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1 – 10 of over 108000In the author's experience, even veteran executives often make statements about competitive advantage that reflect either genuine misunderstanding or casual misuse of the term…
Abstract
Purpose
In the author's experience, even veteran executives often make statements about competitive advantage that reflect either genuine misunderstanding or casual misuse of the term. This paper aims to offer a clear explanation of what constitutes competitive advantage so as to facilitate identification, assessment and strategizing.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper proposes a definition of competitive advantage that differs from that proposed by many textbooks. It is based on the idea that competitive advantage can only be defined in terms of customer value.
Findings
A number of cases are examined in the light of the customer value approach to identifying competitive advantage.
Practical implications
Company executives learn to periodically engage in systematic information gathering regarding customer‐perceived competitive advantages.
Originality/value
Organizations that adopt this customer‐perceived approach to competitive advantage can make better assessments of where to expend their efforts and resources to outmaneuver their rivals and improve profitability.
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Hashim Zameer, Ying Wang and Humaira Yasmeen
Big data capabilities have the potential to completely transform conventional methods of doing business. Nevertheless, the role of big data capabilities in fostering green…
Abstract
Purpose
Big data capabilities have the potential to completely transform conventional methods of doing business. Nevertheless, the role of big data capabilities in fostering green marketing capabilities and improving green competitive advantage is still not fully understood. To add new knowledge, this paper aims to propose a moderated mediation model to strengthen green competitive advantage in a big data environment. The model introduces both the mediating role of green marketing capabilities and the moderating role of big data capabilities. We developed and empirically tested a moderated mediation model.
Design/methodology/approach
In this study, we have adopted a survey-based methodology. The study collected data from 337 managers and empirically analyzed it to test the theoretical model of moderated mediation. We employed structural equation modeling for empirical analysis.
Findings
The findings revealed that organizational learning improves green marketing capabilities, whereas the relationship between organizational learning and green competitive advantage is insignificant. The mediating role of green marketing capabilities in the relationship between organizational learning and green competitive advantage was statistically significant, indicating that green marketing capabilities serve as a bridge between organizational learning and green competitive advantage. Big data capabilities moderate the relationship between organizational learning and green marketing capabilities. The moderated mediation was also significant, highlighting that big data capabilities further strengthen the indirect effects of organizational learning on green competitive advantage via green marketing capabilities.
Originality/value
This paper delivers theoretical and practical understandings of the importance of organizational learning and big data capabilities. Similarly, it extends current knowledge and provides key insights for managerial decision-making.
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Hanung Eka Atmaja, Budi Hartono, Clarisa Alfa Lionora, Alex Johanes Simamora and Alkadri Kusalendra Siharis
This research objective is to (1) examine the effect of organizational factors on quality performance, (2) examine the effect of quality performance on competitive advantage and…
Abstract
Purpose
This research objective is to (1) examine the effect of organizational factors on quality performance, (2) examine the effect of quality performance on competitive advantage and (3) examine the mediating role of quality performance between organizational factors and competitive advantage.
Design/methodology/approach
The research sample includes 140 employees in the Windusari village-owned enterprise, in Magelang, Indonesia. Data are collected using 5-Likert scale questionnaires which follow Ferdousi et al. (2019). The dependent variable is a competitive advantage. The Independent variable is organizational factors which are top management support, employee empowerment, employee involvement, reward and recognition, training and customer focus. The mediating variable is quality performance. Data analysis uses path analysis provided by structural equation modeling.
Findings
Based on path analysis, organizational factors have a positive effect on quality performance, quality performance has a positive effect on competitive advantage and quality performance mediates the effect of organizational factors on competitive advantage. The results confirm the concept of quality management where continuous improvement of products and services can meet customer expectations and bring the organization to a better position in the industry to face other competitors.
Originality/value
This research extends the previous studies of the relationship between organizational factors and organizational outcomes by considering the effectiveness of the organizational process. This research also contributes to giving new evidence about the relationship between organizational factors, quality management and competitive advantage in the village-owned enterprise in Magelang, Indonesia. This research also contributes to updating the literature on the theory of quality management.
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Innocent Otache and Timothy Onechojon Usman
There is a paucity of empirical studies on the impact of entrepreneurial management on small and medium enterprises (SME) performance. Against this backdrop and drawing upon the…
Abstract
Purpose
There is a paucity of empirical studies on the impact of entrepreneurial management on small and medium enterprises (SME) performance. Against this backdrop and drawing upon the resource-based view, this study aims to explore the relationship between entrepreneurial management and SME performance and the mediating role of competitive advantage in an emerging economy.
Design/methodology/approach
This study adopted a survey research design and a quantitative approach. A self-reported questionnaire was used to collect data from a conveniently selected sample of 174 manufacturing SMEs in Nigeria. This study performed mediation analysis to test the proposed hypotheses using Hayes’ PROCESS macro v4.
Findings
The findings indicate that entrepreneurial management positively impacts competitive advantage and SME performance. Furthermore, competitive advantage has a positive impact on SME performance and plays a significant mediating role in the relationship between entrepreneurial management and SME performance.
Research limitations/implications
This study only examines manufacturing SMEs in a single country, Nigeria; thus, the generalisability of its findings is limited.
Practical implications
The findings of this study offer practical implications for SMEs and SME owners or managers. The findings suggest that to gain a sustainable competitive advantage and achieve superior performance, SMEs should pursue opportunities regardless of the available resources, promote flat and flexible organisation structures, adopt fast growth orientation and strategies, reward employees based on the value they add to the organisation and foster an entrepreneurial culture.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to provide empirical evidence of the mediating effect of competitive advantage on the relationship between entrepreneurial management and SME performance in an emerging economy. This study demonstrates that implementing entrepreneurial management practices by SMEs can result in sustainable competitive advantage and superior performance.
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Md. Rafiqul Islam Rana and Song-yi Youn
This study explores the role of knowledge management capabilities (KMCs) in enhancing competitive advantage and organisational performance in fashion retailing. Employing the…
Abstract
Purpose
This study explores the role of knowledge management capabilities (KMCs) in enhancing competitive advantage and organisational performance in fashion retailing. Employing the resource-based view (RBV) and knowledge-based view (KBV) perspectives, it investigates the interplay between managing knowledge effectively and fashion products’ complexity. The goal is to provide new insights into optimising KMC for greater agility and success in the fashion retail industry.
Design/methodology/approach
The study analysed survey data from 322 US fashion retail professionals using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM).
Findings
The results revealed that knowledge infrastructure capability enhanced both competitive advantage and organisational performance significantly. In contrast, knowledge process capability did not significantly affect competitive advantage, it improved organisational performance. Importantly, product complexity moderated the relationship between competitive advantage and organisational performance negatively.
Practical implications
This study underscores the necessity for retailers in the fashion industry to enhance their KMC to bolster competitive advantage and organisational performance, while it also acknowledges product complexity’s effect on these strategies. These insights offer actionable guidance for industry leaders to optimise knowledge management to navigate the rapidly evolving retail landscape.
Originality/value
This research offers novel insights into the interplay of product complexity and KMC in fashion retail and highlights the unique effects on competitive advantage and organisational performance valuable for both academia and industry.
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Heechun Kim and Robert E. Hoskisson
Our study proposes a resource environment view (REV) of competitive advantage by unpacking the environmental origins of a firm’s competitive advantage. The key tenet of the REV is…
Abstract
Our study proposes a resource environment view (REV) of competitive advantage by unpacking the environmental origins of a firm’s competitive advantage. The key tenet of the REV is that the heterogeneity and imperfect mobility of strategic factor markets and institutions across countries explain how firms based in different countries would likely both create and sustain a competitive advantage. In particular, our study introduces the notion of “the paradox of environmental embeddedness.” The paradox lies in the fact that the same environmental conditions – in terms of strategic factor markets and institutions – that enable firms to create a competitive advantage can paradoxically also create a situation in which it is more difficult for these firms to sustain an advantage. Another important aspect of our study is that, to enhance our understanding of how firms manage the paradox of environmental embeddedness, our study specifies the resource environmental conditions under which firms’ internal and external resource-oriented strategies – that is, the development of dynamic capabilities and interventions in the country resource environment – are more beneficial when managing the environmental paradox. Overall, our theorizing has important implications for strategic management theory and practice.
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This paper proposes a holistic, resource-based strategy framework for design-oriented industries consisting mainly of small firms. It consists of three main concepts: (1) sources…
Abstract
This paper proposes a holistic, resource-based strategy framework for design-oriented industries consisting mainly of small firms. It consists of three main concepts: (1) sources of competitive advantage, especially core competencies, (2) competitive advantage, and (3) competitive strategy. The idea behind the framework is that sources of competitive advantage form the competitive advantages of firms, and these together influence the choice of competitive strategies. The proposed framework was developed on the basis of interview results from the jewellery industry in Finland. A total of 44 small firms each employing less than 25 people were interviewed. Respondents felt that the two most important core competencies were in the area of manufacturing. They were the abilities to design and manufacture products of high technical quality and to offer a broad range of products and attractive models. For the jewellery industry, competitive advantage was largely achieved through various aspects of design. The competitive strategy type most employed was the differentiation-based strategy. The proposed framework should be of value in integrating some of the diverse research in this area and suggesting specific relationships that might be the focus of future empirical studies.
Sophia Su, Kevin Baird and Nuraddeen Abubakar Nuhu
This study examines the association between the use of strategic management accounting (SMA) practices and competitive advantage and the moderating role of four aspects of…
Abstract
This study examines the association between the use of strategic management accounting (SMA) practices and competitive advantage and the moderating role of four aspects of organisational culture – teamwork orientation, outcome orientation, innovation orientation and attention to detail orientation – on this association. Online survey data were collected from 408 accountants in Australian business organisations, and structural equation modelling (SEM) was used to analyse the data. The results indicate a positive association between the use of SMA practices and competitive advantage with such an association positively moderated by one cultural dimension, teamwork orientation. Specifically, the findings indicate that the positive effect of SMA practices on competitive advantage is dependent upon the fit between the use of SMA practices and teamwork orientation with more (less) teamwork-oriented organisations exhibiting a stronger (weaker) association between the use of SMA practices and competitive advantage.
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Kamila Borseková, Anna Vaňová and Katarína Petríková
The main aim of the chapter is to propose a conceptual approach for the creation, exploitation and building of a competitive advantage through which it would be possible to create…
Abstract
The main aim of the chapter is to propose a conceptual approach for the creation, exploitation and building of a competitive advantage through which it would be possible to create a unique place from tourism space. In the chapter we present theoretical basement for the issue of competitive advantage at the level of places, its types, factors and approaches for its creating, building and exploiting. In the chapter we specify one main hypothesis and one research question. They are verified through several scientific, statistical and mathematical methods. These methods are used for the evaluation of primary and secondary research results. In the final part of the chapter, a conceptual approach for identification and exploitation of competitive advantage aimed at building unique and competitive places was proposed.
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Ishmael Nanaba Acquah, David Asamoah, Caleb Amankwaa Kumi, Joseph Akyeh and Priscilla Agyemang
The study examines the intricate interplay between supplier relationship management (SRM), procurement performance, supply chain responsiveness (SCR) and competitive advantage…
Abstract
Purpose
The study examines the intricate interplay between supplier relationship management (SRM), procurement performance, supply chain responsiveness (SCR) and competitive advantage. Additionally, the study examines the mediating role of procurement performance and SCR in the link between SRM and competitive advantage.
Design/methodology/approach
A research model grounded in the resource-based view and dynamic capabilities theory (DCT) was developed and tested using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Data were obtained from 122 firms in Ghana.
Findings
The study revealed that SRM has a positive and significant effect on procurement performance, SCR and competitive advantage. Additionally, SCR has a positive and significant effect on competitive advantage; however, procurement performance has a negative and insignificant effect on competitive advantage. It was also revealed that SCR partially mediates the relationship between SRM and competitive advantage but fully mediates the relationship between procurement performance and competitive advantage. Also, it was also revealed that procurement performance does not mediate the relationship between SRM and competitive advantage.
Research limitations/implications
The study contributes to literature by highlighting the mediating role of SCR in influencing the effect of SRM and procurement performance on competitive advantage.
Practical implications
Practically, the study findings highlight the need for firms to seek, build and manage meaningful relationships with their suppliers in order to enhance their competency and capability to influence their competitive position in the marketplace.
Originality/value
To the best of the researchers' knowledge, no prior study has examined the effect of SRM on procurement performance and SCR. Additionally, no previous study has examined the mediating role of procurement performance and SCR on the link between SRM and competitive advantage.
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