Who’s right — the “sustainable advantage” traditionalists or the “transient advantage” challengers?
They both have something useful to say. Let’s borrow some language from political philosophy and think in terms of thesis, antithesis, and synthesis.
Okay – what’s the thesis?
Start with Michael Porter. His most brilliant insight was that companies compete on a bundle of connected, mutually reinforcing activities and resources. That bundle allows the company to create value in a way that can’t be imitated. (Ikea, for example, has figured out how to get customers to pay more than you might expect for furniture that they have to assemble themselves…thus keeping IKEA’s costs low.
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