Authors

Competitive advantages of the «business integrity»

Conquerors of blue oceans (gazel-firms in Russia)

The article studies a Gazel-firm phenomenon (companies that have been showing fast and steady growth for a long period of time). The author reveals peculiarities of their development and reasons for deviation from general tendencies that are typical of similar companies in developed economies. The article contains specific examples and the results of entrepreneurs' questionnaire answers that show reasons for exponential growth of Gazel-firms.

Imitation as a competitive strategy

This article shows the role of imitation in shaping competitive advantages of the company. It is argued that in spite of the underestimation of the phenomenon in the economic literature, imitation may be the foundation of a number of competitive strategies used by Russian and foreign companies.

Thirty Years Later, or The Biological Approach to Competition Revisited

The article discusses the effectiveness of the biological approach of generic strategies of competition by L. G. Ramensky – J. P. Grime to economic processes. Four main strategies are considered: violent, patient, commutant, and explorant. The competitive advantages of firms adhering to these strategies, as well as interactions within the population of firms adhering to different strategies as a single system are considered. The main methodological technique used in the article is to compare the competitive situation in Russia thirty years ago, i. e. at the dawn of the development of market relations in the country, with what is happening now. The main changes that have occurred with firms adhering to each of the four generic strategies are characterized. It is argued that an important reason of the recent high resistance of the Russian economy to external shocks that came as a surprise to most economists is connected with the high adaptability of the system of competitive relations that has developed in the country. Read more...