Advanced Competitive Strategy on Coursera

• Introduction
• Switching Costs I: Importance of Customer Loyalty
• Switching Costs II: Types of Switching Costs
• Customer Value
• Lock-In Strategies I: New Suppliers
• Lock-In Strategies II: Customers
• Lock-In Strategies III: Old Suppliers
• Wrap Up

Additional readings (not required for completing the course)

• Shapiro C, Varian H. 1999. Information Rules, Harvard Business School Press, pp. 103-134 and pp. 170-171.
• Gourville JT. 2006. “Eager Sellers, Stony Buyers: Understanding the Psychology of New-Product Adoption” Harvard Business Review, 84(6): 98-106.

Content

We will look at the benefits of price discrimination as a strategic tool that can help us to skim off our customer’s willingness to pay and increase our utility accordingly. We are then going to learn the different ways of aligning a price discrimination strategy with successful product design and the three different ways in which a price discrimination strategy can be formulated.

Videos

• Introduction
• Price Discrimination I: Reasons to Discriminate
• Price Discrimination II: Synchronization with Product Differentiation
• First Degree Price Discrimination
• Second Degree Price Discrimination
• Third Degree Price Discrimination
• Intertemporal Pricing
• Wrap Up

Additional readings (not required for completing the course)

• Miravete E. 2004. “Are all those Calling Plans Really Necessary? The Limited Gains From Complex Tariffs” CEPR Working Paper.
• Shapiro C, Varian HR. 1999. Information Rules, Harvard Business School Press, pp. 53-64 and pp. 80-81.
• Cabral LMB. 2000. Introduction to Industrial Organization, MIT Press, pp. 167-184.
• McAfee RP. 2002. Competitive Solutions, Princeton University Press, pp. 260-288.

Content

In this module we will demonstrate that if you want to operate a business you have to keep in mind that there are some powerful external entities, so-called competition authorities, that highly value and safeguard competition. While this supports and opens up opportunities for your business if it is new or relatively small and would otherwise simply be crushed by larger incumbent firms – it can also put you in danger if you have already achieved a certain size, have acquired more market power are already in a rather powerful position.

Videos

• Introduction
• Competition Policy I: Reasons for Competition Policy
• Competition Policy II: Instruments
• Ban on Cartels I: Cartel Agreements
• Ban on Cartels II: Factors Favoring Cartels
• Ban on Cartels III: Examples
• Abuse Control I: Defining Markets and Measuring Market Power
• Abuse Control II: Forms of Market Forclosure
• Wrap Up

Additional readings (not required for completing the course)

• Bishop S, Walker M. 2010. The Economics of EC Competition Law: Concepts, Application and Measurement, 3rd edition, Sweet & Maxwell.
• Connor JM. 2001. “Our Customers Are Our Enemies: The Lysine Cartel of 1992–1995” Review of Industrial Organization, 18(1): 5-21.
• Motta M. 2004. Competition Policy: Theory and Practice, Cambridge University Press.

Content

In this module, we are going to discover two very important new concepts with which you can increase your business’s returns: Network effects and boundaries of the firm. We will find that considering these two concepts in formulating our business strategy can help us improve our strategy’s effectiveness and eventually increase our returns.

Videos

• Introduction
• Network Goods
• Network Effects I: Direct Network Effects
• Network Effects II: Indirect Network Effects
• Market Structure in Network Industries
• Horizontal Firm Boundaries I: Economies of Scale
• Horizontal Firm Boundaries II: Economies of Scope
• Horizontal Firm Boundaries III: Diseconomies of Scale & Scope
• Vertical Firm Boundaries I: Reasons to Buy
• Vertical Firm Boundaries II: Reasons to Make
• Vertical Firm Boundaries III: Double Marginalization
• Wrap Up

Additional readings (not required for completing the course)

• Economides, N. Himmelberg, C. (1995). Critical Mass and Network Size with Application to the US FAX Market.
• Katz M, Shapiro C. (1994). “Systems Competition and Network Effects” Journal of Economic Perspectives, 8(2): 93-115.
• Besanko D, Dranove D, Shanley M, Schaefer S. 2007. Economics of Strategy, 4th ed., John Wiley & Sons, pp. 72-170.
• Cabral LMB. 2000. Introduction to Industrial Organization, MIT Press, Chapter 11.

Content

We will built upon our knowledge from module 4 and look into competition in network markets, adoption rates and the advantage of critical mass. Following from this we will learn why this is essential for reaching the point of critical mass. We will moreover discuss ways in which companies can raise the attention of potential consumers and reduce their perceived risk.

Videos

• Introduction
• Diffusion and Utility in Network Industries
• Competing in Network Markets I: Achieving Critical Mass
• Competing in Network Markets II: Raising Attention and
• Downsizing Perceived Risks"
• Competing in Network Markets III: Strategies in Standardization
• Competing in Network Markets IV: Knowing the Target Market
• Competing in Network Markets V: Strategic Pricing
• Wrap Up

Additional readings (not required for completing the course)

• Ohashi, H. (2003): The Role of Network Effects in the US VCR Market, 1978 – 1986, in: Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, 12:4, pp. 447-494.
• Shy, O. (2001): The Economics of Network Industries, Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, UK, pp. 70-73.
• Varian, H. R. (2007): Intermediate Micro Economics: A Modern Approach, 6th edit., W. W. Norton, New York, USA.

Content

We will look at the trends, goals and processes of mergers and acquisitions, differentiate the two terms and examine external and internal factors that can hinder the process. We will also find out about the striking advantages that can make a successful merger or an acquisition worthwhile if you have identified the right match for your company and we will eventually learn about the process that is involved in real world M&A activities.

Videos

• Introduction
• Mergers and Acquisitions I: Trends
• Mergers and Acquisitions II: Differences
• Mergers and Acquisitions III: Goals for Partners and Buyers
• Mergers and Acquisitions IV: Goals for Targets
• M&A Process I: Overview
• M&A Process II: Pre Merger Considerations
• M&A Process III: Merger Control
• M&A Process IV: Post Merger Integration
• Success of M&As
• Wrap Up

Additional readings (not required for completing the course)

• Aiello RJ, Watkins M. 2000. “The Fine Art of Friendly Acquisitions” Harvard Business Review, 78(6): 100-107.
• Eccles RG, Lanes KL, Wilson TC. 1999. “Are You Paying Too Much for That Acquisition?” Harvard Business Review, 77(4): 136-146.
• Haspeslagh PC, Jemison DB. 1991. Managing Acquisitions – Creating Value Through Corporate Renewal, New York: The Free Press.
• Porter ME. 1980. Competitive Strategy, New York: The Free Press.

Content

In this special bonus module, we will discuss the relationship between profitability and growth on the one hand and the limitations that are faced by small companies on the other. We will learn what organic growth is and that it can be achieved by either protecting and building up our existing customer base and product lines, or by developing new products or markets – or, in turn, by diversifying our products portfolio. We will acknowledge and address external and internal limitations to growth and – as a final consideration – will look into the possibilities of international strategies for growth.

Videos

• Introduction
• Growth and Profitability
• Organic Growth
• (En)countering Limitations I: External Limitations
• (En)countering Limitations II: Internal Limitations
• International Strategies
• Wrap Up

Additional readings (not required for completing the course)

• Penrose E, "The Theory of The Growth of the Firm". Oxford University Press 1995. pp. 43-60.
• Ansoff H.I. 1957. Strategies for Diversification. Harvard Business Review, 35(5) : 113–124.
• Yin X, Zajac E. 2004. The strategy/governance structure fit relationship: theory and evidence in franchising arrangements. Strategic Management Journal 25(4): 365-383.