The question of imitability
9 important questions on The question of imitability
What advantage does a firm gain if it is a strategic innovator?
- Utilizing unique strategies that competitors cannot replicate.
- Leveraging imperfectly imitable resources.
- Capitalizing on market opportunities before rivals.
How can competitors respond when one firm gains competitive advantage?
- Ignore the success, resulting in a competitive disadvantage.
- Understand and duplicate the successful firm's resources for competitive parity or advantage.
What are the two forms of imitation that competitors may employ?
- Direct Duplication - Replicating resources; high costs lead to sustained advantage, low costs to temporary.
- Substitution - Replacing costly resources; low costs yield temporary advantage, high costs lead to sustained advantage.
- Higher grades + faster learning
- Never study anything twice
- 100% sure, 100% understanding
What are the four sources of costly imitation identified by researchers?
- Unique Historical Conditions - Low-cost resource access due to timing.
- Causal Ambiguity - Unclear resource-advantage relationships.
- Social Complexity - Resources involving relationships that are hard to replicate.
- Patents - Legal protections that limit competition, especially in certain industries.
How does path dependence influence resource acquisition?
- Past conditions might allow cheaper access to resources.
- Future value can be uncertain, leading to misjudgment on costs.
- Over time, acquiring resources becomes increasingly expensive.
What happens when competitors ignore a firm's competitive advantage?
- A competitive disadvantage for the ignoring firm.
- Continued operation as before without adaptation.
- Potential loss in market share over time.
What is the implication of causal ambiguity for a firm's competitive advantage?
- It is unclear how a firm's resources contribute to advantage.
- Relationships may stem from complex, interrelated capabilities.
- Advantage is often based on 'taken-for-granted' factors.
Why are unique historical conditions significant in imitation context?
- They provide low-cost access to resources at a key time.
- Can lead to first-mover advantages in markets.
- Influence the difficulty of duplicating a firm's success.
How do patents affect competitive advantage in certain industries?
- Foreclosing other firms from market entry until expiration.
- Decreasing costs of imitation as information is revealed.
- Providing sustained competitive advantages in industries like pharmaceuticals.
The question on the page originate from the summary of the following study material:
- A unique study and practice tool
- Never study anything twice again
- Get the grades you hope for
- 100% sure, 100% understanding
