Showing papers on "Value chain published in 1998"

Competitive advantage: creating and sustaining superior performance

Abstract: COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE introduces a whole new way of understanding what a firm does. Porter's groundbreaking concept of the value chain disaggregates a company into 'activities', or the discrete functions or processes that represent the elemental building blocks of competitive advantage. Now an essential part of international business thinking, COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE takes strategy from broad vision to an internally consistent configuration of activities. Its powerful framework provides the tools to understand the drivers of cost and a company's relative cost position. Porter's value chain enables managers to isolate the underlying sources of buyer value that will command a premium price, and the reasons why one product or service substitutes for another. He shows how competitive advantage lies not only in activities themselves but in the way activities relate to each other, to supplier activities, and to customer activities. That the phrases 'competitive advantage' and 'sustainable competitive advantage' have become commonplace is testimony to the power of Porter's ideas. COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE has guided countless companies, business school students, and scholars in understanding the roots of competition. Porter's work captures the extraordinary complexity of competition in a way that makes strategy both concrete and actionable.

Contemporary Strategy Analysis

Abstract: Preface. PART I INTRODUCTION. 1 The Concept of Strategy. Introduction and Objectives. The Role of Strategy in Success. The Basic Framework for Strategy Analysis. A Brief History of Business Strategy. Strategic Management Today. The Role of Analysis in Strategy Formulation. Summary. Self-Study Questions. Notes. PART II THE TOOLS OF STRATEGY ANALYSIS. 2 Goals, Values and Performance. Introduction and Objectives. Strategy as a Quest for Value. Strategy and Real Options. Putting Performance Analysis into Practice. Beyond Profit: Values and Social Responsibility. Summary. Self-Study Questions. Notes. 3 Industry Analysis: The Fundamentals. Introduction and Objectives. From Environmental Analysis to Industry Analysis. The Determinants of Industry Profit: Demand and Competition. Analyzing Industry Attractiveness. Applying Industry Analysis. Defining Industries: Where to Draw the Boundaries. From Industry Attractiveness to Competitive Advantage: Identifying Key Success Factors. Summary. Self-Study Questions. Notes. 4 Further Topics in Industry and Competitive Analysis. Introduction and Objectives. Extending the Five Forces Framework. The Contribution of Game Theory. Competitor Analysis. Segmentation Analysis. Strategic Groups. Summary. Self-Study Questions. Notes. 5 Analyzing Resources and Capabilities. Introduction and Objectives. The Role of Resources and Capabilities in Strategy Formulation. The Resources of the Firm. Organizational Capabilities. Appraising Resources and Capabilities. Putting Resource and Capability Analysis to Work: A Practical Guide. Summary. Self-Study Questions. Notes. 6 Developing Resources and Capabilities. Introduction and Objectives. Developing Resources. The Challenge of Capability Development. Approaches to Capability Development. Knowledge Management and the Knowledge-based View. Designing Knowledge Management Systems. Summary. Self-Study Questions. Notes. 7 Organization Structure and Management Systems: The Fundamentals of Strategy Implementation. Introduction and Objectives. The Evolution of the Corporation. The Organizational Problem: Reconciling Specialization with Coordination and Cooperation. Hierarchy in Organizational Design. Applying the Principles of Organizational Design. Organizing on the Basis of Coordination Intensity. Alternative Structural Forms. Management Systems for Coordination and Control. Summary. Self-Study Questions. Notes. PART III THE ANALYSIS OF COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE. 8 The Nature and Sources of Competitive Advantage. Introduction and Objectives. The Emergence of Competitive Advantage. Sustaining Competitive Advantage. Competitive Advantage in Different Market Settings. Types of Competitive Advantage: Cost and Differentiation. Summary. Self-Study Questions. Notes. 9 Cost Advantage. Introduction and Objectives. Strategy and Cost Advantage. The Sources of Cost Advantage. Using the Value Chain to Analyze Costs. Summary. Self-Study Questions. Notes. 10 Differentiation Advantage. Introduction and Objectives. The Nature of Differentiation and Differentiation Advantage. Analyzing Differentiation: The Demand Side. Analyzing Differentiation: The Supply Side. Bringing It All Together: The Value Chain in Differentiation Analysis. Summary. Self-Study Questions. Notes. PART IV BUSINESS STRATEGIES IN DIFFERENT INDUSTRY CONTEXTS. 11 Industry Evolution and Strategic Change. Introduction and Objectives. The Industry Life Cycle. Structure, Competition and Success Factors over the Life Cycle. Organizational Adaptation and Change. Summary. Self-Study Questions. Notes. 12 Technology-based Industries and the Management of Innovation. Introduction and Objectives. Competitive Advantage in Technology-intensive Industries. Strategies to Exploit Innovation: How and When to Enter. Competing for Standards. Implementing Technology Strategies: Creating the Conditions for Innovation. Summary. Self-Study Questions. Notes. 13 Competitive Advantage in Mature Industries. Introduction and Objectives. Competitive Advantage in Mature Industries. Strategy Implementation in Mature Industries: Structure, Systems and Style. Strategies for Declining Industries. Summary. Self-Study Questions. Notes. PART V CORPORATE STRATEGY. 14 Vertical Integration and the Scope of the Firm. Introduction and Objectives. Transaction Costs and the Scope of the Firm. The Costs and Benefits of Vertical Integration. Designing Vertical Relationships. Summary. Self-Study Questions. Notes. 15 Global Strategies and the Multinational Corporation. Introduction and Objectives. Implications of International Competition for Industry Analysis. Analyzing Competitive Advantage in an International Context. Applying the Framework: International Location of Production. Applying the Framework: Foreign Entry Strategies. Multinational Strategies: Global Integration versus National Differentiation. Strategy and Organization within the Multinational Corporation. Summary. Self-Study Questions. Notes. 16 Diversification Strategy. Introduction and Objectives. Trends in Diversification over Time. Motives for Diversification. Competitive Advantage from Diversification. Diversification and Performance. Summary. Self-Study Questions. Appendix: Does Diversification Confer Market Power? Notes. 17 Implementing Corporate Strategy: Management of the Multibusiness Firm. Introduction and Objectives. Governance and the Structure of the Multibusiness Corporation. The Role of Corporate Management. Managing the Corporate Portfolio. Managing Individual Businesses. Managing Linkages between Businesses. Managing Change in the Multibusiness Corporation. External Strategy: Mergers and Acquisitions. Summary. Self-Study Questions. Notes. 18 Current Trends in Strategic Management. Introduction. The New External Environment of Business. Managing in an Economic Crisis. New Directions in Strategic Thinking. Redesigning the Organization. New Modes of Leadership. Summary. Notes. Index.

Supply Chain Management: Implementation Issues and Research Opportunities

Abstract: In 1998, the Council of Logistics Management modified its definition of logistics to indicate that logistics is a subset of supply chain management and that the two terms are not synonymous Now that this difference has been recognized by the premier logistics professional organization, the challenge is to determine how to successfully implement supply chain management This paper concentrates on operationalizing the supply chain management framework suggested in a 1997 article Case studies conducted at several companies and involving multiple members of supply chains are used to illustrate the concepts described

Configuring value for competitive advantage: on chains, shops, and networks

Abstract: Building on Thompson’s (1967) typology of long-linked, intensive, and mediating technologies, this paper explores the idea that the value chain, the value shop, and the value network are three distinct generic value configuration models required to understand and analyze firm-level value creation logic across a broad range of industries and firms. While the long-linked technology delivers value by transforming inputs into products, the intensive technology delivers value by resolving unique customer problems, and the mediating technology delivers value by enabling direct and indirect exchanges between customers. With the identification of alternative value creation technologies, value chain analysis is both sharpened and generalized into what we propose as a value configuration analysis approach to the diagnosis of competitive advantage. With the long-linked technology and the corresponding value chain configuration model as benchmark, the paper reviews the distinctive logic and develops models of the value shop and the value network in terms of primary activity categories, drivers of cost and value, and strategic positioning options. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Introduction to Supply Chain Management

Abstract: 1 Introduction to Supply Chain Management Information Systems and Supply Chain Management Inventory Management across the Supply Chain Supply Chain Relationships Challenges Facing Supply Chain Managers Purpose of the Book 2 The Role of Information Systems and Technology in Supply Chain Management Introduction The Importance of Information in an Integrated Supply Chain Management Environment Interorganizational Information Systems Information Requirements Determination for a Supply Chain IOIS Information and Technology Applications for Supply Chain Management Summary 3 Managing the Flow of Materials across the Supply Chain Introduction Understanding Supply Chains Reengineering Supply Chain Logistics The Importance of Time Performance Measurement Summary 4 Developing and Maintaining Supply Chain Relationships A Conceptual Model of Alliance Development Developing a Trusting Relationship With Partners in the Supply Chain Resolving Conflicts in a Supply Chain Relationship Summary 5 Cases in Supply Chain Management Case One Consumable Computer Supplies Case Two Computer Hardware and Software Case Three Upscale Men's Shoes Case Four Biochemicals Case Five Solectron 6 Future Challenges in Supply Chain Management Sharing Risks in Interorganizational Relationships Managing the Global Supply Chain The "Greening" of the Supply Chain Design for Supply Chain Management Intelligent Information Systems When Things Go Wrong Index

An empirical investigation into supply chain management: a perspective on partnerships

Abstract: States that we have witnessed, over the last several years, a profound change in understanding the dynamics of competitive advantage. Managers now acknowledge that a firm’s success is tied, in part, to the strength of its weakest supply chain partner. This paper develops the concept of supply chain management and argues that only through close collaborative linkages through the entire supply chain, can one fully achieve the benefits of cost reduction and revenue enhancing behaviors. Data are presented that look at a range of supply chain management practices and processes. By examining differences in practices and processes between buyers and sellers, along with the supply chain, attempts to understand better the challenges facing managers who espouse supply chain management. Also proposes a change in mind set for the traditional procurement manager and present insights for him/her to adapt to the requirements of the new competition.

Business Market Management: Understanding, Creating and Delivering Value

Abstract: I. INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW. 1. Business Market Management: Guiding Principles. II. UNDERSTANDING VALUE. 2. Market Sensing: Generating and Using Knowledge about the Marketplace. 3. Understanding Firms as Customers. 4. Crafting Market Strategy. III. CREATING VALUE. 5. Managing Market Offerings. 6. New Offering Realization. 7. Business Channel Management. IV. DELIVERING VALUE. 8. Gaining Customers. 9. Sustaining Reseller Partnerships. 10. Sustaining Customer Relationships. Index.

Competitive advantage : creating and sustaining superior performance : with a new introduction

Abstract: Contents Introduction Preface Chapter 1 Competitive Strategy: The Core Concepts THE STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS OF INDUSTRIES Industry Structure and Buyer Needs Industry Structure and the Supply/Demand Balance GENERIC COMPETITIVE STRATEGIES Cost Leadership Differentiation Focus Stuck in the Middle Pursuit of More Than One Generic Strategy Sustainability Generic Strategies and Industry Evolution Generic Strategies and Organizational Structure Generic Strategies and the Strategic Planning Process OVERVIEW OF THIS BOOK PART I PRINCIPLES OF COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE Chapter 2 The Value Chain and Competitive Advantage THE VALUE CHAIN Identifying Value Activities Defining the Value Chain Linkages within The Value Chain Vertical Linkages The Buyer's Value Chain COMPETITIVE SCOPE AND THE VALUE CHAIN Segment Scope Vertical Scope Geographic Scope Industry Scope Coalitions and Scope Competitive Scope and Business Definition The Value Chain and Industry Structure THE VALUE CHAIN AND ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE Chapter 3 Cost Advantage THE VALUE CHAIN AND COST ANALYSIS Defining the Value Chain for Cost Analysis Assigning Costs and Assets First Cut Analysis of Costs COST BEHAVIOR Cost Drivers The Cost of Purchased Inputs Segment Cost Behavior Cost Dynamics COST ADVANTAGE Determining the Relative Cost of Competitors Gaining Cost Advantage Sustainability of Cost Advantage Implementation and Cost Advantage Pitfalls in Cost Leadership Strategies STEPS IN STRATEGIC COST ANALYSIS Chapter 4 Differentiation SOURCES OF DIFFERENTIATION Differentiation and The Value Chain Drivers of Uniqueness THE COST OF DIFFERENTIATION BUYER VALUE AND DIFFERENTIATION Buyer Value The Value Chain and Buyer Value Lowering Buyer Cost Raising Buyer Performance Buyer Perception of Value Buyer Value and the Real Buyer Buyer Purchase Criteria Identifying Purchase Criteria DIFFERENTIATION STRATEGY Routes to Differentiation The Sustainability of Differentiation Pitfalls in Differentiation STEPS IN DIFFERENTIATION Chapter 5 Technology and Competitive Advantage TECHNOLOGY AND COMPETITION Technology and The Value Chain Technology and Competitive Advantage Technology and Industry Structure TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY The Choice of Technologies to Develop Technological Leadership or Followership Licensing of Technology TECHNOLOGICAL EVOLUTION Continuous Versus Discontinuous Technological Evolution Forecasting Technological Evolution FORMULATING TECHNOLOGICAL STRATEGY Chapter 6 Competitor Selection THE STRATEGIC BENEFITS OF COMPETITORS Increasing Competitive Advantage Improving Current Industry Structure Aiding Market Development Deterring Entry WHAT MAKES A "GOOD" COMPETITOR? Tests of a Good Competitor "Good" Market Leaders Diagnosing Good Competitors INFLUENCING THE PATTERN OF COMPETITORS Damaging Good Competitors in Battling Bad Ones Changing Bad Competitors into Good Ones THE OPTIMAL MARKET CONFIGURATION The Optimal Competitor Configuration Maintaining Competitor Viability Moving toward the Ideal Competitor Configuration Maintaining Industry Stability PITFALLS IN COMPETITOR SELECTION PART II COMPETITIVE SCOPE WITHIN AN INDUSTRY Chapter 7 Industry Segmentation and Competitive Advantage BASES FOR INDUSTRY SEGMENTATION Structural Bases For Segmentation Segmentation Variables Finding New Segments THE INDUSTRY SEGMENTATION MATRIX Relationships Among Segmentation Variables Combining Segmentation Matrices INDUSTRY SEGMENTATION AND COMPETITIVE STRATEGY The Attractiveness of a Segment Segment Interrelationships Segment Interrelationships and Broadly-Targeted Strategies The Choice of Focus The Feasibility of New Segments to Focus On The Sustainability of a Focus Strategy Pitfalls and Opportunities for Focusers and Broadly-Targeted Competitors INDUSTRY SEGMENTATION AND INDUSTRY DEFINITION Chapter 8 Substitution IDENTIFYING SUBSTITUTES THE ECONOMICS OF SUBSTITUTION Relative Value/Price Switching Costs Buyer Propensity to Substitute Segmentation and Substitution CHANGES IN THE SUBSTITUTION THREAT Substitution and Overall Industry Demand Substitution and Industry Structure THE PATH OF SUBSTITUTION Segmentation and the Substitution Path Substitution Forecasting Models SUBSTITUTION AND COMPETITIVE STRATEGY Promoting Substitution Defense Against Substitutes Industry Versus Firm Substitution Strategy Pitfalls in Strategy Against Substitutes PART III CORPORATE STRATEGY AND COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE Chapter 9 Interrelationships among Business Units THE GROWING IMPORTANCE OF HORIZONTAL STRATEGY INTERRELATIONSHIPS AMONG BUSINESS UNITS TANGIBLE INTERRELATIONSHIPS Sharing and Competitive Advantage The Costs of Sharing Difficulty of Matching Identifying Tangible Interrelationships INTANGIBLE INTERRELATIONSHIPS COMPETITOR INTERRELATIONSHIPS Multipoint Competitors in Unrelated Industries Multipoint Competition in Related Industries Competitors with Different Patterns of Interrelationships Forecasting Potential Competitors Chapter 10 Horizontal Strategy THE NEED FOR EXPLICIT HORIZONTAL STRATEGY Formulating Horizontal Strategy INTERRELATIONSHIPS AND DIVERSIFICATION STRATEGY Diversification Based on Tangible Interrelationships Diversification Through Beachheads Diversification and Corporate Resources PITFALLS IN HORIZONTAL STRATEGY Pitfalls in Ignoring Interrelationships Pitfalls in Pursuing Interrelationships Chapter 11 Achieving Interrelationships IMPEDIMENTS TO ACHIEVING INTERRELATIONSHIPS Sources of Impediments Interrelationships and Equity Differences in Impediments among Firms ORGANIZATIONAL MECHANISMS FOR ACHIEVING INTERRELATIONSHIPS Horizontal Structure Horizontal Systems Horizontal Human Resource Practices Horizontal Conflict Resolution Processes The Corporate Role in Facilitating Interrelationships Interrelationships and the Mode of Diversification MANAGING HORIZONTAL ORGANIZATION Promising Examples Japanese Firms and Interrelationships A New Organizational Form Chapter 12 Complementary Products and Competitive Advantage CONTROL OVER COMPLEMENTARY PRODUCTS Competitive Advantages From Controlling Complements Problems of Controlling Complements Control Over Complements and Industry Evolution Identifying Strategically Important Complements BUNDLING Competitive Advantages of Bundling Risks of Bundling Bundled Versus Unbundled Strategies Bundling and Industry Evolution Strategic Implications of Bundling CROSS SUBSIDIZATION Conditions Favoring Cross Subsidization Risks of Cross Subsidization Cross Subsidization and Industry Evolution Strategic Implications of Cross Subsidization COMPLEMENTS AND COMPETITIVE STRATEGY PART IV IMPLICATIONS FOR OFFENSIVE AND DEFENSIVE COMPETITIVE STRATEGY Chapter 13 Industry Scenarios and Competitive Strategy under Uncertainty Scenarios as a Planning Tool Industry Scenarios CONSTRUCTING INDUSTRY SCENARIOS Identifying Industry Uncertainties Independent Versus Dependent Uncertainties Identifying a Set of Scenarios Consistency of Assumptions Analyzing Scenarios Introducing Competitor Behavior into Scenarios The Number of Scenarios To Analyze Attaching Probabilities to Scenarios Summary Characteristics of Industry Scenarios INDUSTRY SCENARIOS AND COMPETITIVE STRATEGY Strategic Approaches Under Scenarios Combined and Sequenced Strategies The Choice of Strategy Under Industry Scenarios Scenario Variables and Market Intelligence SCENARIOS AND THE PLANNING PROCESS Corporate Role in Constructing Industry Scenarios Industry Scenarios and Creativity Chapter 14 Defensive Strategy THE PROCESS OF ENTRY OR REPOSITIONING DEFENSIVE TACTICS Raising Structural Barriers Increasing Expected Retaliation Lowering the Inducement for Attack EVALUATING DEFENSIVE TACTICS DEFENSIVE STRATEGY Deterrence Response Response to Price Cutting Defense or Disinvest Pitfalls in Defense Chapter 15 Attacking an Industry Leader CONDITIONS FOR ATTACKING A LEADER AVENUES FOR ATTACKING LEADERS Reconfiguration Redefinition Pure Spending Alliances To Attack Leaders IMPEDIMENTS To LEADER RETALIATION SIGNALS OF LEADER VULNERABILITY Industry Signals Leader Signals ATTACKING LEADERS AND INDUSTRY STRUCTURE Bibliography Index About the Author

The power of virtual integration: an interview with Dell Computer's Michael Dell. Interview by Joan Magretta.

Abstract: Michael Dell started his computer company in 1984 with a simple business insight. He could bypass the dealer channel through which personal computers were then being sold and sell directly to customers, building products to order. Dell's direct model eliminated the dealer's markup and the risks associated with carrying large inventories of finished goods. In this interview, Michael Dell provides a detailed description of how his company is pushing that business model one step further, toward what he calls virtual integration. Dell is using technology and information to blur the traditional boundaries in the value chain between suppliers, manufacturers, and customers. The individual pieces of Dell's strategy--customer focus, supplier partnerships, mass customization, just-in-time manufacturing--may be all be familiar. But Michael Dell's business insight into how to combine them is highly innovative. Direct relationships with customers create valuable information, which in turn allows the company to coordinate its entire value chain back through manufacturing to product design. Dell describes how his company has come to achieve this tight coordination without the "drag effect" of ownership. Dell reaps the advantages of being vertically integrated without incurring the costs, all the while achieving the focus, agility, and speed of a virtual organization. As envisioned by Michael Dell, virtual integration may well become a new organizational model for the information age.

Special Research Focus on Supply Chain Linkages: Challenges for Design and Management in the 21st Century*

Abstract: Supply chain management is a central and important area for academic research due to its impact on firms competing in today's global economy. Managing the flow of materials from supply sources to the ultimate customer represents a major challenge for today's managers. To assist managers, the concept of supply chain management has been adopted by many business leaders as an important way to assist in designing, planning, and controlling the network of facilities and tasks that comprise the many stages of the supply chain. In turn, the flow of academic research in the area has increased to provide a better set of guidelines for effective implementation and execution. This article sets the stage for recently completed research concentrating on supply chain management issues. First, a definition of supply chain management is provided and compared to recent usage in this area and logistics management. Also, a framework is provided that structures this dynamic and complex management task. Second, a review of past research is presented to illustrate the many paths supply chain management has traveled, and important contributions to supply management understanding and decision making. Third, recently completed research articles are introduced that have been selected to be part of this special issue of Decision Sciences. And fourth, future research directions for supply chain management that need to be pursued by interested investigators are discussed.

Supercharging Supply Chains: New Ways to Increase Value Through Global Operational Excellence

Abstract: Shareholder Value: Is It the Business of Operations? The Business of Operations: Confronting the Issues. Planning for Value: Synchronizing Demand and Supply. Selling More: Winning the Customer with Operational Excellence. Buying Smarter: Strategic Sourcing and Supplier Management. The New Logistics: Moving Less...Faster! Improving the Odds: New Product Introductions and the Supply Chain. Making It Happen: The Value-Producing Supply Chain. Appendix. Index. About the Authors.

Supply Chain Integration: Customer Value through Collaborative Closeness versus Operational Excellence

Abstract: In a global and competitive environment, supply chain relationships and processes must be continuously integrated and aligned with strategy. The objective should be to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of supply supply chains to create value for final consumers. The present reseach investigates and compares three major forms of supply chain integration of approximately two thousand global firms. The three forms of supply chain integration include intra-organizational process integration, inter-organizational collaborative integration including strategic alliances, and operational excellence. Significant firm and country differences as to value chain integration are identified which appear to relate to cost reduction versus differentiation strategies.

Innovation Management: Strategies, Implementation and Profits

Abstract: Innovation Management: Strategies, Implementation and Profits Afuah, Allan, 403 pp., New York, Oxford University Press, 1998. Reviewed by Subodh P. Kulkarni, Assistant Professor in School of Business at Howard University, Washington, D.C. In this book, Allan Afuah addresses a topic of fundamental interest to practicing managers and researchers -- "innovation management." Although the significance of innovation is widely acknowledged, the different streams of literature that currently exist seem to be oblivious to one another. Many times, these ideas seem inconsistent. This includes the definition of the term "innovation" itself. Therefore, a work that truly integrates the different views on innovation is much needed. This book fills that void by synthesizing the economics and management literature on innovation. This book is broadly divided into four parts. Part I consists of Chapters 2, 3, and 4. It explores some of the static and dynamic models that have been developed in the past to explain why some firms are more successful at innovation than others. Understanding what it takes to profit from an innovation requires exploring four questions: (1) How different is the firm's stock of knowledge from the existing firms'? (2) To whom is innovation radical? (3) What allows some firms to use this knowledge to offer low cost or differentiated products or services better than others? (4) When in the innovation life cycle does a firm want to exploit it? The author further argues that the ability of a firm to offer low cost or differentiated products or services is a function of its ability to perform value chain activities. Here the author draws on the "resource-based view of the firm'.`, that is well known in strategic management. Finally, the author explores the sources of innovation and what it takes to transfer innovations effectively from their sources to exploitation sites. Part II builds on the foundations laid earlier in the book. It first addresses the question of why some firms have difficulties in recognizing the potential of an innovation. According to the author, this is partly because of the way firms collect and process information. Next, the book addresses the uncertainty associated with innovation. This uncertainty can be largely resolved through a careful analysis of innovation trends on a firm's part. Even after dealing with technological uncertainty, a firm is often left wondering where it should position itself along the value chain (e.g., upstream or downstream). Chapter 7 suggests a three-step process to determine a profit site. In Chapters 8 and 9, the author explores the role of a firm's local environment in its innovation effectiveness. …

Seeing ecology and “green” innovations as a source of change

Abstract: States that over the last few years, the growing importance of the ecological question has led many executives to modify their business policies. The integration of “green” issues in the process of strategy formation has significant financial, managerial and organizational implications for the corporate system, thus requiring firms to re‐design their value chain activities and processes. This paper aims at: analysing current patterns of environmental behaviour adopted by firms; discussing whether and how the ecological challenge must be seen as a major source of change, thus identifying specific implications on the corporate system of environmental entrepreneurship; presenting the basic triggers which may foster the introduction of innovative environmental programmes.

International production networks and changing trade patterns in East Asia: The case of the electronics industry

Abstract: The concept of an “international production network “ captures the spread of broader systems of international production which cut across different stages of the value chain but which may, or may not, involve ownership of equity stakes. The concept allows us to analyse the globalization strategies of any particular firm with regard to the following four questions: Where does the firm locate the various stages of the value chain? To what degree does a firm rely on “outsourcing”, and hence what is the relationship between that and the firm's internal production activities? To what degree is control over transactions exercised in a centralized or in a decentralized manner? How do the different elements of these networks hang together? The ideas are applied to the trade links in electronics between firms located in the USA or Japan and countries of East Asia.

Profit pools: a fresh look at strategy.

Abstract: In charting strategy, many managers focus on revenue growth, assuming that profits will follow. But that approach is dangerous: today's deep revenue pool may become tomorrow's dry hole. To create strategies that result in profitable growth, managers need to look beyond revenues to see the shape of their industry's profit pool. The authors define an industry's profit pool as the total profits earned at all points along the industry's value chain. Although the concept is simple, the structure of a profit pool is usually quite complex. The pool will be deeper in some segments of the value chain than in others, and depths will vary within an individual segment as well. Segment profitability may, for example, vary widely by customer group, product category, geographic market, and distribution channel. Moreover, the pattern of profit concentration in an industry will often be very different from the pattern of revenue concentration. The authors describe how successful companies have gained competitive advantage by developing sophisticated profit-pool strategies. They explain how U-Haul identified new sources of profit in the consumer-truck-rental industry; how Merck reached beyond its traditional value-chain role to protect its profits in the pharmaceuticals industry; how Dell rebounded from a misguided channel decision by refocusing on its traditional source of profit; and how Anheuser-Busch made a series of astute product, pricing, and operating decisions to dominate the beer industry's profit pool. The companies with the best understanding of their industry's profit pool, the authors argue, will be in the best position to thrive over the long term.

Exploring Techniques of Analysis and Evaluation in Strategic Management

Abstract: 1. The Business Environment. 2. Acquiring Strategic Data. 3. Understanding and Producing Scenario Planning. 4. Analysing Competitors. 5. Strengths, Weaknesses and Opportunities and Threats Analysis. 6. Organisational Resources and Capabilities. 7. Getting to Know Your Organisation's Core Competences. 8. Understanding and Using Value Chain Analysis. 9. Strategic Financial Accounting for Analysing Performance and Resources. 10. Comparative Analysis: Benchmarking. 11. Organisational Culture and Stakeholders, Culture Web. 12. Stakeholders Analysis. 13. Corporate Responsibility Audit. 14. Evaluation and Choosing Strategic Options. 15. Portfolio Analysis. 16. Gap Analysis. 17. Assessing Risk and Using Sensitivity and Risk Analysis. 18. Cost/Benefit Analysis. 19. Understanding and Using Shareholder Value Analysis. 20. Implemention Methods. 21. Business Process Re-Engineering. 22. Performance Measurement. 23. Techniques for Internal Markets.

The value of simulation in modeling supply chains

Abstract: In business today, re-engineering has taken a great deal of the cost out of internal corporate processes. Our factories and internal support organizations have become much more efficient, but there is still a great deal of unnecessary cost in the overall delivery system, or the supply chain. Although your corporation does not own all of the supply chain, the entire chain is responsible for product delivery and customer satisfaction. As one of several methodologies available for supply chain analysis, simulation has distinct advantages and disadvantages when compared to other analysis methodologies. This paper discusses the reasons why one would want to use simulation as the analysis methodology to evaluate supply chains, its advantages and disadvantages against other analysis methodologies such as optimization, and business scenarios where simulation can find cost reductions that other methodologies would miss.

Managing a global supply chain partnership

Abstract: Presents a survey of the global supply chain management (GSCM) literature with specific emphasis on the application of the process, services and products used by organizations to achieve competitive advantage and market position. Through case studies, we look at the current management practice used by multinational corporations such as Campbell Soup, Kmart, Dell Computer, Hewlett‐Packard, Digital Equipment Corporation, and Volvo for the development of a global supply chain partnership strategy. Next, based on the literature review and current management practices, we propose a practical model for implementing global supply chain principles within an organization. We conclude with a discussion of the implications for managers and academicians.

Competing against ignorance: advantage through knowledge

Abstract: This paper describes the Value Stream Analysis Tool (VALSAT) as a rigorous analysis and decision‐making tool in the supply chain or value stream context. The tool can employ both tacit and explicit knowledge for the advantage of the supply chain in which it is used. Although the approach owes its origins to new product development in the Japanese shipbuilding industry, it can provide many advantages over traditional analysis approaches in a value stream setting. VALSAT is demonstrated from both a theoretical and practical viewpoint, the latter involving an analysis of potential improvement in the Kenyan textile industry. The tool appears to be particularly useful in focusing knowledge and so in aiding decision making where there is a complex web of supply chain inter‐relationships and especially where data are a mix of subjective and objective assessments. Additionally it creates the right environment for increased intra‐ and inter‐company co‐ordination, allowing for improvement implementation programmes.

The Cost‐to‐Serve Method

Abstract: Integrating business processes across functions is at the heart of logistics and supply chain management. The fundamentals of compressing time across the chain are well understood. There is a common expectation among logistics professionals that cost will fall out of the supply chain from such programs. The theme of supply chain management is that many businesses are not in the trade‐off zone where cost must be balanced against service, but are in the area where good supply chain practice can drive service up and cost down simultaneously.

Customer-Centered Supply Chain Management: A Link-by-Link Guide

Abstract: Customer value chain management - leading transformation within the global business of manufacturing business strategy -raiders of the lost art the quality commitment the transformation journey begins - supply chain management design inter-enterprise innovation - donde esta su compania? car 54 where are you? understanding the "as-is" of the supply chain converting theory into reality - building the bridge to transform the supply chain results matter - measuring performance after implementation supply chain alternatives the executive perspective - pulling it all together.

Extranets: A tool for cost control in a value chain framework

Abstract: The purpose of this research is to show through a case study how the extranet has been used by one specific company to significantly reduce operating costs. The activities of the company are analyzed within the framework of the value chain concept developed by Porter. This, it is felt, will provide a greater insight into how the extranet can be used to improve profit margins. Prior research in this area has either been of a conceptual nature (explaining theoretically how the extranet should be employed) or of a survey nature (examining, by means of a survey instrument, the benefits accruing to companies that have adopted the extranet). This study is different in that it examines in detail, by means of a case study, how the extranet influences a retail company’s chain of activities and reduces the attendant costs thereon.

Trasform your supply chain : releasing value in business

Abstract: 1. Reversing Neglect: Releasing the Value. 2. Leveraging Value Across the Supply Chain. 3. Redefining the Boundaries of Business. 4. Developing Relational Competence. 5. Managing at the Right Level. 6. The Responsive Supply Chain. 7. Driving Down Purchase Costs. 8. Bringing About Change. 9. The Electronic Supply Chain. 10. Governance, Ethics and Supply Sustainability. 11. Measurement and Baselining. 12. Framing the Agenda for Action. Appendix Auditing the Supply Chain. Further Reading. Index.

Strategic Management of the Manufacturing Value Chain

Abstract: This paper presents the underlying concepts and the aims of economic development utilising a cluster based approach with particular reference to the impact and role of high technology in a regional economy.

Lean Information and Supply Chain Effectiveness

Abstract: This paper summarises the findings of the author's research into the role of information as a determinant of supply chain effectiveness. This research was conducted as a part of the Supply Chain Development Programme (SCDP)—Lean Information Project. The applied methodology was a derivative of the Value Stream Mapping framework, modified by the author for the information domain. Significant levels of waste were found. A value-added contribution of up to 1% was suggested as the norm in the information domain. The major causes were attributed to dependent decision cycles, unsynchronised push-pull triggers and complex external supplier relationships. The “Five Lean Principles” were confirmed to be equally applicable in the information domain. A new model of generic value streams was proposed and information was concluded to be the key determinant of supply chain effectiveness in the majority of these generic value streams. It was also concluded that a supply chain's physical and information managemen...