The Difference Between a Core Competence and a Distinctive Competence

question 33

Multiple Choice

The difference between a core competence and a distinctive competence is that

• A) a distinctive competence refers to a company's strongest resource or competitive capability and a core competence refers to a company's lowest-cost and most efficiently executed value-chain activity.
• B) a core competence usually resides in a company's base of intellectual capital whereas a distinctive competence stems from the superiority of a company's physical and tangible assets.
• C) a core competence is a competitively relevant activity which a firm performs especially well in comparison to the other activities it performs, whereas a distinctive competence is a competitively relevant activity which a firm performs especially well in comparison to other firms with which it competes.
• D) a core competence represents a resource strength whereas a distinctive competence is achieved by having more resource strengths than rival companies.
• E) a core competence usually resides in a company's technology and physical assets whereas a distinctive competence usually resides in a company's know-how, expertise, and intellectual capital.

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Definitions:

Circadian Rhythms

Biological processes or cycles that occur on a roughly 24-hour schedule in living organisms, governing physiological and behavioral changes.

Continual Darkness

An environmental condition where there is a constant absence of light, which can affect growth, behavior, and biological rhythms in organisms.

Stomata

Small openings on the surface of plant leaves and stems that allow for gas exchange between the environment and the plant's internal tissues.

Temporal Mechanisms

Processes or systems that operate over time to regulate biological or physical events in a chronological manner.