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

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

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

What are Rare Resources for Genesco? Defining Rare in VRIO

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

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

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

What is a Organization for Genesco? Defining Organization in VRIO

Even if the Genesco 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 Genesco 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
Sales Force and Channel Management of Genesco	Yes	No	Can be imitated by competitors	Still there is lot of potential to utilize the excellent sales force	Can provide Genesco sustainable competitive advantage. Potential is certainly there.
Pricing Strategies of Genesco	Yes, Genesco has sound pricing strategies	No	Pricing strategies are regularly imitated in the industry	Yes, firm has a pricing analytics engine	It can only provide Genesco with a Temporary Competitive Advantage
Successful Implementation of Digital Strategy at Genesco	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
Track Record of Project Execution	Yes, especially in an industry where there are frequent cost overun	Yes, especially in the segment that Genesco operates in	No, none of the competitors so far has able to imitate this expertise	Yes, Genesco is successful at it	Providing Strong Competitive Advantage
Distribution and Logistics Costs Competitiveness	Yes, as it helps Genesco in delivering lower costs	No	Can be imitated by competitors of Genesco but it is difficult	Yes	Medium to Long Term Competitive Advantage
Opportunities in the E-Commerce Space for Genesco - using Present IT Capabilities	Yes, the e-commerce space is rapidly growing and Genesco 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 Positioning of Genesco 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
Brand awareness of Genesco products and services	Yes, the brand awareness of Genesco products are high	Yes, Genesco has one of the leading brand in the industry	No	Genesco has utilized its leading brand position in various segments	Sustainable Competitive Advantage
Supply Chain Network Flexibility of Genesco	Yes	Yes	Near competitors also have flexible supply chain and share some of the suppliers	Fully utilized by Genesco organizational structure and capabilities	Keeps the business running
Customer Community of Genesco	Yes, as customers are co-creating products	Yes, the Genesco has able to build a special relationship with its customers	It is very difficult for Genesco competitors to imitate the culture and community dedication	Going by the data, there is still a lot of upside in building on Genesco customers community ecosystem	Providing Strong Competitive Advantage
Marketing Expertise within Genesco	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 Genesco are often matched by competitors	Yes, Genesco is leveraging both its inhouse marketing department and external expertise	Temporary Competitive Advantage
Access to Cheap Capital for Genesco	Yes, as a leading player in the industry and current macro economic conditions, Genesco has access to cheap capital	No	Can be imitated by the competitors of Genesco	Not been totally exploited	Not significant in creating competitive advantage
Global and Local Presence of Genesco	Yes, as it diversify the revenue streams and isolate company's balance sheet from economic cycles	Yes	Can be imitated by competitors of Genesco but at a relatively high cost	Yes, it is one of the most diversified companies in its industry	Providing Strong Competitive Advantage
Access to Critical Raw Material for Successful Execution	Yes	Yes, as other competitors have to come to terms with Genesco dominant market position	Can be imitated by competitors	Yes	Providing Sustainable Competitive Advantage

Genesco 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