Sustained competitive advantage based on high quality input

Summary

It is often observed that some firms perform better than others within a population of firms producing the same products . In this paper, potential sources for creating sustained competitive advantages are addressed. According to the resource-based view of the firm, this phenomenon is rooted in heterogenic firm resources and immobility of key resources. This paper reports the findings from an empirical study of the Norwegian seafood industry. By analyzing internal financial statements in a period of 12 years it is revealed that some firms perform over average compared to its competitors. These firms are said to have a competitive advantage. Based on this observation it is analyzed how firms act to cope with input uncertainty. The firms are grouped according to their relative performance, and it is found that the best performing group is supplied with high quality fresh fish. The paper discusses implications of the findings, both managerial and theoretical.