Sharp Corp., a second-tier assembler of TV sets and home appliances, gradually and consistently improved performance by developing expertise in electronic device technologies such as specialized ICs and LCDs and used these technologies to develop innovative end products. As a result, the company was regarded as a world leader in opto-electronics and was becoming a premier comprehensive electronics company. This case facilitates a discussion of the sources of Wal-Mart Stores' competitive advantage in discount retailing, and the future sustainability of that advantage. Christopher H. Lovelock Southwest Airlines begins service in 1971 despite two larger, entrenched competitors. Improved quality service, lower prices, and innovative advertising and promotion strategy bring Southwest to the brink of profitability in 1973, when its major competitor halves fares on Southwest's major route.
Management wonders what response to make.
This note provides a framework for the analysis of industry structure. It identifies the major structural features that influence the profit potential in industries and some illustrative implications of these for strategy formulation. This case illustrates a range of management strategies for upward and lateral influence in a complex organizational context, as well as the use of innovative human resource management techniques. The introduction of the Sensor Shaving System, one of the biggest product launches ever, forced Gillette to reevaluate its strategy in its shaving and non-shaving business. It had to decide whether to go ahead with the launch and if so, at what scale.