Karen Means
A. Company J (Javelin Shoes) Final Cumulative Balanced Scorecard, Income Statement, and Balance Sheet
Attached
B. Competitive Strategy
I chose a multi-regional, focused differentiation strategy tailored to match the differing competitive conditions and actions of rivals in the North America, Europe-Africa, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America regions. In years 11 through 16, my strategy focused on “upscale buyers wanting products…with world class attributes.” (Thompson, Peteraf, Gamble, & Strickland, 2012) I chose this strategy because the cultures represented in my demographic are radically different, thus I believed we needed a strategy that catered to those differences. This focused strategy concentrates on Internet …show more content…
Company G’s most dominant competitive advantage was its overall production capabilities. Company G sold 17,123,000 pairs of shoes in year 18, far outselling its closest competitor, Company F, which sold 13,828,000 pairs of shoes in the same year. The ability to produce shoes in larger quantities is certainly competitively valuable. This production capability enabled Company G to strengthen its market share and company profits with high volume sales. This resource was rare in that most rival companies did not have the production capabilities of Company G. Company D was the closest, with 14,307,000 pairs sold, followed by Company F which sold 13,828,000 pairs. This production capability, while not ‘hard’ to copy per se, is certainly costly and time consuming to copy. Capital outlay for production upgrades is substantial – I made some myself – particularly to reach this level. Company G ended our game with the highest weighted average EPS (9.64), the highest weighted average ROE (28.5), and the second highest stock price at the end of year 18 ($98.16). Company G’s choice to increase their production capabilities achieved a sustainable dominant competitive advantage that gave them the potential for long-term profitability. (Thompson, Peteraf, Gamble, & Strickland, …show more content…
This did fit with my company’s situation in year 11, as I was able to establish our products as ‘exclusive’. My prices were higher than my competition, both at the retail and wholesale level. We produced 200 different models, and increased our production in year 16 to keep up with demand. This strategy also fit my industry’s competitive conditions in that we all began the simulation with exactly the same metrics. This strategy allowed me to distinguish the company as exclusive, must-have footwear.
Competitively, through year 16 only two other companies outperformed my company. Both these companies increased their production capabilities early on, and both offered lower price points than mine in the retail and wholesale segments. They also sold private label shoes, which I did not. While I was third behind these two companies, I was solidly ahead of the other seven.
The focused differentiation strategy was definitely in sync with my company’s best market opportunities. Three of my four markets had vastly different cultural mores and buying expectations. (The U.S. and Europe I considered similar in both culture and finances.) I was able to tailor both wholesale and retail pricing to be most effective in these markets, as well as tailor footwear styles and attributes to what sold best I these markets. Through year 16, my company was able to execute the strategy with no