DIY Store
According to the text, the DID Store is a nationwide chain that offers everything from home repair to general maintenance equipment for do-it-yourself projects. In addition to the wide variety of goods they sell, the DID Company has been very successful due to the customer service they provide by hiring experienced employers and strategically placing them into departments that complement their knowledge and skills.
Despite the success that DID has seen since they entered the market, DID noticed hat they were losing competitive advantage to more convenient online resources. Rather than trying to come up with marketing and sales schemes to bring consumers back to the stores, DID brought its services to the consumers via the Internet. DID Stores utilized its existing core capabilities to build an online presence and improve its overall agility by training their pre-existing subject matter experts into online subject matter experts.
According to the book, core capabilities are the knowledge, expertise, and skills that underlie a company’s ability to be a leader in providing a range of specific goods or revise. DID Stores Vice President said, “The Company’s salespeople were its base of knowledge. ” That is because DID Stores hired retired trade workers and do-it- propellers and then assigned them to work in departments relative to their experience.
Regional managers then chose current employees with at least eight {ears of experience and sound writing samples to provide an online presence for the company.
Then DID Stores provided a three-day training program to two-dozen selected employees before they began their conversations as online sales associates. Finally, in order to prevent losing competitive advantage, and the hands-on and face- to face experience that kept DID Stores in touch and up-to-date with consumers, they Chose to stagger work schedules among the selected employees so they could work part time in the store and part time online.
The organization around the DID Stores’ Core capabilities was implemented so well, that it was met with immediate success {leading thousands of blob conversations within months. Additionally, in an unexpected development, the online sales associates also became a valued source of knowledge for Days other employees. Before DID Stores chain implemented its online services to target more consumers, its large size presented many problems that affected the company’s agility, or ability to adapt to consumer demands.
The consumers wanted the convenience that the Internet offered and DID Stores was losing its competitive advantage to the Internet. Irish also meant that revenue was on a decline and the costs of running so many stores couldn’t be ignored. It was in an overcome and adapt type of situation, and DID Stores’ solution was to transform their preexisting experts into online experts, so they could provide the same goods and services online that they offered in their stores, and ultimately prevent becoming a statistic of natural selection to Internet competition.
Online technology made it easier to provide expertise to more consumers faster and it was more convenient for the consumer. The fact that DID stores had so many chain stores and employees also allowed them to stagger work shifts so their employee experts could work both in the store part time and online part time. .
) In order to increase agility, DID Stores increased its amount of service platforms.
In today’s world, there are many other means of delivering goods and services to consumers using the Internet and other technologies other than Just their current online website. For example DID Stores could offer a 24-hour call center or other phone service; they could implement an online social network medium, or simply Improve or expand the services on their preexisting website like adding a forum. These are Just a few examples of ways to increase agility, but like anything else, the many must first analyze the cost and benefits associated with each one.
Through the process I have learned that keeping up with consumer demands is important for maintaining competitive advantage over competition. Additionally recognition and organization of your company’s core capabilities can help to reduce costs and provide quality services if you utilize them effectively.
Finally, I learned that agility is the key to adapting to consumer demands. In order to be effective at selling {Our goods and services you must first be effective at marketing and distributing them.
