The TOM Challenge: TOM Winners and Losers Assignment

December 09, 2015

Read The Full Prompt

The basic thesis of the TOM course is that company performance is driven by the alignment between the company’s business model and operating model. As defined in the “Introduction to the RC TOM Course” note, a business model is defined as how the firm creates and captures value, and an operating model refers to the processes that transform a firm’s assets (e.g., capital, labor, intellectual property, equipment, etc.) into valuable actions.

Please identify one organization in the global economy that you think is highly effective (or one that is highly ineffective) at driving alignment between its operating and business models

  1. Did you choose the company as an example of effectiveness or ineffectiveness? Why?
  2. Describe the company’s business and operating models. What is interesting about them?
  3. Do the models align and support each other?  How?  What specific features of the operating model are designed to create and sustain competitive advantage?  What features of the business model leverage unique capabilities of its operating model?  What are the implications for performance?

Submitted (929)

Prosper Marketplace – 21st Century E-Peer-to-Peer and Institutional E-Lending
boris
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 10:48 pm
Prosper Marketplace is a modern peer-to-peer and e-institutional lending marketplace, efficiently matching borrower and lender supply and demand.
Rebuilding LEGO
Jeremy 'Just a guy' Whyte
Posted on December 9, 2015 at 8:12 pm
After being on the brink of disaster in 2004, LEGO made a number of critical decisions around product innovation and user engagement that saved the company.
Wawa: Rethinking the Convenience Store Experience
Sasha
Posted on December 9, 2015 at 6:36 pm
What is Wawa? Technically speaking, Wawa is a privately-owned chain of gas station convenience stores. However, ask the average Pennsylvanian, and you’ll hear something along the lines of “best place in the world.” Wawa has become an iconic stop-and-shop destination [...]
GrubHub: Connecting 6.5 million hungry people with 35,000 restaurants
SarahMascioli
Last modified on December 7, 2015 at 9:39 pm
GrubHub: Connecting 6.5 million hungry people with 35,000 restaurants
#Kaylascult – From passion project to full fledged, multi-national fitness empire
Purple haze
Last modified on December 6, 2015 at 2:45 pm
A business born on social media simplicity #Kaylascult
Red Bull doesn’t make anything… except money
Andrea
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 6:36 pm
They’re an Austrian marketing company that owns cars, jet-planes, and sports teams, but does not own manufacturing plants.
MyEyeDr: Bringing Together Eye Care and Eyewear
JohnSmith
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 3:54 pm
How an optometry chain branded on care may be the best retailer in the category
Slacking Off to Get More Done
Damjan
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 11:12 pm
More and more companies are using Slack as their internal collaboration tool of choice. Why has this chat app found so much success in cracking the enterprise market?
Drybar: “Turning Hot Air Into Big Business”
Norawessel
Posted on December 8, 2015 at 2:51 pm
Building a blowout empire with a stellar brand, stylist team, and customer experience
Blue Apron: Lifelong Learning For All
Jamie
Last modified on December 5, 2015 at 11:44 pm
In the culinary world, the Blue Apron is a symbol of lifelong learning in the kitchen. Will Blue Apron be able to draw inspiration from its namesake and continue to innovate for its customers?
Bonobos: A Better Fitting Model for a Better Fitting Pant
Sarah
Last modified on December 2, 2015 at 7:08 pm
How Bonobos is capturing the best of both worlds as it straddles the line between digital and physical retailing.
Revolution Foods: Solving America’s Food Crisis
Meg
Last modified on December 8, 2015 at 6:08 pm
“Real Food for All” - Delivering Fresh Lunches to Schools
Pemex: Mexico’s state oil company operational inefficiencies
MarcelaLopezMacias
Last modified on December 1, 2015 at 8:06 pm
Pemex’s operational inefficiencies have become more evident as the company prepares to face private competition in 2016 for the first time since 1938
Blue Apron and the Race to Innovate Dinner
scox
Posted on December 9, 2015 at 8:52 pm
Blue Apron seeks to make home cooking accessible and convenient by delivering creative recipes and fresh ingredients to customers nationwide.
Let’s Get It On(line): Tawkify Dating Concierge
H
Posted on December 9, 2015 at 9:13 pm
“Maybe the best date I’ve had in a few years. No joke. I really appreciate the work and care Kate put in for this match.” –Tawkify customer * Online dating today often happens one of three unpleasant ways. 1) Endless [...]
Post-Conflict Turnaround: The Sale of a Country on a Thousand Hills.
SheilaK
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 6:15 pm
How a government was able to successfully apply a business turnaround strategy to a governance challenge.
Progressive Insurance: Flo is an Operational Genius
vkern
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 8:17 pm
Progressive Insurance is a great example of a company that has truly aligned its business model and operating model to achieve true “operational innovation”. Operational innovation, goes beyond reducing defects or making processes more efficient within a company by completely [...]
Wikipedia: Information in the 21st Century
Prasad
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 12:13 am
“Imagine a world in which every single person on the planet is given free access to the sum of all human knowledge.” ~ Jimmy Wales (Founder of Wikimedia Foundation)
Everlane: Winning with ‘Radical Transparency’
AFE
Last modified on December 5, 2015 at 5:12 pm
Everlane is an online retailer offering elevated “basics” (i.e. white t-shirts, cashmere sweaters, leather tote bags). Everlane’s entire business model is centered on “price transparency” in their products. Everlane is targeting the millennial shopper who believe in companies with a [...]
Petrobras: Government Mandated Operation Model is a Misfit
Anas
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 6:41 pm
Government mandate to operate all pre-salt fields is model at odds with Petrobras' stakeholders' interests, including those of government.
Your doctor is on the line: Teladoc
ABCD
Posted on December 9, 2015 at 9:36 pm
How you can get a doctor on your smartphone in ten minutes or less.
BaubleBar: Fast Fashion Disrupting the Jewelry Industry
Palak
Last modified on December 7, 2015 at 6:59 pm
BaubleBar is striving to become the go-to destination for fashion jewelry by providing the latest trends at an affordable price.
Zocdoc – Trust Above All Else
Cary S
Posted on December 9, 2015 at 11:35 pm
Zocdoc: Giving Power to The Patient
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