Competitive edge: a strategic management model: by taking the methodical approach to strategic...

To assess a firm's strategic position, its managers must collect and interpret data regarding the firm itself, its competitors, its stakeholders, and the industry. Having implemented a strategy based on that information, the managers further must measure that strategy's effects. The "competitive-edge

model" presented in this article provides a series of questions to guide the strategic decision-making and data-collection process so that managers gain an explicit picture of what is happening with their firm, their competitors, and the industry. Equipped with the requisite information, managers can develop market and non-market strategies by matching internal resources with external opportunities. Market-based strategies seek to provide an advantage for the firm over its competitors by appealing to specific customer attributes. Non-market strategies take into account aspects of the environment not directly related to customers, including the actions of government, shareholders, and special interest groups.

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The purpose of strategic management research is to help companies find ways to improve their performance. Research has shown that industry conditions account for approximately 19 percent of a firm's performance, while developing a sound competitive strategy is responsible for 32 percent of performance results. (1) Thus, improving the ability to craft strategy can be valuable. In this article we introduce what we call the "competitive-edge model," which provides a framework for managers to engage in systematic strategic thinking and decision-making. We believe that hospitality managers who think and act strategically can successfully navigate their environments.

The Focus of Strategic Management

The complete set of strategies pursued by a firm is the result of a complex interplay of analyses, decisions, actions, and results. As shown in Exhibit 1, both market strategies (e.g., the use of a respected brand to attract customers) and non-market strategies (e.g., political lobbying) are the product of considerable analysis. The formulation of these strategies comes after data collection and interpretation regarding the industry and its competitors and stakeholders, among other important factors. Having made a strategic decision--which represents only the firm's intent to do something--managers then must implement the strategy. This typically involves taking a series of actions such as allocating resources, changing organizational structures and systems, and developing new capabilities. Finally, managers must measure the effectiveness of the strategy by collecting performance data and using that information to make appropriate adjustments to the entire strategic-management process. Clearly, this many-step, iterative process can falter or even break down at any point if managers are not vigilant and conscientious. (2)

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The Competitive Edge Model

Our approach to the strategic decision-making concept that we just described is embodied in the competitive-edge model (pictured above). First, by using this model, managers may clearly see the big picture, including how their firm competes against others and how developments in the global economy affect their business. Second, certain portions of the model require managers to make predictions. This means that managers must develop scenarios concerning the future of their industry--such as how customers are likely to behave--and to assess the implications of those scenarios for today's plans and actions. Finally, by collecting and analyzing relevant data, managers ground their decisions and recommendations in reality. Thus, the strategies that emerge from the use of the competitive-edge model are credible and feasible--and therefore more likely to succeed than are other, less-rigorous strategies.

The specific questions that guide the decision-making and data-collection process are listed in Exhibit 2. As shown, there are 22 questions on which the various analyses are based. Gathering information to answer the questions is often a time-consuming and difficult process, and the analyst may have to dilute or even forgo acquiring some information to keep moving forward. However, once the analyses have been conducted, managers usually feel that they are experts in their own firms and have become knowledgeable about their industry, company resources, competitors, stakeholders, and international markets. Armed with this knowledge, managers are in an excellent position to make recommendations about what actions their firm should take.

Key analytical questions for strategy development

Industry analysis

* Industry scope: What products or services, types of customers, and
  geographic markets are contained in the industry definition?
* Industry structure: Which are the main firms in the industry, and
  what are their relationships to each other?
* Industry evolution: What have been the notable developments in the
  industry, and how is the industry changing?
* Industry attractiveness: How attractive is the industry, now and in
  the future?

Competitor analysis

* Strategic groups: Who are the main competitors in the industry, and
  can they be classified into strategic groups?
* Firm rivalry: What is the nature of competition within and across
  strategic groups?
* Future competition: How are firms in each of the strategic groups
  likely to compete in the future?

Country analysis

* Market evaluation: What is the expected demand for the firm's
  products and services in the targeted international market?
* Risk assessment: What are the risks (type and severity) associated
  with the venture?
* Market-entry mode: How should the market be entered?

Stakeholder analysis

* Stakeholder identification: Who are the firm's primary and secondary
  stakeholders?
* Stakeholder expectations: What are the expectations of each
  stakeholder group?
* Stakeholder mapping: What are the existing and potential
  relationships among stakeholders that could affect the firm?

Legal and regulatory analysis
* Legal and regulatory environment: What are the principal legal and
  regulatory constraints faced by the firm?
* Scenario analysis: How might legal and regulatory factors change in
  the future, and what opportunities might result?

Company analysis
* Market position: What is the company's position in its industry?
* Strategy gap: What is the company's existing strategy for competing
  in the industry? Are company resources and capabilities well
  positioned to capitalize on opportunities?
* Organization: How well is the company organized and managed to
  pursue its strategy?
* Company performance: What has been the company's performance in
  recent years? What explains this performance? How does the company's
  performance compare to competitors?

Applying the Competitive-edge Model

The competitive-edge model, along with the concepts, tools, and data required to activate it, provides managers with an explicit picture of what is occurring inside and around the firm. Of course, merely using the model does not guarantee that a firm will enjoy a competitive advantage. To achieve that objective, managers must craft strategies that work. We now describe how this process works.

Industry analysis. When applying our model, the first step is to conduct an industry analysis. This helps managers understand how certain external factors affect the firm's operations and performance. According to Michael Porter, industry analysis must consider the intensity of competitive rivalry, the bargaining power of buyers and suppliers, the potential for new entrants, and the viability of substitute products or services. (3) Porter's "Five Forces" model, which has held up for almost 25 years, is depicted in Exhibit 3. The five forces are as follows.

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(1) Rivalry. When the intensity of competitive rivalry is high, profits suffer. Rivalry is enhanced when industry growth is low, because growth-minded companies must steal customers from other firms to meet growth objectives. Also, if customers can easily switch among providers, or if there is lack of differentiation among providers, firms must compete on price to attract customers. The airline industry, for instance, faces all three of these problems, and thus it is not surprising that only niche airlines such as Southwest and JetBlue enjoy consistent profits. Despite the overall weakness in industry profits, prices remain high on some routes due to the small number of airlines offering flights in those markets. For example, American and Delta are the two major carriers providing direct flights between Dallas--Fort Worth and Atlanta. To avoid those carriers on such a trip, one could take US Airways and change planes in Charlotte, for instance, but that is an undesirable itinerary. Thus, American and Delta have been able to keep prices high for Dallas-to-Atlanta flights by offering a differentiated service (i.e., direct flights).

(2) Buyer power. When the bargaining power of buyers is high, they can demand price concessions from hospitality firms. Buyers have leverage when there are low switching costs, when firms offer similar products and services (i.e., little differentiation), when there are few buyers, or when buyers purchase large volumes. Travel agencies, for example, are typically able to negotiate lower prices than can individuals for hotel rooms, airline tickets, and cruise tickets because they buy in bulk. By the same token, a frequent challenge for a hospitality firm is to decide how much of a price concession to offer to obtain a large volume of purchases. In addition, many hospitality firms try to neutralize buyers' power by creating loyalty programs that reward customers for repeat purchases. Those programs reduce the likelihood that customers will switch to a competitor. Firms can also reduce buyers' power by differentiating their services from competitors' offerings.

(3) Supplier power. The bargaining power of suppliers is high when the supplying industry is more concentrated (has fewer sources) than are the buyers, when few close substitutes exist for the item offered, or when there is high product differentiation among suppliers. Fortunately for full-service hotels, many key supplies, such as soft goods and food and beverages, are provided by industries that have intense competitor rivalry. This keeps the prices of those supplies low. When a hotel, in turn, provides food and beverages to conventions, the conventioneers are a captive set of buyers and thus have virtually no bargaining power. This provides an opportunity to generate substantial margins.

(4) New entrants. The threat of new entrants refers to the prospect that new players will enter an industry. New entrants generally lead to an erosion of industry profits. For example, the housing boom in the 1990s fueled golf-course development in much of the United States as builders extracted premium prices for homes situated along golf courses. (4) The result was a glut of golf courses, particularly in Sunbelt states, and a concomitant plunge in average revenue per round, forcing many courses into bankruptcy. The likelihood of new entry is low if an industry has high capital requirements, saturated distribution channels, large economies of scale, and restrictive government regulations.

(5) Substitutes. Finally, firms must consider the viability of substitutes. For example, despite the government's attempts to soothe travelers' fears, the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, followed by the buildup to the Iraq war, cost hospitality firms greatly. As travelers chose to drive instead of fly, petroleum and recreation-vehicle companies received a windfall of business at the expense of airlines and hotels. In certain short-haul markets, many people now view driving as more desirable than flying due to airports' increased security-screening procedures. When close substitutes are available, firms must devise ways to make their services more attractive than the substitutes. For example, airlines might consider offering free airport parking and special rental-car deals to short-haul passengers.

Competitor analysis. How should a firm respond to competitors' actions? In most large firms, competitive moves are determined using information obtained by competitor-intelligence employees. In conducting their analyses, competitor-intelligence professionals might use the concept of strategic groups, a conceptual and statistical procedure that classifies competitors into groups of firms having similar characteristics. If applied to the lodging industry, for example, Super 8 and Motel 6 might be classified in one group, whereas Ritz-Carlton and Four Seasons Hotels would be in another group. Ritz-Carlton and Four Seasons Hotels are direct competitors, continuously monitoring each other's actions while attempting to dominate the high end of the business-traveler and vacationer markets. Those hotel chains compete only indirectly with Super 8 and Motel 6. To be maximally effective, competitive moves need to be focused primarily on direct competitors.

Country analysis. To maintain growth and profitability, firms must increasingly determine the international markets that are most receptive to their product and service offerings. A host of factors needs to be taken into account for a country analysis, and data quality may range from highly reliable to unavailable. Nevertheless, a firm such as Starbucks will analyze large amounts of economic, cultural, political, and legal data to identify its highest-potential markets. The firm must also choose the mode by which it will enter a target market (usually through a joint venture with an experienced food-service provider). Similarly, The Walt Disney Company uses country analysis to identify an appropriate region to locate a theme park and to tailor the offering as much as possible to the tastes of people in that region. The company's most recent endeavor, a joint venture with the government of Hong Kong, is a theme park on Lantau Island. The park, scheduled to open in 2005, will be designed according to Disney's previous experiences in Los Angeles, Orlando, Paris, and Tokyo--as well as on an analysis of the Asian market.

Stakeholder analysis. Organizations should also direct attention to non-market strategies and analyze who key stakeholders are and how they can be managed effectively. The goals and plans of even the most-respected service and hospitality firms can be scuttled if these analyses are not thoroughly conducted. For example, several years before Disney developed the Hong Kong theme park, it attempted to locate a park in Manassas, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.). However, concerned citizens fought the planned park because it would occupy land that had been the site of a Civil War battle. Even if Disney had identified and carefully managed its relationship with this important stakeholder group, there is no guarantee that it would have been successful in obtaining this particular site for its theme park. What the example does demonstrate is the often-close relationship between market and non-market strategies. Failure to formulate and implement one facet of strategy can hurt or even destroy other aspects.

Legal and regulatory analysis. Hospitality firms must be keenly aware of the legal and regulatory environments to compete effectively in today's business environment. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) outlines food-temperature and -handling specifications for restaurants. Failure to comply can lead to fines and poor publicity that can ultimately undermine company performance. For example, several years ago an E. coli outbreak in franchised outlets wreaked havoc on Jack in the Box's operations and caused severe damage to the chain's image. Had franchisees complied with FDA specifications on cooking temperatures, Jack in the Box could have avoided that disaster. (5) Other firms may find some laws confining. In such cases, lobbying efforts can be undertaken to develop a more beneficial environment for the firm.

Company analysis. One final, important analysis is of the firm itself. Unlike the previous analyses, which for the most part are focused on external matters, company analysis involves internal factors such as resources, capabilities, and performance. The overall objective of all the firm's strategies is to match its internal features and capabilities with external conditions, as evidenced by the familiar SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats). One hospitality company that is recognized as being well managed strategically is Marriott International. Although its diversification record is by no means perfect, Marriott has generally added to and reorganized its businesses in a thoughtful way, parlaying its strengths in service management into one of the largest U.S. providers of services to businesses, hospitals, and schools.

Much of the strategic management research throughout the last decade draws on a resource-based view of the firm. According to this view, strategic resources are critical to company analysis and effective strategy making. The strategic resources considered in this approach can be defined as hard-to-copy assets and abilities that enable firms to sustain higher performance levels than their peers can. (6) For hospitality firms, strategic resources typically are intangible assets such as brand-name reputation and know-how and exceptional capabilities such as customer-service expertise.

The ability to identify superior locations can be a key resource in the hospitality industry. (7) For example, one of Chart House's best-performing outlets is located in the Old Town section of Alexandria, Virginia, along the Potomac River. This is a prime location because it is in a densely populated area that is also a popular tourist stop. Having the ability to identify high-performing locations and properties, along with the financial resources to acquire them, can be critically important to a firm's success. In the same vein, a firm's privately held knowledge can provide an advantage over the competition. Recognizing this, McKinsey and Company publishes annually an internal Knowledge Resource Directory that catalogs individuals by resource expertise. (8) This internal "yellow pages" helps professionals throughout the firm locate specific areas of expertise, thereby enabling consultants to respond to clients' needs more quickly. Most hospitality firms could benefit by following the McKinsey recipe and creating their own catalogs of knowledge providers. In short, the resource-based view argues that a firm's long-term success depends on management's ability to create and exploit assets such as locations and knowledge that other firms cannot easily imitate. (9)

Market and Non-market Strategies

Equipped with sufficient answers to Exhibit 2's questions, managers can devise or modify their firm's market and non-market strategies. Market strategies should rely heavily on industry, competitor, country, and company analyses. Specifically, strategies should match internal resources with external opportunities and may focus on distinct geographies or consumer groups. For example, Super 8 seeks to appeal to cost-conscious customers, while the Four Seasons differentiates itself as a luxury hotel. (10) Both Super 8 and the Four Seasons have found their strategies rewarding. In addition, many firms have shifted to best-value strategies. (11) These are hybrid strategies that combine features of both cost-based and differentiation strategies. For example, Hilton's Hampton Inn chain offers value-added services such as in-room coffee makers and front-desk messages and faxes, and yet its hotels do not have restaurants on the premises. Customer acceptance suggests that this business model offers an excellent value proposition. (12)

Firms can create markets through the sophisticated use of market strategy, as in the case of Amazon.com. By applying a rich blend of psychological and statistical analysis to customer-purchase data (i.e., data mining), Amazon.com is able to anticipate trends and buying patterns. The company uses this ability to send messages to its customers suggesting new or related purchases. Thus, Amazon has been able to make sales that probably would not have occurred otherwise. (13) We believe that savvy hospitality managers can use the same kind of techniques and data to sell meals, airline flights, and hotel stays. Last-minute specials provided by some hotel chains and airlines via e-mail to self-identified flexible customers are a step in this direction.

Non-market strategies address the concerns of stakeholder groups other than customers, such as employees, special-interest groups, shareholders, and government. These strategies deserve the same careful attention to analysis and implementation that market strategies require. For example, Starbucks Corporation has a well-conceived strategy to act as a good corporate citizen. Its approach includes sponsorship of literacy, environmental, and social-equity programs.

In some cases, the pursuit of a non-market strategy can enable the pursuit of market approaches. For example, several years ago PepsiCo decided to restructure its corporate portfolio primarily with its shareholders in mind. In a leveraged buyout that involved former high-level PepsiCo executives, the firm sold Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and KFC to Tricon Global Restaurants (now Yum Brands). Unshackled from PepsiCo, Yum Brands pursued a market strategy of providing multiple brands within the same store (i.e., co-location), resulting in improved same-store sales.

Yum Brands later acquired Long John Silver's and A&W All American Food Restaurants to offer more food combinations through co-location. We expect that shareholders will benefit from this sequence of market and non-market decisions.

Actions and Performance

Successful market and non-market strategies require executives to delegate responsibility for implementation to a variety of managers. Even well-conceived strategies can fall apart at this stage. Because most new strategies have cross-functional implications, they therefore have the potential for disrupting various areas of the firm. For example, McDonald's effort to create a made-to-order hamburger was widely considered to be an excellent idea. Unfortunately, the necessary changes in equipment, information systems, production, and training proved to be too complex even for the world's largest fast-food provider. Because of this and several other missteps, McDonald's has recently suffered from poor financial performance and markedly lower customer satisfaction. (14)

Current Topics in Strategic Management

In the remainder of this article we discuss the following promising strategy topics currently under investigation: information technology, strategic human-resources management, supply-chain management, and strategic networks. Not surprisingly, each strategic approach builds on the resource-based view of the firm. In keeping with the tenets of this perspective, each provides insights into how to create and sustain a competitive advantage.

(1) Information technology (IT). Wal-Mart and Toys R Us have substantially improved their operational performance by aligning IT systems with a supportive culture and good supplier relationships. (15) Similarly, most hotel chains offer websites that allow customers to make relatively inexpensive online reservations. However, such uses of IT should not be seen as a "magic bullet" that can slay the competition. Rather, they should be regarded as a "strategic necessity"--something that is required to remain competitive. (16) On the other hand, Ritz-Carlton has incorporated its IT system into the core of its business. Ritz-Carlton's worldwide system can transmit important customer data quickly to where it is needed to provide "anticipatory" customer service. The system can also communicate best-practices information throughout the chain's entire global network. Lastly, Ritz-Carlton's IT system is the repository of information about internal quality control. (17) Used in this way, IT is as much a strategic resource as it is an operational tool.

(2) Human-resources management. Firms have long claimed that better people mean better profits. Until recently, however, hard evidence of such a link has been absent. Of particular recent interest are "high-performance work practices" such as self-managing teams, pay-for-performance compensation, and empowerment programs. Such practices create well-prepared employees who are more capable of responding to a variety of challenges than are most other employees. One study of 968 large firms in several industries found that a one-standard-deviation increase in the use of high-performance work practices reduced turnover by 7 percent and enhanced sales by $108,000 per employee across a five-year period. (18) Few settings depend as heavily on direct contact between employees and customers as the hospitality industry does, so the returns from high-performance practices may be even higher for hotels and restaurants than the statistics above indicate. Even modest human-resources ideas can create big results. American Airlines, for example, instituted an "IdeAAs in AAction" empowerment program that sought to incorporate employee feedback into its business processes. After a flight attendant noticed that most first-class passengers were not eating the olive on their salad, he recommended that the olive be removed, resulting in thousands of dollars in annual savings for the company. In general, the objective of strategic human-resources management is to link approaches for managing people to business strategies. (19)

(3) Supply-chain management. Hospitality firms often deal repeatedly with the same suppliers, such as their preferred food distributor. In the supply-chain management relationship, a cooperative philosophy can result in long-term competitive advantages. For example, a recent study of a Fortune 500 transportation firm revealed that increased "cultural competitiveness" in the supply chain reduces the time it takes for orders to be filled. (20) Cultural competitiveness is an intangible spirit of cooperation that emerges from shared beliefs among supply-chain participants about the importance of entrepreneurship, innovation, and learning. The implication is clear--building shared understandings and objectives with suppliers can create a smooth, cost-effective operations flow. Small hoteliers and restaurant owners have long understood that taking the time to get to know the delivery person helps ensure that foodstuffs and supplies arrive on time (or even early). The concept of cultural competitiveness extends this logic to suggest that suppliers may begin to fill orders even before they have been placed.

(4) Strategic network. A broader concept than the supply chain, networks can enhance a firm's performance. (21) A firm's strategic network is its existing and potential array of partnerships and alliances with customers, suppliers, and competitors. Strategic networks shape a firm's behavior and performance by providing information, resources, and access to markets. Firms that are densely "connected" simply have more opportunities to form useful alliances and win customers. For example, the OneWorld Alliance is composed of several airlines that collectively have global breadth. Before joining the alliance, airline companies such as Lan Chile had to advertise aggressively throughout the world to acquire passenger traffic. Now, other carriers regularly feed connecting traffic to Lan Chile, thus increasing passenger loads while simultaneously reducing global advertising expenses. As a result, Lan Chile can focus its efforts on local markets and competitors. In return, other OneWorld carriers receive connecting domestic traffic through international gateways, thereby increasing passenger loads and revenue. Such links serve as a valuable resource that firms outside the network are usually unable to duplicate.

Gaining access to markets through network membership solves only part of the performance puzzle, however. A firm must also devise ways to implement knowledge and techniques gleaned from network partners. (22) Specific structures devoted to this goal can include training meetings with suppliers and customers, manager exchanges between firms, and tying some incentives to innovation attempts rather than to outcomes. Not surprisingly, firms vary in their ability to participate in networks. Firms that have forged numerous alliances in the past, such as Robert Mondavi Corporation, have been found to be more productive than have firms with little background in alliance building. (23) Therefore, within the hospitality realm, hiring an executive with alliance experience or enlisting a consultant that specializes in alliance building might be solid investments.

Conclusion

The main purpose of this article was to introduce and describe the competitive-edge model as a means of improving a firm's strategic decision making. We hope that the concepts and current topics discussed here lead more managers to think strategically about their firms and to develop sustainable competitive approaches.

(1) See: A. McGahan and M. Porter, "How Much Does Industry Matter, Really?," Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 18, Special Issue (Summer 1997), pp. 15-30.

(2) For the concepts and techniques used in industry, competitor, and company analyses, see: P. Jenster and D. Hussey, Company Analysis: Determining Strategic Capability (Chichester: John Wiley & Sons, 2001).

(3) M. Porter, Competitive Strategy (New York: Free Press, 1980).

(4) See: B. Grow and T. Palmer, "Blues on the Green," Business Week, July 16, 2001, p. 70.

(5) See: R. Carelli, "Washington Fast-food Business Faces California Hamburger Trial," The Daily Record, October 7, 1997, p. 14.

(6) See: J. Barney, "Firm Resources and Sustained Competitive Advantage," Journal of Management, Vol. 17 (1991), pp. 99-120.

(7) See: L. Dube and L. Renaghan, "Sustaining Competitive Advantage," Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly, Vol. 40, No. 6 (December 1999), pp. 27-33.

(8) D. Rulke and S. Zaheer, "Shared and Unshared Transactive Knowledge in Complex Organizations: An Exploratory Study," in Organizational Cognition, ed. T. Lant and Z. Shapira (Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 2001), pp. 83-100.

(9) Barney, pp. 99-120.

(10) Dube and Renaghan, pp. 27-33.

(11) See: R. Jacob, "Beyond Quality and Value," Fortune, Autumn, 1993, p. 8.

(12) J. Anderson, "No Rush to Check into Hotel Stocks," Business Week Online, October 18, 2000.

(13) R. Hof, "Can Amazon Make It?," Business Week, July 10, 2000.

(14) D. Stires, "Fast Food, Slow Service: McDonald's Self-castigates," Fortune Online, September 30, 2002.

(15) See: T. Powell and A. Dent-Micallef, "Information Technology as Competitive Advantage: The Role of Human, Business, and Technology Resources," Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 18, 1997, pp. 375-406.

(16) See: E. Clemons, "Strategic Necessities," Computerworld, Vol. 22, No. 8 (1988), pp. 79-80.

(17) See: P. Hemp, "My Week as a Room-service Waiter at the Ritz," Harvard Business Review, Vol. 80 (2002), pp. 50-62.

(18) See: M. Huselid, "The Impact of Human-resources Management on Turnover, Productivity, and Corporate Financial Performance," Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 38 (1995), pp. 635-672.

(19) R. Miles and C. Snow, "Designing Strategic Human-resources Systems," Organizational Dynamics, Vol. 13 (1984), pp. 36-52.

(20) G. Hult, D. Ketchen, and E. Nichols, "An Examination of Cultural Competitiveness and Order Fulfillment Cycle Time within Supply Chains," Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 45, No. 3 (2002), pp. 577-586.

(21) See: R. Gulati, N. Nohria, and A. Zaheer, "Strategic Networks," Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 21 (2000), pp. 203-215.

(22) See: R. Miles, C. Snow, and G. Miles, "TheFuture.org," Long Range Planning, Vol. 33 (2000), pp. 300-321.

(23) See: B. Anand and T. Khanna, "Do Firms Learn to Create Value? The Case of Alliances," Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 21 (2000), pp. 295-315.

T. Russell Crook is a Ph.D. candidate in the College of Business at Florida State University (trc7577@ cob.fsu.edu), where David J. Ketchen, Jr., Ph.D., is a Professor of Management (dketchen@cob.fsu.edu). Charles C. Snow, Ph.D., is the Mellon Foundation Professor of Business Administration in the Smeal College of Business at Pennsylvania State University (csnow@psu.edu).