Extraction procedure of competitive advantage factors in a target business area for conducting self‐assessment and re‐design of quality management system

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to propose a extraction procedure of competitive advantage factors that a company needs to have organizational capabilities, and leads the company to make a sustainable business success. By using the proposed method, a company can conduct a self‐assessment based on the factors, and re‐design its own quality management system, then realize the competitive advantage in a target business area.

Design/methodology/approach

By collecting and analyzing the strategy data of six business areas in company A and conducting the interview to the project team in each business area for six months, the decision‐making mechanism and its pattern of the competitive advantage factors are examined, then the self‐assessment method of quality management system is proposed.

Findings

The decision‐making mechanism for competitive advantage factors is clarified. The customer value that is one of elements in the mechanism is categorized. And the analyzing method for specifying the core customer value and the organizational capability that leads customers directly to select a company's own product is established.

Originality/value

The originality of this paper is in establishing a self‐assessment method that follows the concept of “evaluation design.” This means not using pre‐established evaluation criteria for all companies in all types of business, as is done in conventional research, but rather, designing criteria based on the competitive advantage factors in a target business area and then reflecting those factors into its own quality management system.

Citation

Kaneko, M. and Munechika, M. (2012), "Extraction procedure of competitive advantage factors in a target business area for conducting self‐assessment and re‐design of quality management system", Asian Journal on Quality, Vol. 13 No. 1, pp. 53-66. https://doi.org/10.1108/15982681211237824