Viacom 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 Viacom to do better resource allocation and build a defensible value and supply chain.

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What is a Valuable Resource for Viacom? Defining Valuable in VRIO

A resource or capability is considered valuable for Viacom , if it allows the Viacom to exploit opportunities or negate threats emerging out of both the micro business environment and the macro environment. If a resource does not allow Viacom to minimize threats or exploit opportunities, than it doesn't contribute signficantly to building a sustainable competitive advantage for Viacom.

What are Rare Resources for Viacom? Defining Rare in VRIO

In an industry that Viacom operates in, valuable resources are held by number of competitors. So valuable resources themselves don’t provide a sustainable competitive advantage. Viacom require rare resources to compete in the industry. If Viacom don’t have rare resources that are required to succeed in the industry then Viacom won’t be able to compete successfully in the marketplace. Secondly holding rare resources can provide Viacom competitive advantage against players that don’t have those rare resources. HBR Case Study Solution

What is a Inimitable (Difficult to Immitate) Resource for Viacom? Defining Inimitable in VRIO

A valuable and rare resource can provide a competitive advantage to Viacom 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. Viacom 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 Viacom

What is a Organization for Viacom? Defining Organization in VRIO

Even if the Viacom 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 Viacom 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
Customer Community of Viacom	Yes, as customers are co-creating products	Yes, the Viacom has able to build a special relationship with its customers	It is very difficult for Viacom competitors to imitate the culture and community dedication	Going by the data, there is still a lot of upside in building on Viacom customers community ecosystem	Providing Strong Competitive Advantage
Opportunities in the Adjacent Industries that Viacom can exploit & New Resources Required to Enter those Industries	Can be valuable as they will create new revenue streams	No	Can be imitated by competitors	All the capabilities of the organization are not fully utilized yet	Has potential
Position among Retailers and Wholesalers – Viacom retail strategy	Yes, Viacom has strong relationship with retailers and wholesalers	Yes, Viacom has dedicated channel partners	Difficult to imitate though not impossible	Yes, over the years company has used it successfully	Sustainable Competitive Advantage
Successful Implementation of Digital Strategy at Viacom	Yes, without a comprehensive digital strategy it is extremely difficult to compete	No, as most of the firms are investing into digitalizing operations	Can be imitated by competitors	One of the leading player in the industry	Digital strategy has become critical in the industry but it can't provide sustainable competitive advantage to
Product Portfolio and Synergy among Various Product Lines of Viacom	Yes, it is valuable in the industry given the various segmentations & consumer preferences.	Most of the competitors are trying to enter the lucrative segments	Can be imitated by the competitors	The firm has used it to good effect, details can be found in case exhibit	Provide short term competitive advantage but requires constant innovation to sustain
Marketing Expertise within Viacom	Yes, firms are competing based on differentiation in the industry	No, as most of the competitors also have good marketing departments and expertise	Pricing strategies of Viacom are often matched by competitors	Yes, Viacom is leveraging both its inhouse marketing department and external expertise	Temporary Competitive Advantage
Opportunities for Brand Extensions for Viacom 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
Opportunities in the E-Commerce Space for Viacom - using Present IT Capabilities	Yes, the e-commerce space is rapidly growing and Viacom 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
Supply Chain Network Flexibility of Viacom	Yes	Yes	Near competitors also have flexible supply chain and share some of the suppliers	Fully utilized by Viacom organizational structure and capabilities	Keeps the business running
Pricing Strategies of Viacom	Yes, Viacom has sound pricing strategies	No	Pricing strategies are regularly imitated in the industry	Yes, firm has a pricing analytics engine	It can only provide Viacom with a Temporary Competitive Advantage
Ability to Attract Talent in Various Local & Global Markets	Yes, Viacom 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 Viacom	To a large extent yes	Providing Strong Competitive Advantage
Brand awareness of Viacom products and services	Yes, the brand awareness of Viacom products are high	Yes, Viacom has one of the leading brand in the industry	No	Viacom has utilized its leading brand position in various segments	Sustainable Competitive Advantage
Talent to Manage Regulatory and Legal Obligations	Yes	No	Can be imitated by competitors	Yes	Not critical factor
Viacom 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 Viacom	Viacom is leveraging the customer loyalty to good effect	Provide Viacom medium term competitive advantage

Viacom 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