Competitive advantage: 'The emperor has no clothes!

• Author: Bacanu B.
• Pages: 99-106

Bulletin of the Transilvania University of Braşov

Series V: Economic Sciences • Vol. 9 (58) No. 1 - 2016

Competitive advantage:

“The emperor has no clothes!”

Bogdan BĂCANU1

Abstract: The study is focused on a concept worth cornerstone of strategic management

theory: competitive advantage. The trigger of this study is generated by the remarkable

disparity between the pros and cons as to the significance of the concept. It starts from the

research of the main aspects of the logic of defining the concept. It pointed out some

dilemmatic aspects revealed by the few existing critics. Related to the main concept, it

marked several key elements which question its status as a reference. These items are related

to the nature of the competition and of the company in the current economy.

Key-words: competitive advantage, competition, strategic management

1. Introduction about the image of a concept

Reading any current book on strategic management theory highlights the high

frequency of use of the concept of “competitive advantage”. Concept ubiquity

motivate, in a first phase, a more careful scrutiny of the quantitative aspects related

to bibliographic sources paternity associated and means of dissemination of the

concept. Assuming that the dissemination of the concept is due to its positive impact

on the field of strategy, it remains to count the quantitative elements marking a

contrary or dilemmatic opinion.

In the second phase of research, some substantive issues associated with the

concept will be analysed. Their list would start with concept definition, will then

explain the many direct links to other important definitions of strategic management,

to immediate theoretical implications and direct consequences in practice. As lists of

links and implications can be assumed to be quite large and significant, given the

concept ubiquity in wide circulation texts, marking the initial focus on the essential

elements would be sufficient to define the study.

The use of “competitive advantage” exploded in strategic management theory

after 1985. It is the year of Michael Porter's book “Competitive Advantage”

launching and after that the notion appears as an essential concept in strategy,

associated with this author. In 1991 the status concept is reinforced by Jay Barney in

1 Transilvania University of Braşov, b.bacanu@unitbv.ro