Distinguish Between Competitive and Corporate Strategy A Case Study
Key Learning Outcomes
By the end of the case, students should be able to:
- Understand the concepts of Competitive strategy and Corporate Strategy
- Understand the similarities and differences between the two
- Apply these strategies to real-life organizations
1.0 INTRODUCTION
Competitive strategy is about how a firm competes in a specific market or industry, while corporate strategy is about how a firm manages its portfolio of businesses and resources across different markets or industries.
Competitive strategy focuses on creating and sustaining a competitive advantage over rivals, by offering superior value to customers, reducing costs, or both. Competitive strategy can be based on differentiation, cost leadership, or focus. Differentiation means offering products or services that are unique or distinctive from competitors, and that appeal to a specific segment of customers. Cost leadership means achieving the lowest cost of production or delivery in the industry, and passing on the savings to customers. Focus means concentrating on a narrow market segment or niche, and serving it better than anyone else.
Corporate strategy, on the other hand, deals with the overall scope and direction of the firm, and how it creates value across its various businesses. Corporate strategy involves decisions such as which markets or industries to enter or exit, how to allocate resources among different businesses, how to leverage synergies or economies of scale across businesses, and how to manage the relationships between businesses.
Corporate strategy can be based on diversification, vertical integration, horizontal integration, or portfolio management. Diversification means entering new markets or industries that are different from the core business, in order to reduce risk or exploit opportunities. Vertical integration means acquiring or controlling the suppliers or distributors of the core business, in order to increase efficiency or quality.
Horizontal integration means acquiring or merging with competitors in the same industry, in order to increase market share or bargaining power. Portfolio management means managing a collection of businesses as a portfolio of investments and allocating resources based on their performance and potential.
Both competitive and corporate strategies are essential for achieving long-term profitability and growth. A firm needs to have a clear and coherent competitive strategy for each of its businesses, in order to gain and maintain a strong position in its target markets. A firm also needs to have a sound and consistent corporate strategy for its entire portfolio of businesses, in order to maximize the overall value of the firm and its shareholders.