Response one-Britney-In chapter 5 the book talks about serving customers.
Response one-Britney-In chapter 5 the book talks about serving customers. It says “The “basis for customer value” deals with the question of whether firms will try to satisfy their customers through focusing on low costs (and presumably lower prices) or creating distinctive features that are highly attractive.” (1) This resonates with me because Dow is currently working on being more sustainable and creating faux leather. They are starting with seats in vehicles but are currently trying to work with sports brands to make sneakers as well. This is brilliant because professional athletes have such a large influence on the sneakers that athletes buy and if they can work with a major sports brand like Nike or Addias this could change a lot of things in relationship to the shoes we wear. They could be more sustainable, and this would put Dow on the “map” in a completely different way than they currently are by creating something different and highly attractive.
In chapter 6 we learn about competitor analysis. This is important because knowing what other organizations like ours are doing will help us know what we need to do. I work on the building of the website side of operations at Dow, before our updated website went live most of our sales were not actually done online through the website. Looking at other organizations like ours, we were very behind, and this can only hurt the bottom line. I do not remember the numbers exactly but before the uplift less than 20% were online sales and the goal is to be closer to or above 80%. Seeing how other organizations were using online sales to boost their revenue was a huge driving factor to update the website and make the buying experience a more fluid process. Looking forward and ahead at technological trends as far as their website can greatly benefit Dow in the future.
In the video, David talks about the different areas of competitive advantage; “process, product, and customer.” (2) This made me think of my uncle’s business, Buttercloth. It is a clothing company for men, and they claim to be the world’s most comfortable shirt. My uncle has decided to not have any brick-and-mortar buildings and to focus on the product. The shirts are truly amazing, my husband would wear one every day if he could. My uncle, Danny, is focusing on the product and having the best, not on the process and having the most efficient or customer service as they do not have stores, and this is working for him. I can see why focusing on one aspect of the three; process, product, and customer can be beneficial for an organization.
After reading When Winning in Everything it made me think of my previous team and my current team. My previous team’s boss would focus on meeting every single deadline without an exception. This would often cause overtime to be needed, frustration, and fatigue of the team. Because my previous boss did not work directly with the team, they did not see the results of their actions and were unable to hear my concerns. My current team’s boss is more involved, this may be because I am new to the role, but they actively listen to the concerns of the team and are willing to push deadlines within reason. It made me sad reading the text, people who are focused on winning often make irrational decisions and I can see how much that can truly affect a team.
Referenced
Hoskisson, R., Hitt, M., Ireland, R.D. & Harrison, J. (2013). Competing for Advantage (3rd ed.). South-Western Cengage Learning: Mason, OH.
Alternative Competitive Advantage. (n.d.). Youtube.com. Retrieved April 10, 2024, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPu4v_Ae0Vc.
Gillian Ku, D. M., & Murnighan, J. K. (n.d.). When Winning is Everything. Harvard Business Review, 78–86.
Response 2-ray-One principle or learning from Chapter 5 (Business-Level Strategy) I found interesting was on the Differentiation Strategy. This discusses the successful execution, functional implementation and competitive risks of the differentiation strategy. In short, the strategy involves offering unique products or services that are perceived as superior in the industry. This strategy focuses on providing customers with something different and valuable, which allows a company to charge premium prices. The Likelihood of Attack from Chapter 6 (Competitive Rivalry and Competitive Dynamics) was a really good read. This discusses the first mover incentive, organizational size, and quality. It refers to the probability or possibility of a company facing competitive attacks from rival firms within its industry. Competitive rivalry is a fundamental aspect of strategic management, and understanding the likelihood of attack is crucial for firms to develop effective strategies to defend their market position and sustain competitive advantage.From “When Winning is Everything” by Deepak Malhotra, I found the strategy of negotiation to be a key principle. In brief, it speaks on how strategic negotiations involve understanding the interests and motivations of both parties in a negotiation. Then using this knowledge to achieve the best possible outcome for oneself while maintaining a positive relationship with the other party. Really enjoyed this article!From “Alternative Competitive Advantage” by David Kryscynski, I found the main principle to be around 3 competitive advantages. These competitive advantages are broken-down into three fundamentally different types, as proposed by Michael Treacy and Fred Wiersma in their book “The Discipline of Market Leaders.” These three types are operational excellence, product leadership, and customer intimacy. Each of these categories represents a distinct focus for achieving superiority in the market.For my example in practice, I chose chapter 5 and the Differentiation Strategy as it relates to my company (logistics organization).We like to differentiate ourselves by offering specialized, value-added services that go beyond traditional transportation and warehousing. For instance, we invest in state-of-the-art tracking and monitoring technology to provide real-time visibility into shipments, allowing our customers to track their goods at every stage of the supply chain. Additionally, we offer personalized logistics solutions tailored to the unique requirements of each client, such as temperature-controlled transportation for perishable goods or secure handling for high-value items.By providing these differentiated services, we can position ourselves as a trusted partner that delivers superior value and peace of mind to our customers. This differentiation strategy helps us command premium prices, enhance customer loyalty, and differentiate ourselves from competitors in the highly competitive logistics industry.
References:Hoskisson, R. E. (2013). Competing for advantage. South-Western Cengage Learning. Malhotra, D., Ku, G., & Murnighan, K. J. (2021, July 1). When Winning is Everything . MyTopTutor. https://mytoptutor.com/https-learn-us-east-1-prod-fleet01-xythos-content-blackboardcdn-com-blackboard-learn-xythos-prod-5a30bcf95ea52-29010437x-blackboard-expiration1606672800000x-blackboard-signaturekck00gghuor2/ Kryscynski, D. (2013, May 10). Alternative Competitive Advantage. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPu4v_Ae0Vc
Response 3-Zoe-Chapter 5: Serving Customers as part of a Business StrategyThis concept is about orienting business strategies in a way that caters to meeting the wants, needs and preferences of customer. It involves figuring out which customers are most important to prioritize, which needs are the most important to satisfy and how to go about using your organization’s resources to fulfill these needs. This concept resonates with me because LaffySmash is all about bettering ourselves for the purpose of giving our attendees a good time. We can apply this by more actively listening to criticisms and suggestions from those that regularly compete in our events.Chapter 6: Competitor AnalysisThis idea is about how firms go about determining how much of a competitor different similar organizations are. The more competitive and more likely to be a rival than an opposing firm is, the more focus that needs to go into gaining a competitive advantage over them. My personal takeaway from this concept, in reference to LaffySmash, is considering what our tournaments offer compared to other tournaments within Louisiana. We can utilize this concept through the means of considering how similar other tournaments are, such as which games we host, as well as what days these tournaments host on. And lastly, the distance between our tournaments and others is important because events that are relatively close to ours are more likely to be actual rivals compared to tournaments that are hours away.When Winning is Everything: Time PressureTime pressure refers to how having a sense urgency when making decisions can affect the quality of the decisions being made. This concept resonated with me because it is something I experience both when I compete and host the tournaments of LaffySmash. Regarding how I can use this concept to improve my organization, I have realized that when our events are behind schedule, me and the other tournament organizers are much more likely to make a hasty decision that was not for the best. Thus, planning around this time crunch is the most effective way to avoid this, and that typically involves making sure we start on time.Alternative Competitive Advantage: Operational ExcellenceOperational Excellence in this context is referring to the competitive advantage that focusing on efficiency provides, whether it be making a product more quickly or for cheaper. This idea spoke to me because of what it means for LaffySmash and how we can achieve an advantage with this. As far as offering unique aspects, we can only go so far considering we host mostly the same games as other tournaments of our kind. However, what we can learn from this is that we can benefit from getting our tournaments to run more efficiently than others, as well as providing more quality than others provide for the same cost.
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