Loose Readings for Final Exam

Question 1

What is Javidan saying arguing in his core competence article?

Answer 1

He is arguing that instead of analyzing a firms external environment than internal, he says start with your core competency and work you way out. This is kind of the backbone to resource based view of the firm

Question 2

Who defined the core competencies as the “collective learning in the organization, especially how to coordinate diverse production skills and integrate multiple streams of technologies” ?

Answer 2

Prahalad and Hamel who came up with the core competency as a conceptional tool

Question 3

What is a SBU?

Answer 3

Strategic Business Unit

Question 4

What was wrong with the original definition of Core competencies?

Answer 4

Too narrow on just parts of value chain such as manu, and it didn’t differentiate between core competencies and capabilities

Question 5

What are 3 types of resources?

Answer 5

Physical such as plants

human

organizational such as culture and reputation

Question 6

Describe the competency hierarchy

Answer 6

At the very foundation, you have a set of
1. Resources
That can be exploited for functional (HR, marketing, etc)
2. Capabilities
That are needed across functions (but not cross SBUs) for realizing
3. Competencies
and finally
4. Core Competencies
are needed to be realized across SBUs

It goes from least value and difficulty at resources to most at Core competencies!

Question 7

What is internal stickiness?

What causes it?

Answer 7

Internal stickiness is the difficulty in transferring competencies and capabilities through the organization,

and is caused by ambiguity, lack of motivation from source or recipient, and organizational cutler that doesn’t encourage cross-learning

Question 8

What are the 8 steps to identifying a company’s capabilities, competencies and core competencies?

Answer 8

1. Gather all your know-hows: We at ___ know how to ____ very well
2. Is this know-how present in one function, one SBU, or across the corporation to see if it’s a capability, competency, or core competency
3. Measure each of these know-hows against there competitors
4. and ask, does it matter?
5. How Durable is our advantage? Yes or no?
   By seeing if firm is willing to continue investing in it, if it’s easily imitatible, develop substitutes, and is this know-how demanded?
6. What are key changes taking place in industry?
   PEST
7. Given these changes:
   - Which competencies or capabilities will be obsolete or irrelevant
   - which should be sustained or improved
   - how can we better leverage existing resources, capabilities, and competencies
   - What new competencies or capabilities should be developed
8. Where do we go from here?
   - Dismantle or adjust comp or cap that expected to lose value in future
   - sustain and improve identified resources, comp, cap
   - increase leverage from identified resource, comp, cap
   - develop or acquire new ones

Question 9

What are 3 critical factors that Liedtka found with firms that had a long history of successful collaboration?

Answer 9

1. partnering mind set
2. partnering skill set
3. supportive organizational context

Question 10

What is the triangle of corporate strategy?

3 sides, and 3 angles

Answer 10

You have 3 sides of the triangle:

1. Resources
   -competitive advantage
2. Businesses
   -control
3. Organization
   -coordination
   [resources]

Question 11

What are the 4 continuum of resources from highly specialized to very general?

Answer 11

1. Scope of business - wide vs narrow
   - specialized resource biz will compete in narrow range of biz
2. Coordination Mechanisms - Transferring vs Sharing
   - More general resources, the more likely company can effectively deploy through transfer rather than sharing
3. Control systems - financial vs operating
   - as resources are more specialized, you want to go towards operating, financial are better in mature industries
4. Corporate office size - small vs large
   - More general the resources, less need forswearing, and the smaller the office should be

Question 12

So the creating corporate advantage article is trying to say that the resources that provide comp advantage are not actually the products themselves per say, but are resources in the form of what 4 things?

Answer 12

1. Resources
   - So like relationships, manufacturing skills, service skills, etc
2. Organization
   - Managerial structure and business practices
3. Control systems
   - Operating or financial
4. Corporate office
   - Where and how people work

Question 13

With the 8 step core competencies exercise, what is the fundamental requirement for success?

Answer 13

Needs collaboration! So a culture that actually has managers wanting to work together, not compete.