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Fern Fort University
Winston VRIO / VRIN Analysis | Assignment Help
What is VRIO / VRIN Analysis ?
VRIO stands for – Value of the resource, Rareness of the resource, Imitation Risk, and Organizational Competence.
VRIO is a resource focused strategic analysis tool.
To build a sustainable competitive advantage the resources that –casename— needs to be valuable, rare, and difficult to imitate. Secondly the –casename— needs to possess capabilities, organizational structure, and culture to optimize the available resources usage. VRIO analysis can help organizations such as Winston to do better resource allocation and build a defensible value and supply chain.
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What is a Valuable Resource for Winston? Defining Valuable in VRIO
A resource or capability is considered valuable for Winston , if it allows the
Winston to exploit opportunities or negate threats
emerging out of both the micro business environment and the macro environment. If a resource does not allow Winston to minimize threats or exploit opportunities, than it doesn't contribute signficantly to building a sustainable competitive advantage for Winston.
What are Rare Resources for Winston? Defining Rare in VRIO
In an industry that Winston operates in, valuable resources are held by number of competitors. So valuable resources themselves don’t provide a sustainable competitive advantage. Winston require rare resources to compete in the industry. If Winston don’t have rare resources that are required to succeed in the industry then Winston won’t be able to compete successfully in the marketplace. Secondly holding rare resources can provide Winston competitive advantage against players that don’t have those rare resources. HBR Case Study Solution
What is a Inimitable (Difficult to Immitate) Resource for Winston? Defining Inimitable in VRIO
A valuable and rare resource can provide a competitive advantage to Winston for certain period of time as all the competitors are going to try to imitate or replicate that resource. A sustained competitive advantage emerges, if the resource is difficult to imitate by the competitors. Winston can create inmitability by innovating on the product side, reducing pain points on service delivery, and having an effective post sales servicing strategy.
Check out the SWOT analysis of Winston
What is a Organization for Winston? Defining Organization in VRIO
Even if the Winston has all the valuable resources that are both rare and difficult to imitate, it won’t automatically result into a sustainable competitive advantage. The key to build the sustainable competitive advantage is to have organizational capabilities, expertise, and structure to exploit the resources. If Winston is not organized based on its strengths then it won’t able to exploit all the resources that it possesses.
Resources | Value | Rare | Imitation | Organization | Competitive Advantage |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Distribution and Logistics Costs Competitiveness | Yes, as it helps Winston in delivering lower costs | No | Can be imitated by competitors of Winston but it is difficult | Yes | Medium to Long Term Competitive Advantage |
Winston Customer Network and Loyalty | Yes, 23% of the customers contribute to more than 84% of the sales revenue | Yes, firm has invested to build a strong customer loyalty | Has been tried by competitors but none of them are as successful as Winston | Winston is leveraging the customer loyalty to good effect | Provide Winston medium term competitive advantage |
Opportunities in the E-Commerce Space for Winston - using Present IT Capabilities | Yes, the e-commerce space is rapidly growing and Winston can exploit the emerging opportunities | No, most of the competitors are investing in IT to enter the space | The AI and inhouse analytics can be difficult to imitate | It is just the start for the organization | In the long run it can provide sustainable competitive advantage |
Brand awareness of Winston products and services | Yes, the brand awareness of Winston products are high | Yes, Winston has one of the leading brand in the industry | No | Winston has utilized its leading brand position in various segments | Sustainable Competitive Advantage |
Intellectual Property Rights, Copyrights, and Trademarks | Yes, they are extremely valuable for Winston to thwart competition | Yes, IPR and other rights are rare and competition of Winston will find it extremely difficult to copy | Risk of imitation is low but given the margins in the industry disruption chances are high | So far the firm has not utilized the full extent of its IPR & other properties | Providing Strong Competitive Advantage |
Sales Force and Channel Management of Winston | Yes | No | Can be imitated by competitors | Still there is lot of potential to utilize the excellent sales force | Can provide Winston sustainable competitive advantage. Potential is certainly there. |
Vision of the Leadership for Next Set of Challenges | Yes | No | Can't be imitated by competitors of Winston | Not based on information provided in the case | Can Lead to Strong Competitive Advantage |
Customer Community of Winston | Yes, as customers are co-creating products | Yes, the Winston has able to build a special relationship with its customers | It is very difficult for Winston competitors to imitate the culture and community dedication | Going by the data, there is still a lot of upside in building on Winston customers community ecosystem | Providing Strong Competitive Advantage |
Opportunities for Brand Extensions for Winston products | Yes, new niches are emerging in the market | No, as most of the competitors are also targeting those niches | Yes can be imitated by the competitors | Brand extensions will require higher marketing budget | Temporary Competitive Advantage |
Access to Critical Raw Material for Successful Execution | Yes | Yes, as other competitors have to come to terms with Winston dominant market position | Can be imitated by competitors | Yes | Providing Sustainable Competitive Advantage |
Alignment of Activities with Winston Corporate Strategy | Yes | No | Each of the firm has its own strategy | Yes, company has organizational skills to extract the maximum out of it. | Still lots of potential to build on it |
Ability to Attract Talent in Various Local & Global Markets | Yes, Winston strategy is built on successful innovation and localization of products | Yes, as talent is critical to firm's growth | Difficult to imitate for the current competitors of Winston | To a large extent yes | Providing Strong Competitive Advantage |
Financial Resources of Winston | Yes | No | Financial instruments and market liquidity are available to all the nearest competitors | Winston has reasonably sound financial position | Winston has relatively sustainable Competitive Advantage |
Supply Chain Network Flexibility of Winston | Yes | Yes | Near competitors also have flexible supply chain and share some of the suppliers | Fully utilized by Winston organizational structure and capabilities | Keeps the business running |
Winston SWOT Analysis, SWOT Matrix, Weighted SWOT Case Study Solution & Analysis
Books and References
Ahir Gopaldas and Anton Siebert (2022 July August) "What You’re Getting Wrong About Customer Journeys",
Harvard Business Review , 92
Linda A. Hill, Emily Tedards, and Taran Swan (2021) "Drive Innovation with Better Decision-Making", Harvard Business Review 86
Dyer, J. H., & Hatch, N. (2004). Using Supplier Networks to Learn Faster. Sloan Management Review, 45(3), 57–63
Barney, J. B. (1991). Firm resources and sustained competitive advantage. Journal of Management, 17, 99–120
Dyer, J. H., Kale, P., & Singh, H. (2004, July–August). When to ally and when to acquire. Harvard Business Review, 109–115
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