...CORE COMPETENCIES AND DISTINTIVE CAPABILITIES A core competency is a skill or expertise the organization has or anything that a firm can do well and use to gain a competitive advantage over it competitors. Hamel and Prahalad (1990) suggested that a core competency should meet the following three criteria. 1. Customers should benefit. 2. Competitors should find it difficult to imitate 3. The core competence can be transferred to many products and markets. One of Tesco’s core competencies is its customer focused strategy. The clubcard reward scheme allows Tesco to collect, analyze and understand their customers very well. Tesco uses the information and adapt their services to the local market, thus adding value to the customer experience. Tesco’s club card gave them a distinctive capability of observing customers preferences thus, enabling them to predict customers buying behaviour and arranging their stocks accordingly in stores giving them an edge over competitors. Tesco has also designed and implemented supply systems that effectively link existing shops with Tesco.com. While online shopping is a feature of its competitors, Tesco was able to design a good user interface which personalizes online shopping resulting in its customers valuing the Tesco.com experience highly. This has helped to improve the performance of the company in different markets. Further, the strong Tesco brand has led to an increase in the number of customers, sales and profits and has helped the...
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...“How does the development of core competencies provide both advantages and disadvantages for an organisation? What steps can managers take to prevent core competencies becoming core rigidities?” In today’s world competition among firms becomes globalized and more intense. In order to become superiorly competitive, companies should enhance its competencies in a way that will allow them to achieve dominant position in a market. One way of accomplishing it is by development of core competencies. Competencies are considered core if they are skillfully performed and are principal to company’s strategy and its competiveness (Thompson et al, 2013). They are result of ‘collective learning’ activities (Prohalad and Hamel, 1990), a combination of unique skills, assets and routines (Teese, Pisano and Shuen, 1990), and knowledge sets, which altogether strategically differentiate company (Leonard-Barton, 1992) and by being valuable, rare, inimitable, and non-substitutable by nature they provide basis for sustainable competitive advantage (Hafeez, Zhang and Malak, 2002). To begin with, the development of core competencies provides numerous advantages for an organization. Prahalad and Hamel (1990) in their research ‘Core Competence of the Corporation’ argue that these benefits can be seen as the following: development of new core and diversified products and consequently potential ability to enter new markets. Scholars have also emphasized the importance of the effective competence building...
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...Amanda Miley Dr. Jo Ann Rawley Mgt 100-3161 19 April 2015 Niki Leondakis and Core Competencies Niki Leondakis is the CEO of Commune Hotel and Resorts. She grew up in Massachusetts and has a strong Greek background and has been around restaurants for most of her life as her grandmother owns Charlie’s Diner. Niki graduated from the University of Massachusetts and now resides in San Francisco. She studied hotel and restaurant management and after completing college went to work for Marriott, Ritz-Carlton, Kimpton Hotels and then Commune. Along her journey, Niki has learned and developed many core competencies that have helped her to be a very successful woman. These core competencies range from dealing with people, to dealing with business to self-management competencies. When it comes to dealing with people, Niki can definitely establish focus. She communicates the goals of the business to the employees to ensure the customers’ needs and wants are met. In order to communicate well Niki must possess attention to communication as well as good oral and written communication. She also empowers others, part of this being that when hiring she looks for innovative outgoing people that will come up with new ideas to help Commune achieve customer satisfaction. She also possesses high customer orientation. She knows that hotel goers are no longer just looking for a comfortable bed, that they want a memorable experiences and she strives to give this to them. In dealing with business...
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...on in recent times on the issue of competency mapping. A lot of resource is spent and consultants are invited to do competency mapping. Competency mapping is gaining much more importance and organizations are aware of having good human resources or putting the right people on right job. Competency mapping is important and is an essential exercise. Every well managed firm should have well defined roles and list of competencies required to perform each role effectively. Such list should be used for recruitment, performance management, promotions, placements and training needs identification. In performing or carrying out work, it is essential that the required job skills first be articulated. This information not only helps to identify individuals who have the matching skills for doing the work but also the skills that will enhance the successful performance of the work. Yet often to perform well, it is not enough just to have these skills. It is also critical to complement the skills with the necessary knowledge and attitudes. For e.g. the necessary knowledge will enable an individual to apply the right skills for any work situation that will arise while having the right attitude will motivate him to give his best efforts. These skills, knowledge and attitudes required for the work are usually collectively referred as competencies. How Is “Competency” Defined in the Context of This Article? Many definitions of the term “competencies” have arisen over the past decade...
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...[pic] Managing Strategically Case No.47: “The Apollo Group” TABLE OF CONTENTS Sections 2 Section a 2 1 Introduction 2 2 Core Competencies 3 2.1 Developing core competencies 4 2.2 Uses of core competencies 4 3 Core Competencies of the Apollo Group Inc 4 3.1 Skilled Workforce 4 3.2 Good Market Share 4 4 Key Success Factors 4 4.1 Product 4 4.2 Customer service 4 5 Strategy Implementation 4 6 Conclusion 4 7 references 4 8 Table Of Figures 4 Sections This report is divided into three sections Section A – Introduction, core competencies Section B – Key Success Factors and alternative strategies Section C – Strategy implementation and conclusion Section a Introduction According to Apollo Group Inc, Corporate Information, “Apollo Group, Inc. was founded in 1973 in response to a gradual shift in higher education demographics from a student population dominated by youth to one in which approximately half the students are adults and over 80 percent of whom work full-time. Apollo's founder, John Sperling, believed and events proved him right that lifelong employment with a single employer would be replaced by lifelong learning and employment with a variety of employers. Lifelong learning requires an institution dedicated solely to the education of working adults. Today, Apollo Group, Inc. through its subsidiaries, the University of Phoenix (including University of Phoenix Online), the Institute...
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...Business-Level and Corporate-Level Strategies Christie Jones Christopher Zapalski Business Admin. Capstone 5-15-15 I am going to be discussing about corporate and business level strategies for C Company. The paper will also talk about valuing the organization, long-term success, differences in fast and slow cycle. C company was an organization in which they gather, valid, electronic data, automat collections, and retrieval system. The company develop and design, personal computer, electronics and software. They have had success and continue to do so. The business strategy for the company is cost leadership. They want to have success and ensure the competitiveness. C company has a competitive edge with products and prices. They also care about the business – level strategy by success, cost efficiency, and sustainability make this company part of who they are. Differentiation is another business-level strategy. They try and provide different characterizations and features for their products. They would make it low cost while still having high quality products. This all can be done with teho features, image, products reviews and features of the products etc, Theses business-level strategies would help have service, quality of control with production, cost of sales, develop and research, and a place where they could advance the arts that go into the products if you know what I mean. You need business level as well as corporate-level strategy for...
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...Running head: EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL ENVIRONEMNT External and Internal Environment Analysis Bharti Gupta University of Phoenix External and Internal Environment Analysis: Mayo Clinic The purpose of this paper is to analyze the External and Internal environmental factors of Mayo Clinic (MC). Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit worldwide leader in medical care, research and education for people from all walks of life (Mayo Clinic, 2011). Various types of external and internal factors affect the smooth flow of business at Mayo Clinic. External environment analysis is important in determining the strategy that should be adopted by a business and internal environment analysis is critical to identify the core competences of the business. External Environment External environment (EE) can be broadly classified into three types: Remote, Industry and Operating. Remote environment (sometimes called as macro environment) consists of the forces at work in the general business environment which will shape the industries and markets in which an organization competes (Stonehouse, Campbell, Prudie & Hamill, 2008). Industry environment (sometimes called as micro environment) is the competitive environment facing a business. It consists of the industries and markets in which the organization conducts its business competes (Stonehouse, Campbell, Prudie & Hamill, 2008). Operating environment also called the competitive or task environment comprises factors in the competitive situation...
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...Q1. What are the different approaches to Globalization? Comment on relevance of Swadeshi movement in today’s Globalized environment. Ans. Globalization has become a ‘magic’ word used to express a change in all areas of life from economy to politics or from social politics to culture. Globalization is the growing role of external factors (economic, social and cultural) in the reproduction of all member of a country to form of a single world market(s) without barriers. 'A global shift'; that is, a world being molded, by economic and technological forces, into a shared economic and political arena. Major phase in international relations, which has been established several decades ago, but its formation was not completed by the beginning of the third millennium. However, the public attention it attracted only in 1990. Approaches towards Globalization The Indian companies are adopting the following approaches to globalization- The First Approach is the Reliance approach. Here the Indian company attains global parameters of production but its market focus is mainly domestic. E.g. Bajaj Auto, Hero Cycles, Maruti Udoy, BHEL, Mahindra & Mahindra. The Second Approach is the Sundaram Fasteners route where an Indian Company emerges as a global sub-contractor. The Chennai based Sundaram Fasteners is now a major supplier of radiator to GM. The Third Approach is the one personified by the Tata Tetley deal itself. Taking over foreign companies or investing in the foreign ventures....
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...Strategy………………………………………………………..p. 7 Porter Airlines Business Level Strategy………………………………………………..p. 9 Core Competencies …………………………………………………………….p. 9 Competitive Advantage………………………………………...………………p.12 Low Cost Business Level Strategy………………………………………...…..p. 13 Low Cost Business- Level Structure………………………………………………….p. 15 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………….p. 17 Appendix……………………………………………………………………………...p. 18 References…………………………………………………………………………….p. 20 Executive Summary Porter asserts that their secret to success relies in combining a low-cost business-level strategy with a focus on higher yield passengers who value premium service (Preville, 2014). The company has been profitable for the last two years, and as a result has been focusing efforts on expanding their domain and customer base. After conducting an interview with an operations manager at the company, Ashley Hammill, I was able to acquire information about the company’s expansion plans, business strategy and structure (See Appendix A). I will be using the information provided by her primarily, with some secondary sources allowing me to go into further detail about the company. This paper will analyze through their expansion plan, how Porter Airlines will effectively utilize their low-cost business level strategy to increase their customer base. Furthermore I will conduct an in-depth analysis on Porters’ core competencies and coordination abilities used to establish a competitive advantage; expanding into how Porter matched...
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...Table of Contents Executive Summary 3 Introduction 3 Benefits of Hamel & Prahalad’s concept of Core Competence 4 Disadvantages of core competency 6 The concept of Icarus Paradox and its comparison with core competencies 7 Conclusions 8 References 9 Executive Summary This report takes an account of Core competencies that were introduced by C. K. Prahalad and Gary Hamel in 1990. Evaluating this business concept, its advantages and disadvantages are examined. The report also examines another concept of Icarus Paradox identifying reasons for failures of highly successful businesses. The disadvantages of core competencies and Icarus Paradox business concept have similarities. Introduction Several companies are still struggling to identify the most highly effective approach to compete in global competition. Back in the 1980s, top executives were expected to rebuild and de-layer the organization as a capability to successfully survive in the organization (Harvard Business Review 1990, p. 1). 1990s was the era where these executives were expected to demonstrate their capability of recognizing, harvesting and exploring those competencies that can result in business growth and sustainability. This clearly means that these executives should be capable of rethinking and reconceptualising the organization, altogether. However within a period of last 10 years, there are few examples of companies such as GTE that have successfully positioned themselves...
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...1、value chain:ebay success is to contact the buyer and seller market, providing a global new online trading platform, anyone can carry a variety of products traded through this platform. Whether traditional industries and emerging networks must convert a way of thinking, that is, the ability to provide customer value. Competitive forces: The company now sells a staggeringly diverse array of goods and is one of the world’s most easily recognizable and well-known Web sites. eBay is a favorable proposition for smaller sellers to find markets for rare goods, or goods that are otherwise difficult to value. The company reduced posting fees for adding an item online and increased the collection fee for sold items.In August 2008, eBay lowered its listing fees for all sellers offering fixed-priced items under its “Buy It Now” format. EBay adjusted its search ordering system so that highly rated merchants appear first and receive more exposure. Roll out a rating system that made acquiring a high rating a much more time-consuming undertaking, favoring larger sellers with the time and energy to build a favorable rating. eBay’s growth strategy focused on expansion in geography and scope and on continuing innovation to enhance the variety and appeal of products in its sites. 2、Business model:brokerage model:Cyber Age through virtual network platform to bring together buyers and sellers of supply and demand information, coordination of their supply and demand and the payment of transaction...
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...Challenges at the North Australian Pastoral Company Introduction. NAPCO (North Australian Pastoral Company) which is a leading privately owned company in the Australian cattle industry. Company’s main business is high quality beef production due to its experienced manage methods relevant to its long history, about 150 years. Animal husbandry is highly depending on climate and relevant conditions, while in Australia almost all of these conditions can be satisfied which can give NAPCO a good foundation to development. Asian market is firm’s focus not only because Australia is close to it but also associated with other business issues. External environment Demographic Asia and America is two major export destinations of NAPCO’s high quality beef. These area own over one forth of earth population which means they can provide giant market and requirement to company. Although these countries like China Japan and America are more likely have aging population structure, it may hardly influence the beef market due to beef is suit for everyone. Australia is surround by sea and close to Asia which means it’s easy for company to export by ship or plane. According to the income level of the target market like Japan, US, Koear and china, there are stable requirement of high quality beef and no ethic issue can impact people choose beef. Economy After the global economic crisis in 2008, Asian and America has get rid of the negative impact of it step by step, especially Asia. In that...
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...STAFF COMPETENCY FRAMEWORK July 2006 The Charles Darwin University Staff Competency Framework This booklet contains the Staff Competency Framework for Charles Darwin University. The Competency Framework outlines the range of knowledge, skills and attributes required of employees of the University for proficient workplace performance. Application of the framework occurs in the context of an individual’s role, and the recognition that different competencies, and different levels of competency, are necessary to perform a given set of activities. DEFINITION Competency is defined as the ability to perform tasks and duties to the standard expected in employment. A competency standard is an industry-determined specification of performance which sets out the skills, knowledge and attitudes required to operate effectively in employment. Standards are made up of units of competency, which are themselves made up of elements of competency, together with performance criteria, a range of variables, and an evidence guide1. A competency framework describes a set of competency standards for employees and makes the expected knowledge and capabilities of employees explicit for those within and outside of the University. This set of standards has been determined by the University through a process of consultation and benchmarking. Competency frameworks are used by organisations to: • • • • • • Focus workplace performance on the organisation’s vision and values Align workplace behaviours...
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...focus on animals and nature , they were about reality whereas Disney was about fantasy. They did not try to compete with Disney but stick to their core competencies, roots and focus on nature and wildlife with many animal related activities and make a few changes such as: • They position themselves as a world class attraction • By letting the resident of Hong Kong know they were a home grown park who cater to families from children to grandparents • Strengthen its core competency in real nature as compared to Disney’s strength in cartoon characters. • By introducing annual pass to boost attendance. • By differentiating itself from the competition • By not trying to compete with the competitor and sticking to core competencies. • Did a create campaign that tapped into the locals psyche for seasonal holidays. • Adding to wild life by adding 33 new species of animals. • They revamp their product line. • Improve its brand image. Question 2: Ocean Park made the decision not to compete head –to-head with Disneyland. Will this strategy always work when local companies face multinational giants? Explain. I think this strategy will not always work but can work if a core competence of the local yields a long term advantage to the company, which competitive advantage. I think local companies should build on core competencies by utilizing skills that combine to strengthen the value chains and build greater competitive advantages. This will leads to synergies in the company...
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...Kodak Case Analysis 1879: George Eastman invented the dry-plate process and filed patent for a machine that coated dry photographic plates 1880: George Eastman established the Eastman Dry Plate Company, at Rochester N.Y. 1884: Introduced paper roll film 1889: Invented perforated celluloid film 1900: The Brownie box camera went on the market with a price of $1 1935: Introduced color film 1960: Brought the Instamatic camera to the market 1970: Major sales growth for Kodak. Concentrates on film and basic cameras 1980: Fuji emerges as a serious competitor 1994: Kodak abandoned its non-imaging health-related businesses began to invest in digital imaging products for medical practice 1997: Kodak was a high-cost manufacturer with a growing portfolio of digital products which was losing hundreds of millions of dollars annually 1997: Restructuring that eliminated 19,000 jobs and cut more than $1 billion from annual costs 1999: Kodak entered the digital radiography market 2001: Kodak is pushing aggressively into China, an important growth market 2003: Carp unveiled the plan to invest $3 billion in the next three years in digital products by cutting dividends by 72% - to 50 cents per share 2004: Kodak announced that it would stop selling traditional film cameras in Europe and North America, and cut up to 15,000 jobs 2005: The Kodak EasyShare-One Digital Camera, the world’s first Wi-Fi consumer digital camera capable of sending pictures by email, was unveiled 2012: Kodak filed for Chapter...
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