CHAPTER 3

INDUSTRY AND
COMPETITIVE
ANALYSIS
Screen graphics created by:
Jana F. Kuzmicki, PhD, Mississippi University for Women

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 “Analysis is the critical starting
point of strategic thinking.”
Kenichi Ohmae

“Things are always different--

the art is figuring out which
differences matter.” “Quote”

Laszlo Birinyi

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 Chapter Outline
 Role of Situation Analysis in Strategy-Making
 Methods of Industry and Competitive Analysis
 Industry’s Dominant Economic Traits
 Industry’s Competitive Forces
 Drivers of Industry Change
 Competitive Positions of Rivals
 Competitive Moves of Rivals
 Key Success Factors
 Conclusions: Overall Industry Attractiveness
 Conducting an Industry and Competitive Analysis
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 What Is Situation Analysis?
 Two considerations
 Company’s external or
macro-environment
 Industry and competitive
conditions
 Company’s internal or
micro-environment
 Competencies,
capabilities, resource
strengths and weaknesses,
and competitiveness
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 Figure 3.1: The Components of a
Company’s Macro-Environment
MACROENVIRONMENT
The Economy
at Large
Le
gi
gy Re sla
o lo gu tio
hn la n a
c Suppliers Substitutes tio n
Te n d

COMPANY
Rival Buyer
Firms s

So New
c Entrants
an ietal tion s
dL V
ife alue  p ula phic
sty s IMMEDIATE INDUSTRY Po ogra
les m
AND COMPETITIVE
ENVIRONMENT
De

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 Figure 3.2: Strategic Thinking and Analysis
Leads to Good Strategic Choices
Assess Industry & Competitive Conditions

1. Industry’s dominant economic traits

2. Nature of competition & strength of
competitive forces
3. Drivers of industry change
4. Competitive position of rivals
5. Strategic moves of rivals
6. Key success factors Identify Select
7. Conclusions about industry attractiveness Strategic the Best
Options Strategy
Assess Company Situation
for the for the
Company Company
1. Assessment of company’s present strategy
2. Resource strengths and weaknesses,
market opportunities, and external threats
3. Company’s costs compared to rivals
4. Strength of company’s competitive position
5. Strategic issues that need to be addressed
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 Key Considerations Regarding the
Industry and Competitive Environment

Industry’s
dominant
economic
traits

Competitive
Drivers of
forces and
change in the
strength of
industry
each force

Conclusions:
Competitor Key success Industry
analysis factors attractiveness

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 Question 1: What are the
Industry’s Dominant Economic Traits?
 Market size and growth rate
 Scope of competitive rivalry
 Number of competitors and their relative sizes
 Prevalence of backward/forward integration
 Entry/exit barriers
 Nature and pace of technological change
 Product and customer characteristics
 Scale economies and experience curve effects
 Capacity utilization and resource requirements
 Industry profitability
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 Table 3.1: Sample Profile
of the Dominant Economic
Characteristics of the
Sulfuric Acid Industry
 The Experience Curve Effect

 An experience curve exists when a

company’s unit costs decline as its
cumulative production volume increases
because of
 Accumulating production know-how
 Growing mastery of the technology
 The bigger the experience curve effect, the
bigger the cost advantage of the firm with the
largest cumulative production volume
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 Figure 3-3: Cost Advantages of
Different Experience Curve Effects

$1
$1 .90
.81
Cost per Unit

.80
.729 10% Cost
.70 .64 Reduction
.512
.49 20% Cost
Reduction
.343
30% Cost
Reduction

1 2 4 8
Million Million Million Million
Units Units Units Units
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 Table 3.2: Relevance of
Key Economic Features
Economic Strategic Importance
Feature
Market Size Small markets don’t tend to attract new firms; large markets attract firms
looking to acquire rivals with established positions in attractive industries
Market growth rate Fast growth breeds new entry; slow growth spawns increased rivalry & shake-
out of weak rivals
Capacity Surpluses push prices & profit margins down; shortages pull them up
surpluses/shortages
Industry profitability High-profit industries attract new entrants; depressed conditions lead to exit

Entry/exit barriers High barriers protect positions and profits of existing firms; low barriers make
existing firms vulnerable to entry
Product is big-ticket More buyers will shop for lowest price
item for buyers
Standard products Buyers have more power because it’s easier to switch from seller to seller
Rapid technological Raises risk; investments in technology facilities/equipment may become
change obsolete before they wear out
Capital requirements Big requirements make investment decisions critical; timing becomes
important; creates a barrier to entry and exit
Vertical integration Raises capital requirements; often creates competitive & cost differences
among fully vs. partially vs. non-integrated firms
Economies of scale Increases volume & market share needed to be cost competitive
Rapid product Shortens product life cycle; increases risk because of opportunities for
innovation leapfrogging
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 Question 2: What is Competition Like and
How Strong Are the Competitive Forces?

Objective
 To identify
 Main sources of
competitive forces
 Strength of these forces

 Key analytical tool

 Five Forces Model
of Competition
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 Figure 3-4: Five Forces
Model of Competition
Substitute Products
(of firms in
other industries)

Rivalry
Suppliers
Among
of Key Buyers
Competing
Inputs
Sellers

Potential
New
Entrants
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 Analyzing the Five Competitive Forces:
How to Do It
 Assess strength of each of the five competitive forces
(Strong? Moderate? Weak? )
 Rivalry among competitors
 Competition from substitute products
 Competitive threat from potential entrants
 Bargaining power of suppliers and
supplier-seller collaboration
 Bargaining power of buyers and
buyer-seller collaboration
 Explain how each force acts to create competitive pressure
—What are the factors that cause each force to be
strong or weak?
 Decide whether overall competition (the combined effect
of all five competitive forces) is brutal, fierce, strong,
normal/moderate, or weak
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 Rivalry Among Competing Sellers
 Usually the most powerful of the five forces
 The big factor determining the strength of rivalry is
how actively and aggressively are rivals employing
the various weapons of competition in jockeying for a
stronger market position and seeking bigger sales
 Is price competition vigorous?
 Active efforts to improve quality?
 Are rivals racing to offer better
performance features?
 Are rivals racing to offer better
customer service?
 Lots of advertising/sales promotions?
 Active efforts to build a stronger
dealer network?
 Active product innovation?
 Active use of other weapons of rivalry?
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What Causes Rivalry to be Stronger?
 Active jockeying for position among rivals and frequent
launches of new offensives to gain sales and market share
 One or more firms initiates moves to bolster their
standing at expense of rivals
 Lots of firms that are relatively equal in size and capability
 Slow market growth
 Industry conditions tempt some firms to go on the offensive
to boost volume and market share
 Customers have low costs in switching to rival brands
 A successful strategic move carries a big payoff
 Costs more to get out of business than to stay in
 Firms have diverse strategies, corporate priorities,
resources, and countries of origin
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 Principle of Competitive Markets

Competitive jockeying among rival

firms is dynamic and ever-changing
 As industry members initiate new
offensive and defensive moves
 As emphasis swings from one
mix of competitive weapons to
another
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 Competitive Force of Potential Entry
 Seriousness of threat depends on

 Barriers to entry

 Reaction of existing firms to entry

 Barriers exist when

 Newcomers confront obstacles

 Economic factors put potential

entrant at a disadvantage relative
to incumbent firms
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 Common Barriers to Entry
 Sizable economies of scale
 Inability to gain access to specialized
technology
 Existence of strong learning/experience
curve effects
 Strong brand preferences and customer loyalty
 Large capital requirements and/or other specialized
resource requirements
 Cost disadvantages independent of size
 Difficulties in gaining access to distribution channels
 Regulatory policies, tariffs, trade restrictions
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 Principle of Competitive Markets

Threat of entry is stronger when:

 Entry barriers are low
 Sizable pool of entry candidates
exists
 Incumbents are unwilling or unable to
contest a newcomer’s entry efforts
 Newcomers can expect to earn
attractive profits
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 Competitive Force of
Substitute Products
Concept
Substitutes matter when customers are
attracted to the products of firms in other
industries

Examples
 Eyeglasses vs. Contact Lens
 Sugar vs. Artificial Sweeteners
 Newspapers vs. TV vs. Internet
 E-mail vs. Overnight Delivery
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 How to Tell Whether Substitute
Products are a Strong Force
 Sales of substitutes are
growing rapidly

 Producers of substitutes
plan to add new capacity

 Profits of producers of
substitutes are up

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 Principle of Competitive Markets

Competitive threat of substitutes is

stronger when they are:
 Readily available

 Attractively priced

 Believed to have comparable or

better performance features
 Customer switching costs are low

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 Competitive Pressures From Suppliers
and Supplier-Seller Collaboration
 Whether supplier-seller relationships
represent a weak or strong
competitive force depends on
 Whether suppliers can exercise
sufficient bargaining leverage to
influence terms of supply in their
favor
 Extent and competitive
importance of collaborative
partnerships between one or
more sellers and their suppliers
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 Competitive Force of Suppliers
 Suppliers are a strong competitive force when:
 Item makes up large portion of product costs,
is crucial to production process, and/or
significantly affects product quality
 It is costly for buyers to switch suppliers
 They have good reputations and
growing demand
 They can supply a component cheaper than
industry members can make it themselves
 They do not have to contend with substitutes
 Buying firms are not important customers
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 Competitive Pressures: Collaboration
Between Sellers and Suppliers
 Rival sellers are forming long-term strategic
partnerships with select suppliers to
 Promote just-in-time deliveries and
reduced inventory and logistic costs
 Speed availability of next-generation
components
 Enhance quality of parts being supplied
 Reduce suppliers’ costs which paves way for
lower prices on items supplied
 Competitive advantage potential may accrue to
industry rivals doing the best job of managing
supply-chain relationships
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 Principle of Competitive Markets

Suppliers are a stronger force the

more they can exercise power over:
 Prices charged

 Quality and
performance
of items supplied
 Reliability of deliveries

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 Competitive Pressures From Buyers
and Seller-Buyer Collaboration
 Whether seller-buyer relationships
represent a weak or strong
competitive force depends on

 Whether buyers have sufficient

bargaining leverage to influence
terms of sale in their favor

 Extent and competitive

importance of collaborative
partnerships between one or
more sellers and their customers
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 Competitive Force of Buyers
 Buyers are a strong competitive force when:
 They are large and purchase a sizable
percentage of industry’s product
 They buy in large quantities
 They can integrate backward
 Industry’s product is standardized
 Their costs in switching to substitutes or other
brands are low
 They can purchase from several sellers
 Product purchased does not save buyer
money
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 Competitive Pressures: Collaboration
Between Sellers and Buyers
 Partnerships are an increasingly important
competitive element in business-to-business
relationships
 Collaboration may result in mutual benefits regarding
 Just-in-time deliveries
 Order processing
 Electronic invoice payments
 On-line sharing of sales at the cash register
 Competitive advantage potential may accrue to
industry rivals who do the best job of managing
seller-buyer partnerships

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 Principle of Competitive Markets

Buyers are a stronger competitive

force the more they have leverage to
bargain over:
 Price
 Quality
 Service
 Other terms and
conditions of sale
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 Strategic Implications of the
Five Competitive Forces
 Competitive environment is unattractive
from the standpoint of earning
good profits when:
 Rivalry is strong

 Entry barriers are low

and entry is likely
 Competition from
substitutes is strong
 Suppliers and customers have
considerable bargaining power
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 Strategic Implications of the
Five Competitive Forces
 Competitive environment is ideal from
a profit-making standpoint when:
 Rivalry is moderate

 Entry barriers are high

and no firm is likely to
enter
 Good substitutes do
not exist
 Suppliers and customers are in a
weak bargaining position
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 Coping With the
Five Competitive Forces
 Objective is to craft a strategy

 To insulate firm from

competitive forces

 To help make the “rules,”

placing added pressure on rivals

 Which allows firm to define the

business model for the industry
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 Question 3: What Forces Are at
Work to Change Industry Conditions?
 Industries change because forces
are driving industry participants
to alter their actions

 Driving forces are the

major underlying causes
of changing industry and
competitive conditions

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 Analyzing Driving Forces

1. Identify those forces likely to exert

greatest influence over next 1 - 3 years
 Usually no more than 3 - 4
factors qualify as real
drivers of change
2. Assess impact
 What difference will the
forces make - favorable?
unfavorable?

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 Common Types of Driving Forces

 Internet and e-commerce opportunities

 Increasing globalization of industry
 Changes in long-term industry growth rate

 Changes in who buys the product and how

they use it
 Product innovation
 Technological change/process innovation

 Marketing innovation
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 Common Types of Driving Forces
 Entry or exit of major firms
 Diffusion of technical knowledge
 Changes in cost and efficiency
 Market shift from standardized to differentiated
products (or vice versa)
 Regulatory policies / government legislation
 Changing societal concerns, attitudes, and
lifestyles
 Changes in degree of uncertainty and risk
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 Environmental Scanning

Definition
Monitoring and interpreting sweep of social,
political, economic, ecological, and technological
events to spot budding trends that could
eventually impact industry

Purpose
Raise consciousness of managers about potential
developments that could
 Have important impact on industry conditions
 Pose new opportunities and threats
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 Question 4: Which Companies are in
Strongest / Weakest Positions?
 One technique for revealing the different
competitive positions of industry rivals is
strategic group mapping
 A strategic group
consists of those
rivals with similar
competitive
approaches in
an industry

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 Strategic Group Mapping
 Firms in same strategic group have two or
more competitive characteristics in common
 Sell in same price/quality range
 Cover same geographic areas
 Be vertically integrated to same degree
 Have comparable product line breadth
 Emphasize same types of distribution
channels
 Offer buyers similar services
 Use identical technological approaches
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 Procedure for Constructing a
Strategic Group Map
STEP 1: Identify competitive characteristics that
differentiate firms in an industry from one
another
STEP 2: Plot firms on a two-variable map using
pairs of these differentiating
characteristics
STEP 3: Assign firms that fall in about the same
strategy space to same strategic group
STEP 4: Draw circles around each group, making
circles proportional to size of group’s
respective share of total industry sales
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 Example: Strategic Group Map of the
Video Game Industry
Low
(Coin-operated
Suppliers/Distribution Channels

equipment) Arcade
operators
Types of Video Game

Publishers
Low of games on
(Coin-operated CD-ROMs
Sony, Sega,
equipment)
Nintendo, several
others
Low
(Coin-operated
equipment) MSN Gaming Zone,
Pogo.com,
America Online,
Low HEAT, Engage,
(Coin-operated Oceanline, TEN
equipment)
Low Medium High
(Coin-operated (Video players (Use PC)
equipment) cost $100-$300)
Overall Cost to Players of Video Games
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 Guidelines: Strategic Group Maps
 Variables selected as axes should not be highly
correlated
 Variables chosen as axes should expose big
differences in how rivals compete
 Variables do not have to be either quantitative or
continuous
 Drawing sizes of circles proportional to combined
sales of firms in each strategic group allows map
to reflect relative sizes of each strategic group
 If more than two good competitive variables can
be used, several maps can be drawn
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 Interpreting Strategic Group Maps

 Driving forces and competitive pressures

often favor some strategic groups and hurt
others
 Profit potential of different strategic groups
varies due to strengths and weaknesses in
each group’s market position
 The closer strategic groups are on map, the
stronger the competitive rivalry among
member firms tends to be
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 Question 5: What Strategic Moves Are
Rivals Likely to Make Next?
 A firm’s own best strategic moves are affected by

 Current strategies of competitors

 Future actions of competitors

 Profiling key rivals involves gathering

competitive intelligence about their
 Current strategies

 Most recent moves

 Resource strengths and weaknesses

 Announced plans
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 Competitor Analysis
 Successful strategists take great pains
in scouting competitors to
 Understand their strategies
 Watch their actions
 Evaluate their vulnerability to driving
forces and competitive pressures
 Size up their resource strengths and
weaknesses and their capabilities
 Try to anticipate rivals’ next moves
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 Table 3.3: Categorizing Objectives
and Strategies of Competitors
Competitive Strategic Market Share Competitive Strategic Competitive
Scope Intent Objective Position Posture Strategy
• Aggressive • Getting • Striving for
• Be dominant • Mostly
• Local expansion stronger; on low-cost
leader offensive
via the move leadership
• Overtake acquisition &
internal • Well- • Mostly • Focusing on
• Regional industry
growth entrenched defensive market niche
leader
• Be among • Expansion • Stuck in the • Combination • Pursuing
• National industry via internal middle of the of offensive differentiation
leaders growth pack & defensive based on
Quality
• Expansion • Going after a
• Move into • Aggressive Service
• Multicountry via different
top 10 risk-taker Technology
acquisition position
superiority
• Move up a • Hold on to • Struggling; Breadth of
• Conservative
• Global notch in present losing product line
follower
rankings share ground Image &

• Maintain • Give up reputation

More value
current present • Retrenching
position share to for the
to a position
achieve money
that can be Other
• Just survive short-term defended
profits attributes

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 Predicting Moves of Rivals
 Predicting rivals’ next moves involves
 Analyzing their current competitive positions
 Examining public pronouncements about
what it will take to be successful in industry
 Gathering information from grapevine about
current activities and potential changes
 Studying past actions and leadership
 Determining who has flexibility to make major
strategic changes and who is locked into
pursuing same basic strategy
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 Question 6: What are the Key Factors
for Competitive Success?
 Competitive elements most affecting every
industry member’s ability to prosper
 Specific strategy elements
 Product attributes
 Resources
 Competencies
 Competitive capabilities
 KSFs spell the difference between
 Profit and loss
 Competitive success or failure
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 Identifying Industry
Key Success Factors
 Answers to three questions pinpoint KSFs
 On what basis do customers choose between
competing brands of sellers?
 What resources and competitive capabilities
does a seller need to have to be
competitively successful?
 What does it take for sellers to achieve a
sustainable competitive advantage?
 KSFs consist of the 3 - 5 really major
determinants of financial and
competitive success in an industry
52
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 Table 3.3: Common Types of
Key Success Factors
Scientific research expertise; Product innovation capability; Expertise
Technology-
in a given technology; Capability to use Internet to conduct various
related business activities
Low-cost production efficiency; Quality of manufacture; High use of
Manufacturing- fixed assets; Low-cost plant locations; High labor productivity; Low-
related cost product design; Flexibility to make a range of products
Strong network of wholesale distributors/dealers; Gaining ample
Distribution-
space on retailer shelves; Having company-owned retail outlets; Low
related distribution costs; Fast delivery
Fast, accurate technical assistance; Courteous customer service;
Marketing-
Accurate filling of orders; Breadth of product line; Merchandising
related skills; Attractive styling; Customer guarantees; Clever advertising
Superior workforce talent; Quality control know-how; Design
Skills-related expertise; Expertise in a particular technology; Ability to develop
innovative products; Ability to get new products to market quickly
Superior information systems; Ability to respond quickly to shifting
Organizational market conditions; Superior ability to employ Internet to conduct
capability business; More experience & managerial know-how
Favorable image/reputation with buyers; Overall low-cost; Convenient
Other types locations; Pleasant, courteous employees; Access to financial capital;
Patent protection
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 Example: KSFs for Beer Industry

 Utilization of brewing capacity -- to keep

manufacturing costs low
 Strong network of wholesale distributors --
to gain access to retail outlets
 Clever advertising -- to induce beer drinkers
to buy a particular brand

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 Example: KSFs for Apparel
Manufacturing Industry
 Fashion design -- to
create buyer appeal

 Low-cost manufacturing
efficiency -- to keep selling
prices competitive

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 Example: KSFs for Tin and
Aluminum Can Industry
 Locating plants close to end-use
customers -- to keep costs of shipping
empty cans low
 Ability to market plant output within
economical shipping distances

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 Strategic Management Principle

A sound strategy incorporates

efforts to be competent on all
industry key success factors and
to excel on at least one factor!

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 Question 7: Is the Industry
Attractive or Unattractive and Why?

Objective
Develop conclusions about whether the industry
and competitive environment is attractive or
unattractive, both near- and long-term, for
earning good profits

Principle
A firm uniquely well-suited in an otherwise
unattractive industry can, under certain
circumstances, still earn unusually good profits
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 Things to Consider in
Assessing Industry Attractiveness
 Industry’s market size and growth potential
 Whether competitive conditions are conducive to
rising/falling industry profitability
 Will competitive forces become stronger or
weaker
 Whether industry will be favorably or unfavorably
impacted by driving forces
 Potential for entry/exit of major firms
 Stability/dependability of demand
 Severity of problems facing industry
 Degree of risk and uncertainty in industry’s future
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McGraw-Hill/Irwin Copyright © 2001 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
 Conducting an Industry and
Competitive Situation Analysis
 Two things to keep in mind

1. Evaluating industry and competitive

conditions cannot be reduced to a
formula-like exercise--thoughtful
analysis is essential

2. Sweeping industry and competitive

analyses need to done every 1 to 3
years
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McGraw-Hill/Irwin Copyright © 2001 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.