What is Value Chain Analysis?

• Focuses on how a business creates customer value

by examining contributions of different internal
activities to that value
• Divides a business into a set of activities within the
business
– Starts with inputs a firm receives
– Finishes with firm’s products or services and after-sales
service to customers
• Allows for better identification of a firm’s strengths
and weaknesses since the business is viewed as a
process
 SWOT Analysis

Based on assumption an effective strategy derives from a sound

“fit” between a firm’s internal resources and its external
situation

Numerous environmental
Major environmental threats
opportunities
A major unfavorable situation in a
A major favorable situation in
firm’s environment
a firm’s environment

Substantial internal strengths Critical internal weaknesses

A resource advantage relative A limitation or deficiency in one or
to competitors and the needs of more resources or competencies
markets firm serves relative to competitors
 Internal Analysis: Making Meaningful
Comparisons

1. Comparison with past

performance

4. Comparison with
2. Stages of Perspectives success factors in
industry
evolution
to use industry

3. Benchmarking –
comparison with competitors
 Sources of Distinctive Competence at Different
Stages of Industry Evolution
Functional Introduction Growth Maturity Decline
Area
Marketing Resources/skills Ability to Skills in Cost effective
to create establish brand aggressively means of
widespread recognition, promoting efficient access
awareness and find niche, products to new to selected
find acceptance reduce price, markets and channels and
from customers ; solidify strong holding existing markets; strong
advantageous distribution markets; pricing customer loyalty
access to relations, and flexibility; skills or dependence;
distribution develop new in differentiating strong company
channels products and image
holding
customer loyalty
iPOD: 科技行銷的經典案例
 (contd.)

Functional Introduction Growth Maturity Decline

Area

Production Ability to Ability to add Ability to Ability to prune

operations expand product improve product product line;
capacity variants, and reduce cost advantage
effectively, limit centralize costs; ability to in production,
number of production, or share or reduce location or
designs, otherwise lower capacity; distribution;
develop costs; ability to advantageous simplified
standards improve product supplier inventory
quality; relationships; control;
seasonal subcontracting subcontracting
subcontracting or long
capacity production runs
 (contd.)

Functional Introduction Growth Maturity Decline

Area

Finance Resources to Ability to finance Ability to Ability to reuse

support high net rapid expansion, generate and or liquidate
cash overflow to have net cash redistribute unneeded
and initial outflows but increasing net equipment;
losses; ability to increasing cash inflows; advantage in
use leverage profits; effective cost cost of facilities;
effectively resources to control systems control system
support product accuracy;
improvements streamlined
management
control
 (contd.)

Functional Introduction Growth Maturity Decline

Area

Personnel Flexibility in Existence of an Ability to cost Capacity to

staffing and ability to add effectively, reduce and
training new skilled reduce reallocate
management; personnel; workforce, personnel
existence of motivated and increase
employees with loyal workforce efficiency
key skills in new
products or
markets
 (contd.)

Functional Introduction Growth Maturity Decline

Area

Engineering and Ability to make Skill in quality Ability to reduce Ability to support
R&D engineering and new feature costs, develop other grown
changes, have development; variants, areas or to apply
technical bugs in ability to start differentiate product to
product and developing products unique customer
process successor needs
resolved product

Key functional Engineering: Sales: consumer Production Finance:

area and market loyalty; market efficiency: maximum
strategy focus penetration share successor investment
products recovery