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W.R. Grace 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 W.R. Grace to do better resource allocation and build a defensible value and supply chain.
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What is a Valuable Resource for W.R. Grace? Defining Valuable in VRIO
A resource or capability is considered valuable for W.R. Grace , if it allows the
W.R. Grace to exploit opportunities or negate threats
emerging out of both the micro business environment and the macro environment. If a resource does not allow W.R. Grace to minimize threats or exploit opportunities, than it doesn't contribute signficantly to building a sustainable competitive advantage for W.R. Grace.
What are Rare Resources for W.R. Grace? Defining Rare in VRIO
In an industry that W.R. Grace operates in, valuable resources are held by number of competitors. So valuable resources themselves don’t provide a sustainable competitive advantage. W.R. Grace require rare resources to compete in the industry. If W.R. Grace don’t have rare resources that are required to succeed in the industry then W.R. Grace won’t be able to compete successfully in the marketplace. Secondly holding rare resources can provide W.R. Grace competitive advantage against players that don’t have those rare resources. HBR Case Study Solution
What is a Inimitable (Difficult to Immitate) Resource for W.R. Grace? Defining Inimitable in VRIO
A valuable and rare resource can provide a competitive advantage to W.R. Grace 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. W.R. Grace 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 W.R. Grace
What is a Organization for W.R. Grace? Defining Organization in VRIO
Even if the W.R. Grace 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 W.R. Grace 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 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Product Portfolio and Synergy among Various Product Lines of W.R. Grace | 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 |
Customer Community of W.R. Grace | Yes, as customers are co-creating products | Yes, the W.R. Grace has able to build a special relationship with its customers | It is very difficult for W.R. Grace competitors to imitate the culture and community dedication | Going by the data, there is still a lot of upside in building on W.R. Grace customers community ecosystem | Providing Strong Competitive Advantage |
Position among Retailers and Wholesalers – W.R. Grace retail strategy | Yes, W.R. Grace has strong relationship with retailers and wholesalers | Yes, W.R. Grace 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 W.R. Grace | 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 |
Marketing Expertise within W.R. Grace | 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 W.R. Grace are often matched by competitors | Yes, W.R. Grace is leveraging both its inhouse marketing department and external expertise | Temporary Competitive Advantage |
Track Record of Leadership Team at W.R. Grace | Yes | Yes | Can't be imitated by competitors | Yes | Providing Strong Competitive Advantage |
Financial Resources of W.R. Grace | Yes | No | Financial instruments and market liquidity are available to all the nearest competitors | W.R. Grace has reasonably sound financial position | W.R. Grace has relatively sustainable Competitive Advantage |
Ability to Attract Talent in Various Local & Global Markets | Yes, W.R. Grace 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 W.R. Grace | To a large extent yes | Providing Strong Competitive Advantage |
Opportunities in the Adjacent Industries that W.R. Grace 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 |
Supply Chain Network Flexibility of W.R. Grace | Yes | Yes | Near competitors also have flexible supply chain and share some of the suppliers | Fully utilized by W.R. Grace organizational structure and capabilities | Keeps the business running |
Global and Local Presence of W.R. Grace | Yes, as it diversify the revenue streams and isolate company's balance sheet from economic cycles | Yes | Can be imitated by competitors of W.R. Grace but at a relatively high cost | Yes, it is one of the most diversified companies in its industry | Providing Strong Competitive Advantage |
Vision of the Leadership for Next Set of Challenges | Yes | No | Can't be imitated by competitors of W.R. Grace | Not based on information provided in the case | Can Lead to Strong Competitive Advantage |
Alignment of Activities with W.R. Grace 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 |
Brand Positioning of W.R. Grace in Comparison to the Competitors | Yes | No | Can be imitated by competitors but it will require big marketing budget | Yes, the firm has positioned its brands based on consumer behavior | Temporary Competitive Advantage |
W.R. Grace 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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