Porter's Competitive Strategy Research Articles

Business Plan

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to present a complete business plan for the launch of" Saman Al Dar," a special product leveled at offering customers an authentic taste of Emirati cuisine. The plan encompasses numerous aspects, involving team structure, legit compliance, marketing strategies, fiscal protrusions, and ethical considerations.
 Methodology: The methodology involved in casting this business plan comprehended thorough request exploration to understand consumer preferences and request trends in the UAE food assiduity. The plan also incorporates rudiments of request blend proposition, Porter's competitive strategies, and SWOT analysis to develop a robust program for success. Also, a detailed analysis of cost, profit aqueducts, and return generation was conducted to insure fiscal viability.
 Findings: The finding of this study disclose a clear roadmap for founding Saman Al Dar successfully. Fiscal protrusions indicate encouraging profit generation implicit, especially with operative marketing and division strategies in position. Key findings carry the identification of target customer seeking authentic Emirati flavors, the significance of strategic marketing across different channels involving social media, and the significance of legit compliance and ethical practices in the food assiduity.
 Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: This business plan contributes to proposition, practice, and procedure in several ways. The operation of request blend proposition, Porter's competitive strategies, and SWOT Analysis demonstrates their applicability and connection in the environment of entrepreneurial gambles in the food assiduity. Scholars of entrepreneurship can work these rulings to enrich their understanding of business planning and program perpetration. Likewise, policymakers can exercise the rulings to inform the evolution of a legit environment that fosters entrepreneurship, especially in the hospitality region, by ensuring regulatory frameworks that support invention and compliance while securing consumer interests. Also, entrepreneurs can profit from the perceptivity provided in this study, as the ideas and strategies offered are directly workable to their own business trials. In conclusion, this business plan for Saman Al Dar represents a holistic path to founding a special product in the UAE food request. By incorporating rigid exploration, strategic planning, and ethical considerations, it lays the foundation for a prosperous entrepreneurial adventure that not only delivers value to customers but also contributes to the wider academic and policy discourse surrounding entrepreneurship in the hospitality region.

Generic Strategies and Operational Performance of Manufacturing Cement Companies in Kenya.

In an organization, performance is affected by various factors. The performance of the cement industry in Kenya has been adversely affected by the challenge of inadequate employee training, inefficiency, not meeting the targets, inadequate employee development and reduced sales volume. Cost leadership, differentiation and focus strategies are used in enhancing the organizational performance. This current study was to determine the influence of generic strategies on performance of manufacturing cement companies in Kenya. The specific objectives were to examine the influence of cost leadership strategy, differentiation strategy and focus strategy on performance of manufacturing cement Companies in Kenya. Theories guiding the study included; Porter's Competitive Business Strategy Typology, Configuration theory, Result-based View Theory, and Miles and Snow typology. The current study used descriptive research design. The unit of analysis was Cement Companies in Kenya. The unit of analysis was 7 manufacturing Cement Companies in Kenya that include; Bamburi Cement Limited, Mombasa Cement Ltd (MCL), East Africa Portland Cement Company, Savannah Cement Limited ,ARM Cement Limited and National Cement Company . The observation unit was the employees working with these companies. Therefore, the target population was 454 managers of the targeted manufacturing firms. Stratified sampling method was used to group respondents into departments in order to ensure representativeness of all the cases. Simple random sampling method was used to select the respondents. Therefore, the sample size was 189 which represented a 41.6% of the total population. Data was collected using self- administered questionnaire which was on the basis of drop and pick later method. Reliability and validity of research instruments was ascertained. Data was analyzed by means of descriptive as well as inferential statistics. The study found that cost leadership strategy, differentiation strategy and focus strategy had a positive significant influence on the performance of cement manufacturing companies. The study concluded that a firm following a cost leadership strategy offers products or services with acceptable quality and features to a broad set of customers at a low price. A differentiation strategy enables firm to create a product/service, which is considered unique in some aspect that the customer values because the customer’s needs are satisfied. Focus strategy allows cement companies to concentrate on promotional resources on the sectors that match their quality advantage. The study recommended that the cement companies should diagnose their changing cost economics all the way from the raw materials stage to the final price paid by the ultimate consumer. Cement companies should exploit different ways in which they can make the products and services unique. The cement companies should get to know as much about their customers as they can so that they can anticipate what their customers want, how they want it, when they want it, and most importantly, how they can solve it for them.

Understanding Porter’s Generic Competitive Strategies and its Effect on Perceived Business Performance: Evidence from a Credit Cooperative

The purpose of this research is to examine how Porter's generic competitive strategies specifically in terms of cost leadership strategy, differentiation strategy, and focus strategy affect the perceived business performance of a Credit Cooperative. To better understand the impact of Porter's generic strategies on Credit Cooperative performance, the research used both quantitative and qualitative research approaches. A random sample of 263 were identified and surveyed using structured questionnaire. The online survey was carried out utilizing Google Forms. The survey resulted to a total of 87 respondents, providing a 33.08% response rate. Additional information derived from three key informants of the organization were utilized for the qualitative analysis using open-ended questions. Correlation and regression analyses were utilized via IBM SPSS Statistics version 26 tool for the treatment of data. The findings show that the Credit Cooperative's perceived overall business performance was influenced by both differentiation and focus strategies, with the differentiation strategy having a positive and direct effect, while focus strategy having an inverse or negative effect on the Credit Cooperative’s overall performance. The study concludes that the Credit Cooperative can achieve higher performance by pursuing relevant competitive practices on Porter’s competitive strategies. The results of the study provides insights to the Cooperative management in choosing the most appropriate competitive strategic practices to implement. This research will add to the body of knowledge on business performance by elucidating the impact of Porter's competitive strategies on the overall performance of a credit cooperative.

Examining Financial Strategy Management: Understanding Financial Performance, Investment Decisions, and Strategic Approaches through Qualitative Description and Literature Review

This research delves into the complexities of financial strategy management through a qualitative examination and literature review, aiming to illuminate key insights into managing financial performance, investment decisions, and strategic approaches within organizations. The primary objective of this study is to provide a comprehensive understanding of financial strategy management by synthesizing existing knowledge and identifying gaps for further exploration. The research methodology involves a qualitative description and literature review, drawing upon seminal works by renowned scholars in finance, economics, psychology, and strategic management. Findings from the literature review underscore the multifaceted nature of financial strategy management, emphasizing the significance of adopting a balanced and comprehensive approach to financial performance evaluation, integrating both quantitative metrics and qualitative insights. Moreover, the research highlights the pivotal role of investment decisions in driving organizational performance outcomes, elucidating insights from modern portfolio theory, behavioral finance, and empirical studies. Additionally, the study identifies diverse strategic approaches in financial management, ranging from Mintzberg's ten schools of strategy formulation to Porter's competitive strategy frameworks, emphasizing adaptability, innovation, and strategic flexibility in navigating dynamic business environments. The research contributes theoretical insights by enriching existing frameworks and offers practical implications for managerial practice, guiding organizations in enhancing financial management practices and achieving sustainable competitive advantage.

Aligning Porter's Competitive Strategies with Organizational Characteristics & HR Practices

Aligning Porter's Competitive Strategies with Organizational Characteristics & HR Practices

Класифікація маркетингових конкурентних стратегій закладів охорони здоров’я.

The subject of the study is a typology of marketing competitive strategies for healthcare organizations operating in the healthcare market. The article describes general approaches to the formation of M. Porter's competitive strategies, on the basis of which groups of healthcare organizations are identified, in which it is possible to use basic competitive strategies – cost leadership, differentiation, focus. The author interpreted M. Porter's generic strategies for health care organizations on the basis of a study of the conceptualstructure of competition in the health care market and identified the main strategies based on three competitive advantages - quality of healthcare services, improvement of the process of creating healthcare services, differentiation of healthcare services. Criteria for organizing and grouping competitive marketing strategies for healthcare organizations are proposed: cost orientation, focus on service quality, consumer oriented. The developed classification is based on the study of different models of competition and considers the peculiarities of the medical field. Separately, the author focuses on comparing «Red ocean» and «Blue ocean» strategies and examines the possibilities of introducing streamlined database technology (blockchain) in developing competitive strategies for health care organizations. The advantages of the combination of Blue ocean strategy and blockchain technology are substantiated in the article.

التسويق الريادي وأثره في استراتيجيات بورتر التنافسية: مدخل في مدى ادراك مديري المشاريع الصغيرة والمتوسطة الحجم لتلك العلاقة (دراسة ميدانية لأراء عينة من مديري عدد من المشاريع الخدمية في محافظة دهوك)

سعت الدراسة الحالية الى التعرف على مدى إدراك مديري المشاريع الصغيرة والمتوسطة الحجم لمفهوم التسويق الريادي واستراتيجيات بورتر التنافسية والعلاقة بينهما، ونظراً لأهمية القطاع الخدمي فقد اجريت الدراسة في عدد من المشاريع الخدمية الصغيرة والمتوسطة الحجم في محافظة دهوك، إذ تم الحصول على االبيانات اللازمة للجانب الميداني من خلال استمارة الاستبيان التي تم توزيعها على عينة من مديري المشاريع الصغيرة والمتوسطة الحجم مؤلفة من (50) مدير مشروع.
 وتوصل البحث الى مجموعة من الاستنتاجات أهمها وجود علاقة ارتباط وأثر معنوية بين التسويق الريادي واستراتيجيات بورتر العامة على المستوى الكلي والجزئي، ثم اختتم البحث بمجموعة من التوصيات اهمها زيادة الاهتمام بمفهوم التسويق الريادي واستراتيجيات بورتر العامة بشكل متكامل من أجل تحقيق أداء متميز على مستوى الأعمال للمشاريع والبحث عن حالة التفرد في قيادة السوق.

Formulation of Bank Melli Iran Marketing Strategy Based on Porter‘S Competitive Strategy

ABSTRACTThe presence of a modern and predefined marketing strategy is essential for every enterprise like banks in order for the bank to be able to benefit from an appropriate and efficient strategy based on the current market conditions, competitors' status and so on. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to develop a marketing strategy based on Porter's competitive strategy at BankMelli. the number of managers working at BankMelli is 2456 and 337 of them were selected as samples to be used in the calculations. the result of this article, which were obtained based on the fuzzy TOPSIS test method, indicates that the differentiation strategy is the first priority and then are the focus and cost leadership strategies. In addition, prioritization of indices indicates that personnel thinking, personnel abilities, market development, service provision and ultimately, product presentation are the first five priorities in determining the strategy of BankMelli.

Matches between network structure and competitive strategies

Drawing on social network theory and Porter's competitive strategy analysis consistent with extant literature, this study investigates characteristics that leverage the matches between network structure and competitive strategies and explores if the combination of effects can also influence firms' performance. Using data from a special unit within Chinese floricultural cluster, we test the interaction effects between network structure (measured by centrality, structural holes and key ties) and competitive strategies (cost leadership strategies and differentiation strategies) Results show that inter-firm networks with a high degree of centrality should be matched with cost leadership strategies. In addition, these findings indicate that key ties, which may affect how firms process non-redundant resources are a great help to execute cost leadership strategies but are detrimental to the effectiveness of differentiation strategies. Managerial implications and directions for future research are discussed.

Matches between network structure and competitive strategies

Drawing on social network theory and Porter's competitive strategy analysis consistent with extant literature, this study investigates characteristics that leverage the matches between network structure and competitive strategies and explores if the combination of effects can also influence firms' performance. Using data from a special unit within Chinese floricultural cluster, we test the interaction effects between network structure (measured by centrality, structural holes and key ties) and competitive strategies (cost leadership strategies and differentiation strategies) Results show that inter-firm networks with a high degree of centrality should be matched with cost leadership strategies. In addition, these findings indicate that key ties, which may affect how firms process non-redundant resources are a great help to execute cost leadership strategies but are detrimental to the effectiveness of differentiation strategies. Managerial implications and directions for future research are discussed.

The Dynamic Impacting Study of Competitive Strategies to Import Retail E-Commerce Sellers

The authors investigated several import retail e-commerce sellers through questionnaires and selected several types of variables based on Porter's competitive strategy theory. Then the authors used the panel data to empirically verify theoretical consumptions based on samples got by Python method from Jingdong Global Purchases and Tmall International, the top two e-commerce platforms in China. Results validated the three major competitive strategies that could enhance the competitive advantages to import retail e-commerce sellers. As it was not applied to all platforms and commodities, sellers should make different strategies through different platforms and commodities. This article has theoretical significance that filled in the gaps on import retail e-commerce sellers' competition. It also has certain practical significance by providing references for sellers on how to improve their competitive advantages, promote healthy competition and development of the import retail e-commerce, even to facilitate the structure adjustment of consumption and foreign trade in China.

Electronic Word of Mouth, Cross-Border Logistics Way and Imports Retail E-commerce

This paper mainly discussed how to improve Chinese import retail e-commerce sellers’ competitive strategy. We took Porter's competitive strategy which includes product optimization strategy, cost leadership and reputation priority to analyze the competition through import retail e-commerce sellers. We have done the survey through questionnaire to several import retail e-commerce enterprises from 7 cross-border e-commerce pilot cities. We have chosen 3 kinds of best-selling goods with 150 sellers on Tmall International, observed 27 weeks and collected 4050 samples of business data. We took panel data regression to validate theoretical assumptions, and results support most of theoretical assumptions. We took another 2 variables to do the robustness test. The conclusions and suggestions would help to improve the competition strategy of imports retail e-commerce sellers. Furthermore, it would be a good proposal to the development of Chinese cross-border e-commerce market.

Investigating Competitive Advantage in Banking Industry Based on Porter's Generic Strategies

Main objective of this article is investigating the role of Porter's competitive strategies (differentiation, cost reduction and focus) to increase the competitiveness and eventually gain competitive advantage. This study is a cross-sectional survey that is conducted in 2017. The study population is 221 CEOs (senior managers) in 99 Branches of 4 private banks in IRANs provinces Tehran (Capital of Iran), Qazvin and Isfahan as 3 of the most monetary turnovers. The research tools are a questionnaire containing demographic and specific information. To analyze the data, an SPSS statistical software is used and several statistical tests are used in the testing of the hypothesis and research goals. Finally, the impact of each dimension of the strategy to increase competitiveness is assessed. Also, each dimension is ranked according to influence; respectively differentiation strategy, focus strategy and cost reduction strategies. Considering banks multiplicity and results, special invest on differentiation strategy reaching competitiveness advantages to escape Red-Ocean in this industry is necessary. JEL Classification Codes: M13, G24, G21, F14.

Strategy Inversion: Engaging with the Counterculture

A counterculture is a subculture whose values, ethos, and aspirations differ substantially from those of mainstream. When oppositional ideas of a counterculture reach a critical mass and spread into main culture, it can trigger dramatic cultural, economic, and societal changes. The innovation counterculture operates in opposition to incremental change and maintenance of status quo; those in counterculture pursue radical ideas and seek to change world. Prominent examples of innovation countercultures include Homebrew Computer Club that spawned Apple and about 29 other companies and MIT Media Lab, which gave us touch screens, netbooks, and children's programming. Executives need to engage with innovation countercultures to understand what unnoticed things will create opportunities or impose perils for their businesses. But before heading out to make contact with innovation counterculture, executives should think twice about how they'll integrate what they learn from those contacts into their company's strategy processes. Firms can develop strategies and initiatives in different ways, and path chosen can have a big impact on company's success, both at profiting from its connections with innovation counterculture and as a business in general. A strategy is made up of three things: an objective, a strategy concept, and means. The means must be deployed according to strategy concept for objective to be achieved. Often, executives begin by defining business objective and strategy concept, and then look for means to fill gaps. But I've found that winning strategies are really created by inverting this typical strategy development process-first developing a deep understanding of emerging means and then formulating strategy concepts, rather than looking for means to fill gaps after defining business objective and settling on a strategy concept. In other words, most executives look around and ask, What's out there to support our strategy? That's a very different question from Steve Jobs's famous query to Steve Wozniak, about their homemade computer: How can we make a business out of this? The answer to first question is an upgrade to your strategy--that's filling gaps. The answer to second question is a disruption--that's strategy inversion. For example, take Uber. That company's objective is to deliver an exceptional experience from instant a customer orders a ride to moment he or she is dropped off, and make a profit doing it. The means for achieving that objective are an app and a fleet of drivers with cars. The strategy concept is how app connects customers and drivers, and how drivers are managed, to deliver an exceptional experience while promoting ridership and handling billing and payment. The lynchpin of Uber's strategy is app's ability to deliver a ride within five minutes. When Uber first rolled out in New York City, company relied on Google's API to predict arrival times. But those ETAs were off, with actual time to a car's arrival sometimes more than 350 percent different from predicted arrival time. Ultimately, company hired a team of mathematicians and scientists, drawn from outside traditional computing industry, to develop its own ETA algorithm. That capability was quickly recognized as foundation for company's success. As Lacy (2011) noted, the company lives and dies on its 'Math Department,' as they call team in house. Uber learned that it couldn't succeed by assembling pieces of technology it didn't understand. Its move to build deep understanding of new means--predictive data analytics--prevented company's collapse and set stage for growth. But as important as it is that executives understand new means deeply, there is scant discussion about that aspect of business strategy. Neither Porter's Competitive Strategy (1980) nor very popular Profit from Core (Zook and Allen 2001), both central works on strategy development, say much about means and need to start with a deep understanding of them. …

Generic Strategies and Firm Performance: An Investigation of Informal Sector Micro-Enterprises in Kenya

Micro-enterprises (MEs) have been shown to collectively be the largest employer in most developing countries thus playing a significant role in the countries economies. Using informal sector micro-enterprise furniture makers (wood and metal) in Nairobi, Kenya and based on Porter's competitive business strategies typology, this study sought to determine if the strategies employed by the informal sector MEs fit within the typology framework, and if membership within the strategic groups in the typology are a predictor of better business business performance. From the study, although membership within the two focus strategic groups of differentiation and low cost was confirmed, unlike studies done with medium and large enterprises, membership was not found to be a predictor of better business performance. Porter's typology may therefore not adequately capture the competitive business activities relevant to and directly by MEs, presenting an opportunity for research into the development of competitive business strategy typologies directly derived from their activities and therefore applicable to them.

Towards a Theology of Competition: The Case of Anglican Theological Institutions in England

Beginning with the current state of competition in English Theological Education Institutes (TEIs), which is mirrored on both sides of the Atlantic, this multidisciplinary article introduces an initial theological reflection into competition by considering history, social theory and theology and by looking through the lenses of sport, schools and business. The competitive climate that has emerged within Anglican TEIs over the last few centuries is observed by considering an historical overview. That climate is then discussed in terms of social theory using Michael Porter's Competitive Strategy and then with the insights of theology. The way forward is discussed with awareness of how a Christian theology of theological education must include a theology of competition. The aim is to open a discussion rather than to answer the question, though various theological leads are suggested.

The Process Approach to Marketing in the Service Sector

One of the problems related to management of competitiveness of the organizations operating in the service sector is poor methodological development of the issues of structure and content of the competitive strategy. The article reviews the most common approaches to understanding of the competitive strategy essence, namely, an approach known as «Porter's competitive strategies», Kotler's approach and the «biological» approach. The assessment of these approaches from the position of their application in the service sector on the example of retailing is provided. The notion of competitive strategy is clarified, and some of the principles of commercial organization competitiveness management, which are to be considered when devising a competitive strategy, are presented. On the basis of the process approach an iterative model of competitive strategy is proposed. The approach depicts the author's vision of the structure and main types of decisions taken when devising, adopting and implementing the competitive strategy. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n3s6p31

Matches between Network Structure and Competitive Strategies

Drawing on social network theory and Porter's competitive strategy analysis consistent with extant literature, this study investigates characteristics that leverage the matches between network structure and competitive strategies and explores if the combination of effects can also influence firms' performance. Using data from a special unit within Chinese floricultural cluster, we test the interaction effects between network structure (measured by centrality, structural holes and key ties) and competitive strategies (cost leadership strategies and differentiation strategies) Results show that inter-firm networks with a high degree of centrality should be matched with cost leadership strategies. In addition, these findings indicate that key ties, which may affect how firms process non-redundant resources are a great help to execute cost leadership strategies but are detrimental to the effectiveness of differentiation strategies. Managerial implications and directions for future research are discussed.

Evidence on Challenges Faced by Manufacturing Informal Sector Micro-Enterprises in Nairobi and Their Relationship with Strategic Choice

The study sought to determine the challenges faced by Informal Sector Micro-Enterprises in the manufacturing sector as well as establish what influences, if any, they have on their strategic choice. Porter's competitive business strategy model formed the theoretical framework for strategic choice. A total of 135 enterprises were sampled from six regions in Nairobi, Kenya. From the study, 30 main challenges were identified and ranked. The top three challenges for the sector were Competition, High Cost of Production and Lack of Adequate Capital. A cross-reference with strategic choice found that, enterprises experiencing challenges of High Cost of Production, High Cost of Transport and High Cost of Capital were more likely to adopt focus low cost strategies within Porter's framework. Those experiencing Hard Bargaining Customers were more likely to adopt differentiation focus strategies, while enterprises adopting mixed strategies are more likely to face Consumer Purchasing Power, Dishonest Customers and Theft as their main challenges. The study therefore shows that there does exist a relationship between challenges faced by an informal sector micro-enterprises and their strategic choice.

경쟁전략요소에 대한 CM기업의 인식에 관한 연구

CM시장에서의 경쟁이 심화되고 있는 상황에서 CM기업이 경쟁우위를 점하는 것은 매우 중요한 기업 현안이다. 이를 위해서는 적합한 경쟁전략을 갖추어야 하고 이를 통해 지속적으로 경쟁우위를 확보할 필요가 있다. 본 연구의 목적은 CM시장에서 경쟁우위를 점하기 위해 CM기업들이 중요하게 여기는 경쟁전략요소를 분석하고 이들 경쟁전략요소에서 나타나는 주요 특징과 시사점을 도출하는데 있으며 마이클 포터(Michael Porter)의 경쟁전략모델을 분석방법론으로 활용하였다. 연구 결과, 상위그룹에서는 차별화전략을 중요시 여기는 반면, 하위그룹에서는 집중화전략을 중요시 여기는 것으로 나타났다. 그러나 원가우위전략은 상하위 그룹에서 동일하게 상대적으로 중요도가 낮은 경쟁전략으로 인식되고 있는 것으로 나타났다. 비록 상하위 그룹에 따라 각 경쟁전략요소의 세부적인 순위에는 차이가 있었지만 종합적으로 보면 특화된 CM서비스 제공이 중요한 경쟁전략요소로 인식되고 있었다. CM기업의 경쟁전략요소에 대한 이해는 현재 CM기업들이 중요하게 생각하는 경쟁전략의 방향성과 내용을 파악할 수 있게 하며 향후 자사(自社)의 경쟁전략 수립을 위해 유용하게 활용될 수 있다. As the level of competition has increased in the construction management market, it becomes a critical issue for CM firms to secure competitive edges. The objective of the study is to investigate elements of competitive strategy as perceived by CM firms and to discuss key features and implications. Michael Porter's Competitive Strategy Model was used as a framework to analyse the elements under three strategy categories. A major finding includes that Differentiation Strategy is generally perceived most important strategy category but, depending on the group to which a CM firm belongs, there exist a gap in the perception. However, regardless of the group, Cost Leadership is commonly considered least important strategy category. In particular, lowest-bidding strategy element showed the least importance. Understanding CM firms' perceptions on elements of competitive strategy provides an insight into CM firms' current strategy directions and can be useful for future tuning in a firms' own strategy.