07 September 2008

Strategic Management Dynamics - Chapter 5 - resource attributes.

This chapter explains how the varying quality of resources – larger vs. smaller customers, more vs less appealing products etc – affects how an organization performs over time. Any such quality operates as an 'attribute' for the resource that carries it, and rises or falls along with changes to the resource itself, in just the same way as adding hot or cold water changes the temperature of a tank or bathtub. The chapter shows how to work out the scale and speed with which changes occur to an attribute, and how these changes work through to drive overall changes to performance over time. It also explains how a resource can exhibit a quality-distribution, for example when customers vary in size or staff vary in experience. Examples covered include customer-quality, staff skill levels, equipment reliability, and the fund-raising for a voluntary organization. The chapter explains important attributes for a low-fare airline, and shows how the principles can be used for turning round performance of a troubled business or to undermine a competitor’s strategy.

This Chapter includes link to concepts of human capital, skills and competency audits, marketing channels, industry consolidation, corporate turn-round and rejuvenation.

Materials to support Chapter 5 of Strategic Management Dynamics include -

For registered site users:

Worksheet 6 from Strategic Management Dynamics, both in PDF and mystrategy format - Login above or register here

For registered online students:

Class lecture segments.
Additional exercise on customers and customer quality, including a video demonstration.

For information on our 10-week online course in Strategy Dynamics see the course information page

For registered Teachers:

PDF slides from the book
Solutions to end of chapter questions.

If you hold a faculty position at a university and wish to apply for teacher registration see registration links here

Other resources and links

Software

Download the mystrategy reader for use in the worksheets and exercises here

Books

(eds) Gratton, L., Hope Hailey, V., Stiles, P. and Truss, C. (1999) Strategic Human Resource Management: Corporate Rhetoric and Human Reality, Oxford University Press, Chapter 9


Doyle, P.and Stern, P., Marketing Management and Strategy (4th edn), (2006), Pearson, Harlow


Christensen, C.M. (1997) The Innovator’s Dilemma, HarperCollins Publishers; Reprint edition (Jan 2003)


Christensen, C.M. and Raynor, M.E (2003) The Innovator’s Solution, Harvard Business School Press, Boston, MA.

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