ABSTRACT
Getting a competitive advantage over competitors is literally the underlying goal of strategic planning, but getting the upper hand on the competition is both elusive and potentially fleeting. This chapter digs deeply into the literature to provide insights on how to create competitive advantage, how to measure it, and how to know if it has staying power. From Michael Porter’s Five Forces Model for competitive industry analysis, to Resource-Based Advantage Theory, to the concept of core competencies and dynamic capabilities, the theories behind the gaining of competitive advantage are discussed. The role of customer orientation and the building of perceived value are then presented. Firm management can understand whether it has actually achieved a competitive advantage through the checklists provided, but the chapter then addresses the issue of sustainability of competitive advantage. This is a more difficult goal to achieve, and the chapter provides a series of important questions to be answered to determine whether the competitive advantage realized is sustainable.
