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)

Rent The Runway: Giving You the Chance to Wear the Dress of Your Dreams
Theresa Glaser
Last modified on December 3, 2015 at 9:36 pm
Rent The Runway provides women with the opportunity to rent expensive clothing and accessories, which are typically outside of their budget, for a fraction of the cost
Caviar – Premium Bites at Your Doorstep
Chun Pan
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 1:00 am
Caviar allows customers to get food delivery from the most popular and top-rated Yelp restaurants. In most instances, Caviar is the ONLY way to get delivery from these eateries! Finally, a way to get Momofuku right to your doorstep.
TransferWise: Quicker and cheaper foreign exchange
Andy Thomas
Posted on December 9, 2015 at 9:29 pm
By creating a market for people with opposite currency requirements and leveraging an ‘all-digital’ approach, TransferWise is seeking to displace banks and create considerable savings for retail consumers in the foreign exchange market
Operations Driving Deep Customer Value in Furniture Retail
BT
Posted on December 8, 2015 at 6:31 pm
The desire to consistently and sustainably provide value to the consumer governs all critical strategic decisions at this US furniture retailer. The result could be the development of the first truly national player the US market has ever seen.
Virgin America: An Invisibly Lean Approach to Premium Service
MonicaL
Last modified on December 13, 2015 at 12:24 pm
Virgin America leverages operational smarts to deliver the hippest customer experience in the skies.
Shake Shack winning in fast casual
barnstein
Posted on December 9, 2015 at 7:59 pm
Enlightened hospitality > throughput time
Shinola: “Where American is made.TM”
BetsyVK
Last modified on December 7, 2015 at 9:33 pm
Shinola, whose watches have been rising in popularity (Bill Clinton has reportedly purchased more than a dozen [2]) is attempting to build its brand on the city in which it is made: Detroit.
Eat, Shop, and Learn: How Eataly Became a Cash Cow
Lauren Edwards
Last modified on December 5, 2015 at 11:25 am
Oscar Farinetti's innovative take on how to bring Italian gastronomy to every corner of the globe proves to be a winning recipe
In-N-Out: A Fast Food Cult
Jackie
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 12:32 am
Analyzing In-N-Out's secret sauce (the operating model, not the spread packets)
Vietnam Dairy Products Joint Stock Company: Milk for everyone
Tomo Nakagawa
Last modified on December 12, 2015 at 1:13 pm
Vietnam Dairy Products JSC is one of few state owned enterprises which pursues seamless innovation and brings value to the society.
Wayfair: Holding Inventory Is For Losers
Abed Nadir
Posted on December 9, 2015 at 8:37 pm
With an asset-light operating model, Wayfair is well positioned for aggressive growth.
The Hype Machine – More Than Just The Hype
Unknown
Last modified on December 5, 2015 at 4:07 pm
By having an operating model founded on nothing more than 'page view' payment, the Hype Machine has been become an authentic, authoritative new music source
Lynda.com
zjohn
Posted on December 3, 2015 at 8:04 pm
Recurring payments on top of crowd-sourced content.
Rent the Runway – Fashionable Operations
Zhihan Ma
Posted on December 6, 2015 at 1:16 am
“We’re not in the fashion business. We’re in the fashion-technology-engineering-supply chain-operations-reverse logistics-dry cleaning-analytics business.”
Need a Hotel, Tonight?
sijwang
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 6:44 pm
How a mobile app is revolutionizing the hotel industry
The Value Creating Strategy of Starbucks
May Alkhaldi
Posted on December 8, 2015 at 6:19 pm
How the company continued its rapid growth while maintaining its competitive advantage
Swissair – meltdown of a national icon
Rahesch
Posted on December 9, 2015 at 10:40 pm
How an aggressive expansion plan led to the grounding of a 71 year old airline conglomerate
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 [...]
The Citizenry: Beautifully Crafted Home Goods for Globally-Conscious Consumers
Safiya
Last modified on December 8, 2015 at 11:56 pm
How a sustainable, pro-social, supply chain can create a highly effective e-commerce business delivering globally-sourced, unique, high-quality products direct to consumers’ doors.
YourMechanic: Uber for Auto Repair
nkorzenko
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 9:45 pm
The automotive repairs industry is massive but incredibly fragmented. In the US, there are over 250,000 maintenance services and auto repair businesses earning a combined $57B in revenue each year. From a consumer’s perspective, the process of getting your car [...]
RadioShack: A Fallen Retail Giant
ALULA
Last modified on December 14, 2015 at 2:58 pm
RadioShack was an electronic retailer that build its brand equity around selling electronics, but found its growth, and eventual downfall, as it expanded into manufacturing and distribution operations, causing the business to be squeezed out by competition with stronger and [...]
Uber: global disruption of an old industry
Etienne
Last modified on December 6, 2015 at 8:25 am
A look at how a tech start-up disrupted a global industry and grew to a bigger valuation than Ford and GM in just 5 years
The Happiest Place on Earth: The Magic Recipe Behind Disney Parks 70% Return Rate
Florencia Muther
Last modified on December 7, 2015 at 6:49 pm
“On a visit to a Disney theme park, a little girl and her mother came to a fenced-off construction site. To her mother’s dismay, the little girl threw her favorite Disney doll, Belle, over the fence. When park staff retrieved [...]
Terra Nova: Proving that Irregular Land Titling Can Be a Strong Business Case
Camila Kataguiri
Posted on December 9, 2015 at 7:47 pm
Terra Nova and its shareholders are an example that impact investing has the potential to play an important role in the solution of our social and environmental issues in a large scale.
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