Abstract This article explains #core_competence_theory in plain language for students meeting strategic-management ideas for the first time, while keeping the shape of a formal journal article. The central claim of the theory is easy to state and hard to live up to: an organization succeeds over the long run not mainly because of where it sits in its market, but because it builds bundles of #unique_skills that rivals cannot easily copy. The article reviews the founding statem

Abstract This article asks a simple question with a long history: why do some firms keep outperforming others in the same market? The standard answer comes from #competitive_advantage theory, which says that a firm wins by being the lowest-cost producer, by offering something buyers see as different and better, or by serving a narrow segment very well. These are Porter's three #generic_strategies of cost leadership, differentiation, and focus. The study reviews this body of w

#Path_Dependence_Theory explains why decisions made in the past often continue to shape decisions in the present. The theory is useful for students because it shows that organizations, institutions, technologies, and societies do not always choose the best option at every moment. Instead, they often follow routes created by #earlier_decisions, existing investments, habits, rules, power relations, and social expectations. A small choice made at one point can become difficult t