So in this blog I'll be explaining about a few important tools to analyze competitive intelligence and develop competitive advantages which are:
The five forces model
The three generic strategies.
Value chain analysis.
Well be for i go any further, i should first explain the definition if competitive advantages and competitive intelligence.
Firstly, competitive advantages is a feature of a product or service on which customer place a higher value on other similar offerings from its competitors and then we have competitive advantage that is the process of gathering information about the competitors activities, plans, and products. This reminsd me of an old saying....
"Keep your friends close, but keep your enemy closer"
Alright than, off to the first tool that is the five forces model. So this weeks post will be a little bit different because there will be less of writing and move of videos to explain the following tools :) So you're in luck.
Back to topic, who better to explain on the five forces model then him self, Mr. Michael Porter...
The next step, once you have evaluate the attractiveness of an industry...the the next step is to choose a business focus with the help of the three generic strategies....
Here is another video for the generic strategies...it is somehow a little bit different then one in the text book, but it is more understandable...so enjoy! :D
LAST but not least...the last tool is the value chain analysis. This tool is more to execute business strategies...
Hope all these videos has given you at least a brief idea on these three tools. Have and amazing weekend! :D bubye!
Based on the title you must be wondering or questioning on " How does technology drive business?" "How big of a role does Information Technology (IT) plays in business?" or even " How does business and IT can co-exist ?"
Well to answer these questions is as simple as by looking around your surrounding. This is because,
" Information Technology (IT) is everywhere in business"
Now days, even business magazines are filled with articles discussing about IT. For me as a business student, it is crucial and an advantage to have a deep knowledge on technology because with it i can gain great insight about business and detailed understanding on IT.
Since IT is everywhere in business, we can understand that IT has a hugeImpact on Business Operations. Here are some pictures that will illustrate the impact of IT on business operation.
For any business to achieve its goal such as reducing cost, improve loyalty, generate growth and many others is not an easy task. IT plays and important role in achieving business goals by facilitating communication and increasing the intelligence of a business. To see how technology has change they way people conduct business you can read this article http://money.howstuffworks.com/technology-changed-business1.htm.
Most important, for an organization to succeed, every department (accounting, finance, human resources, sales, marketing, operation management and management information system) must work together by sharing information and not be a "silo".
The next part of this chapter is about the Basics of IT. There are several terms that we must first understand such as IT. Information Technology or better known as IT can be easily defined as a field of concerned with the use of technology in managing and processing information.
Next is management information system (MIS) is a general name for business function and academic discipline covering the application of people, technologies, and procedure to solve business problems.
These are other terms that one should know :
Data - raw facts that describe the characteristic of an event
Information - data converted into a meaningful and useful context
Business intelligence – applications and technologies that are used to support decision-making efforts
Lastly, is the IT culture.....
1) Information-Functional
Culture - Employees use information as a means of
exercising influence or power over others. For example, a manager in sales
refuses to share information with marketing. This causes marketing to need the
sales manager’s input each time a new sales strategy is developed.
2) Information-Sharing
Culture - Employees
across departments trust each other to use information (especially about
problems and failures) to improve performance.
3) Information-Inquiring Culture - Employees across departments search for
information to better understand the future and align themselves with current
trends and new directions.
4) Information-Discovery Culture - Employees across departments are open to new insights about crisis and radical changes and seek ways to create
competitive advantages.
Here is a video on how technology has effected business, enjoy :)
