Purpose of the Article
In this article, Barney (1991, p. 99-20) seeks to analyse the relationship between a sustained competitive advantage and the resources of any particular firm comprehensively. Besides, he discusses the four critical indicators of the potential of particular corporation resources to produce an incessant competitive edge over the other companies. The signs in question include rareness, substitutability, value and imitability. The author applies such a model by examining the capability of a blizzard of resources of a firm used in the generation of a stable competitive edge. Additionally, the article sums up by evaluating the possible impacts of the company resource framework of lasting competitive advantage for the other firms in other business areas. Apparently, a theoretical grasp of the agents of sustained competitive advantage for organizations has gained popularity from researchers seeking to explore the subject as part of strategic management (Barney, 1991, p. 99-20). Over the years, however, the researchers have concentrated on just a single organizing framework. Precisely, the framework stipulates that the companies acquire stable competitive edges through an implementation of management strategies and policies that major on their internal organizational strengths. Besides, the firms do this by concentrating on the existing business environment opportunities. While at that, the corporations focus on minimizing any current external threats and turning their internal weaknesses into strengths (Hofer, 2010).
For clarity and conciseness, the article aims to accomplish its purpose by providing a definition of the fundamental concepts that a reader will encounter in various parts of the report. Firm’s resources, for instance, connotes all the assets, attributes, capabilities and processes of the organization among other similar elements. The company is responsible for the control of all these resources as they help it accomplish its goals through the set strategies (Penrose 2011). On the same note, a corporation is deemed to have a competitive advantage when it can create and implement effective strategies that are unique to the particular company (Irina, 2014, p. 1-21). A sustained competitive advantage, therefore, refers to that unique competitive edge that other firms can neither duplicate nor copy at present or in the future according to Chandler (2012). The definitions not only focus on an existing competitor, but also a potential business rival. In essence, the ability of the firm to maintain their competitive advantage depends on the complexity and uniqueness of the advantage as well as the innovativeness. Grant (2011, p. 114–135) notes that a company cannot employ one similar trick forever just because they deem it unique. At one point, the rivals may learn the secrets and unseat the company from its competitive advantage. From these concepts and others that may pop up in the course of the discussion, the author aims to achieve the above purposes of the article successfully.