Strategic management: Q7 The resource-based view of the firm

fit between its internal strengths and the external environment is static.

A firm will fail to create a sustained competitive advantage when the:

causal ambiguity

A firm's resources and capabilities are costly to imitate. This is because rival companies do not clearly understand the relationship between the resources and capabilities controlled by the firm. In this case, the firm's competitive advantage is protected against imitation by _____.

resource differences between firms last for a long time.

Due to resource immobility, a critical assumption in the resource-based model of a firm, the:

The company's chemical patents

Gene Craft Inc. is the market leader in the pharmaceutical industry. Though most of its resources are common to those of its competitors, a few rare resources have helped the company gain and sustain a competitive advantage. Which of the following assets of Gene Craft Inc. is most likely to be considered a rare resource that is best contributing to its competitive advantage?

firm will have a sustained competitive advantage because of its unique resources.

In the context of the resource-based model of competitive advantage, if a successful firm exhibits resource immobility it means that the:

Direct imitation

Pulse Mobiles Inc. is a cell phone manufacturing company. Its latest range of smartphones bears a strong resemblance to the Y-series range of smartphones from Talkie Gen Inc., in terms of its shape and look-and-feel. Which of the following strategies has Pulse Mobiles Inc. used to replicate the valuable and rare resource of Talkie Gen Inc.?

knowledge diffusion

TrueCandy Inc., a confectionery manufacturing company, lost its competitive advantage when its strategy of placing kiosks at prominent locations throughout the state was followed by most of its competitors. In this scenario, TrueCandy Inc.'s loss of competitive advantage can be primarily attributed to _____.

If managed effectively, existing core competencies can help sustain the competitive advantage indefinitely.

When evaluating the sustainability of a firm's competitive advantage, which of the following statements is NOT true?

Reputation for quality

Which of the following resources is a firm's resource stock?

Resource heterogeneity

Although True Ion Inc. and One Electro Inc. operate in the same consumer electronics industry, True Ion Inc. has better sales and brand equity. This is attributed to True Ion Inc.'s commitment to innovation. The company has adequate financial and human capital to invest in research and development, an area where One Electro Inc. lacks. In this scenario, which of the following critical assumptions of the resourcebased view of a firm has been illustrated?

resource immobility

As a result of _____, a critical assumption in the resource-based model of a firm, the resource differences that exist between firms are difficult to replicate.

rare

Connect Plus Cellular is a leading mobile network operator. Since most of the resources used by Connect Plus Cellular is easily available, the company's brand name is the only resource that distinguishes it from the other operators. No other competitor in the industry has a strong brand name like that of Connect Plus Cellular. This unique asset that has helped the company gain a competitive advantage will be considered as a(n) _____ resource in the VRIO framework.

internal strengths change with its external environment in a dynamic fashion

Given the accelerated pace of technological change, in combination with deregulation, globalization, and demographic shifts, a firm will only be successful today if its:

Invoro will have a resource that is valuable but no longer rare.

If Finolo and Ethver, companies that manufacture televisions, develop the same customer knowledge base and create products that provide the same customer appeal as Invoro, a market leader in consumer electronics, then:

the firm will be able to maintain a competitive advantage for a long period.

If a resource is rare or unique to a particular firm, then:

The company's machinery

The management of a company is assessing the value of all the tangible resources the company owns. Which of the following will be included in this assessment?

Social complexity

True Autos Inc. has been trying to directly copy the strategies of Red Autos Inc. Even though it is evident that Red Auto's Inc.'s successcomes from its just-in-time inventory system, True Auto's Inc. has not been able to effectively apply the system in the same way. This is because the organizational structures, employees, cultures, and the overall business systems of both the companies vary from each other.Which of the following barriers to imitation does this scenario best illustrate?

Time compression diseconomies.

When the laptop market overtook the desktop market, Blue Tech Inc., a leader in desktop technology, was left at a competitive disadvantage. Later, Blue Tech Inc.'s management channeled all of the company's efforts and revenue to develop an efficient laptop from scratch in less than a year. However, the company failed because most of its competitors had already been in the laptop market for five years. Blue Tech Inc's models were inferior to the ones in the market. In this scenario, Blue Tech Inc.'s failure can be best attributed to:

Tangible assets can be bought on the open market, whereas intangible assets cannot be easily purchased.

Which of the following statements accurately brings out the difference between tangible and intangible resources?