Gestion Estrategica De Empresas (Ingles)

Strategic Management

Course Summary

SUMMARY OF THE TOOLS AND CASES DISCUSSED IN STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT
Tools to analyze and understand the source of profitability: Industry Analysis  5-forces analysis (chapter 3)  Main conclusions: o An industry’s attractiveness (profitability) is contingent on the next 5 characteristics: bargaining power of consumers, bargaining power of suppliers,rivalry among competitors, threat of substitutes, barriers-to-entry.  Examples of cases in which we applied this tool: o RTE Cereal: highly attractive industry based mainly on low rivalry and high barriersto-entry. o Soft-drink industry: highly attractive industry based mainly on low rivalry and high barriers-to-entry. o PC industry (Apple case): very un-attractive industry based mainly on lowbarriers-toentry, high bargaining power of suppliers, and high rivalry among competitors. Firm Analysis  Resources and capabilities (chapter 5)  Main conclusions: o A firm is a bundle of resources (some are tangible resources such as location and some others are intangible such as brand, culture, or distribution skills). Resources are NOT product attributes!!! Resources are skills or assets that allowthe firm to develop products in a more efficient manner or with attributes that are valued by consumers. o Those resources that are (a) valuable, (b) unique, (c) non-replicable and (d) difficult to imitate are the ones that provide sustained competitive advantage. o There is a limitation when trying to exploit these resources: the more unique, nonreplicable and inimitable your resources are, themore specific they become to the activity in which they are used, and therefore the harder it is to transfer/apply them into other markets (e.g. diversification or international expansion).  Examples of cases in which we applied this tool: o This tool comes together with the analysis of competitive advantage (see strategic positioning section in the business strategy analysis). Tools to analyze andunderstand the impact of firm-level decisions on a firm’s profitability: Business Strategy: how to gain competitive advantage in a given industry Strategic positioning  Competitive Advantage (chapters 7, 8 & 9)  Main conclusions: o Firms can gain two types of competitive advantage (cost and/or differentiation) o It will be a sustainable competitive advantage whenever the valuable resources thatprovide this advantage are (b) unique, (c) non-replicable and (d) difficult to imitate (see previous section on firm analysis).  Examples of cases in which we applied this tool: o RTE Cereal: differentiation advantage (branded labels) vs. cost advantage (private labels).

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Strategic Management

Course Summary

o Coke and Pepsi: both had a strong differentiation advantage (brand &customer loyalty). o Wal-Mart: volume, culture, distribution skills and location are unique and highly valuable resources that provided Wal-Mart with a cost advantage. Moreover, they seemed to be highly inimitable by competitors, so Wal-Mart seemed to enjoy a sustained competitive (cost) advantage. Yet, it seemed very hard for Wal-Mart to transfer those skills or replicate them into other markets(limits to the transferability of competitive advantage). o Coors: This firm had a strong cost competitive advantage based on their unique location (valuable resource). Yet, this competitive advantage was not sustainable to the extent that it could be easily replicated by competitors (the presence of unsatisfied demand allowed other firms to replicate Coors’ location advantage in the West). o Apple:high innovation skills and brand loyalty were key resources that allowed Apple to be highly successful in the 80s’ personal computer industry. Important: Apple computers’ better design or quality of software are NOT resources!! These are product attributes that arise from Apple’s superior innovation skills (this is the key resource). o Disney: had a strong differentiation advantage arising from...