Pursuit beyond competitiveness and competitive advantage

Abstract

In the post-industrial revolution era, the competitiveness paradigm appears to have reached its limits. In this article, the authors discuss the ineffectiveness of the paradigm and propose an approach beyond competition. Their premise is that every individual searches for something everlasting and wants to leave something behind that survives. To support this, they recommend that companies revive and imbibe pre-industrial society value systems that allowed the free expression of 'the divinery instincts' in individuals in the form of arts and crafts while maintaining focus and coordination through the use of information technology. They propose a 3Em's path to sustaining corporate performance, viz. Embarkation, Emulation, and Emancipation. They propose that companies should quickly get over the first two phases and get on to the emancipation phase where they concentrate on setting their own standards rather than frittering away their u energy in outsmarting competition.