Lecture 4 focuses on identifying and evaluating a firm’s strengths and weaknesses in the functional areas of business, including management, marketing, finance/accounting, production/operations, research and development, and management information systems. Relationships among these areas of business and the strategic implications of important functional area concepts are examined. Strategies are formulated that take advantage of an organization’s internal strengths and improve upon weaknesses. The Resource-Based View (RBV) of strategic management is introduced as well as the Value Chain Analysis (VCA) concept. In such a context, the competitive advantage and superior performance of an organisation is explained by the distinctiveness of its capabilities.
The importance of resources and competences, in terms of creating competitive advantage, is explained in depth through Apple's iTunes case [source: Prentice Hall, 2008, Strategic Management and Competitive Advantage: Concepts and Cases: International Edition, 2/E, Jay Barney and William S. Hesterly].
- Lecture notes: Download my presentation from here (ppt file)
- Readings: Course Textbook Chapter 3 and 4 (Strategic Capability & Expectations and Purposes) + Download (from here) a related case study entitled "Apple’s iTunes: Changing the Face of Online Music Retailing"
- Please visit frequently the Course Repository!
--petros
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