Strategic Management

Based on the Case Study "Burger King" Case 18, starting on page 18-1, complete the following requirements:

• Using the Week 1 Addendum, identify Burger Kings's resources, capabilities, and core competencies (No less than 5 of each)
• Provide three findings of fact.  Students are not required to provide recommendations and justifications for these findings of fact.

Additional Information to help with discussion:

[1] MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE: Findings of Fact shall be independent one from another; thus, none are dependent upon or related to any other Finding of Fact.

[2] CITED (see source as Wheelen et al, 18-4 below): Finding of Fact #1: Expenses rose dramatically from 81.8% to 87.8% between 2009 and 2010 (Wheelen et al, 18-4)

[3] MOST CRITICAL ISSUE: the most critical issue may be viewed as the single most important fact that absent remediation, correction or reduction of “this” fact, no other Finding of Fact (issue) has immediate meaning. For our purposes, as your instructor, I liken it to suggesting that some might put a band aid on scratch of an accident victim yet the victim has an obstructed airway. The most critical issue then is the blocked airway, not the scratch. The scratch though a concern is one to be dealt with later. My point and hope is that through the course I can help each better employ critical reasoning and thinking to determine from the Case material the most critical issue. My hint for almost every case is this: almost without a doubt the critical issue will be “money”, either a lack of it, a lack of access to it, or a complete failure to account/control for money in the form of costs and or revenues.  

Resources

Resources are inputs into a firm's production process, such as financial capital, equipment, the skills of individual employees, patents, finance, and talented managers. Each case study paper/presentation will contain the resources identified.

Capabilities

Capabilities is the capacity for a set of resources to integratively perform a task or and activity. Through continued use, capabilities become stronger and more difficult for competitors to understand and imitate and usually lead to a competitive advantage. Each case study paper/presentation will contain the capabilities identified.

Core Competencies

Core competencies is a resource and/or capability that service as a source of competitive advantage for a firm over its rivals. A firm's functional skills. What the firm does better than its competitors. Each case study paper/presentation will contain the core competencies identified.

Findings of Fact

Findings of fact are strategic issues discussed in the case studies and usually identify potential problem areas for the firm. Additionally, these strategic issues are facing the firm’s strategic managers at the end of the case’s time frame. Strategic problem statements. Each case study paper/presentation will identify three findings of fact. Usually the findings of fact are one to two sentences each in length.