Discussion on What are core products? What is their contribution to an effective corporate-level strategy? Provide examples to support your answer.

The products of the business discussed in this case are lighting products and other electronics products.  When companies were facing increasing competition they planned to introduce huge changes in the business strategies. They decided to bring changes in the products and jumped to the innovative electronic solutions e.g. laptop and computer sales instead of over-relying on television. For an effective corporate level strategy companies supported competitive advantages for the business. They primarily focused on the competence building by increasing capacity and learning skills of employees at the workplace. A tree root of the competence model was developed with a focus on 3M competence. They applied three tests to identify major competencies in the business. Thus, based on this experiment they identified that business needs to focus on core products instead of core competences. Considering this they identified core products are the tangible link between end products and core competencies. For instance, the engine is a core product for Honda.

Reply: 1

Yes, I agree with you. Companies are required to bring changes in their core competencies in order to meet the requirement of the competition. In my opinion, companies focusing on the improvement of their products instead of change trends in market and competitor products fails to secure sustainable business growth.

Reply: 2

Yes, you are right future outcomes of a business depends upon the strategic architecture and corporate strategy of the company. In my views, while developing a strategy to regulate the business operations of all departments corporate managers should pay special attention to the business objectives and available skills of its workforce.  

Reply: 3

Well, you raised a valid point about this case. Companies working in the extreme competition are required to outperform with attractive corporate strategies. Canon, Honda, GTE, and all other companies discussed in this case were mainly focused on the core competencies in past which were later on changed as they identified core products.