23A: Your Venture's Unfair Advantage

Generate a list of all of the resources in your venture (produce a list of at least 10 resources that you already possess). This can include your human capital, social capital, financial capital, and capabilities. You may also discuss the organizational culture you intend to create (but, obviously, it's not a resource that you have, now.)

Resource
Rare?
Valuable?
Inimitable?
Unlimited digital textbook access for students
Yes
Yes
Yes
1 employee (me)
No
Yes
No
Exclusive digital rights to Pearson, McGraw Hill, and other publisher titles
Yes
Yes
Yes
Convenience for low-income students
Yes
Yes
No
Proprietary digital textbook viewing software
Yes
Yes
No
Social media skills
No
Yes
No
Graphic design proficiency
No
Yes
No
Exclusive right to provide textbooks to University of Florida students
Yes
Yes
Yes
Non-piratability
Yes
Yes
Yes

My most important resource is the exclusivity of textbook titles from Pearson and McGraw Hill. By being able to offer the most-used titles by universities, more schools are likely to sign with us as their textbook service.

Comments

  1. VictoriaApril 7, 2019 at 10:41 PM

    I think you have identified your most important resource well. I think the exclusivity of the textbooks titles makes your service stand out significantly. I do think that convenience plays a large role in your business as well. So many people will pay a little extra for the convenience. I know I often use uber for example to get to places that I may otherwise be able to walk to. In this way I am simply paying for convenience and I think you could build on this as well.

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  2. Carlos DaireauxApril 8, 2019 at 9:51 PM

    Hey Fede,
    First off I must say great organization of the resources listed in your VRIN analysis, it was an easy read and visually more beneficial than the way I did it. I would recommend explaining in more detail why each variable listed values as a YES or NO with respect to its Rarity, Imitability, and Substitutability. I thought you did an excellent job at identifying your most prominent resource, and this shows you are aware and comprehend your position in the market. Great post!

    ReplyDelete
  3. ChrisApril 8, 2019 at 10:59 PM

    I really enjoyed your organization for your VRIN analysis. It’s easy to follow and you identified some good resources. Exclusive rights to Exclusive digital rights to Pearson, McGraw Hill, and other publisher titles is definitely your one of your top resources. The exclusive right to provide text books to UF students is also an important resource and will help eliminate competition.

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