ITPEC FE Morning April 2023 Question 69

An engine idle-reduction technology that competitors cannot imitate — a core technology creates competitive advantage because it is the company's own and hard to copy.

A core technology is a proprietary technology at the centre of a company's products that others cannot easily imitate and that can be applied across products; it is the technological side of core competence. The idle-reduction technology in (c) is both the company's own and inimitable, so it sets the company's products apart.

Answer (c)

Why not others:

• •(a) — combining general components speeds development, but anyone can buy the same components, so no lasting advantage follows
• •(b) — using the same CPU core as competitors helps software portability but is by definition shared with them
• •(d) — standard interfaces agreed in an alliance are used in common by all members, so they level the field rather than differentiate

Key rule: A source of competitive advantage must be unique and hard to imitate; anything general, shared or standardised cannot be one.

Technological Strategy Management · AI-written, may contain errors