“Why do some companies outperform others?” That question is particularly important to ask in industries which are fiercely competitive like the tech sector. Companies competing in these industries find it difficult to achieve competitive advantage and sustain it over the longer run. In this course, you will learn about 21st century competition, the forces driving it, and the challenges it poses for companies. Using that as the backdrop, you will learn how to analyze a company's external and internal environments and develop powerful strategies that allow companies to gain a sustainable competitive advantage even in fast-cycle markets. The course will describe companies that have successfully outperformed their competitors even in the fiercely competitive markets of the 21st century.

After completing this course, you will be able to: - Describe what a competitive strategy is and how it is formulated. - Analyze the macro-environmental factors and identify opportunities and threats. - Analyze industry forces and draw conclusions about the industry’s profitability. - Describe the concept of competitive advantage and its importance. - Describe the circumstances under which competitive advantage is sustainable. - Analyze the value chain and understand its contribution to competitive advantage. - Explain how companies compete on price using a cost leadership strategy. - Describe how companies compete on their unique features using a differentiation strategy. - Explain how companies can offer both low prices and unique features simultaneously. - Describe how to choose a value-creating competitive strategy. Software Requirements: None