bananas only. The bananas are sold to customers in the country and abroad. This company is located in the region where there is abundance of rainfall as well as good soils. One competitive advantage of Chipinge Banana Company is the natural resources it has. Firstly, the company is located in a region with a lot of rainfall. This enables the storage of water in some dams. Most parts of Zimbabwe have got very low rainfall. The land there is also very flat, unlike most parts of the country, where there is ample rainfall, which are mountainous. The flat terrain makes it possible for the use of modern technology in banana farming. At this company, there is usage of overhead cable tractors. This makes it easier and cheaper to harvest bananas. Therefore, the cost of production of bananas is very low, as compared to other...
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...www.emeraldinsight.com/0265-1335.htm IMR 24,1 The fundamentals of standardizing global marketing strategy Nanda K. Viswanathan Delaware State University, Dover, Delaware, USA, and 46 Received February 2004 Revised February 2006 Accepted February 2006 Peter R. Dickson Florida International University, Miami, Florida, USA Abstract Purpose – To examine issues of standardization and adaptation in global marketing strategy and to explain the dynamics of standardization. Design/methodology/approach – This is a conceptual research paper that has been developed based on gaps in prior frameworks of standardization/adaptation. A three-factor model of standardization/adaptation of global marketing strategy was developed. The three factors include homogeneity of customer response to the marketing mix, transferability of competitive advantage, and similarities in the degree of economic freedom. Findings – The model through the use of feedback effects explains the dynamics of standardization. Research limitations/implications – Future research needs to empirically test the model. To enable empirical validation, reliable and valid measures of the three factors proposed in the model need to be developed. Additionally, the model may be used in future research to delineate the impact a variable may have on the ability of a firm to follow a standardized global marketing strategy. Practical implications – The three-factor model aids decisions relating to standardization in a global...
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