It is good to start this article defining what are the competences, the competences are capacities (talents, disposition, to understand well) that allow us to act and integrate knowledge, abilities and values, the competences should serve to achieve positive differences in all aspects of the lifetime.
Let us transport this concept to Marketing, specifically to the Marketing & Operations level, it has often been argued that "competences are exclusively horizontal", that is to say that they compete…
- Products vs. Products.Categories vs. Categories Sales Force vs. Sales Force. Prices vs. Prices Segments vs. Segments Investment Level vs. Investment Level, etc., etc.
We go to the first two points, we take for granted the existence of Substitute Products, these are those that replace another product with equivalent attributes or similar proposals for consumer satisfaction, let's review… a category of products is a set of articles that offer to similar attributes consumers, therefore these products are similar and interrelated, continuing the idea, the Substitution Phenomenon can occur internally in a Product Category, or Externally in the Aggregate Supply of a market, an example… in the category "Infusions" coffee can be replaced by Tea or Yerba Mate, but it can also be substituted by a Yogurt, so we skipped the category of infusions and went to Liquid Dairy,the example is valid to understand how the lines begin to cross, jumping in this case from one category to another, or in any case from one sub-category to another, here we already see that competition can also be crossed.
Many Organizations with high levels of investment, succumbed to a competitor "less funded" for lacking a clear Market Strategy, here the Competencies returned, "an Organization with an optimal level of investment bankruptcy vs an Organization with medium investment but clear Strategy…, with this we confirm that the Competencies are also defined Vertically.
Darwinism lays the first basis for understanding the Multidimensionality of Competencies, Charles Darwin affirms in the Theory of Evolution of Species by Natural Selection… "the strongest and the most intelligent species do not survive, but the species that best adapts to the changes"…. And what do we understand by this? Let us break down… Strength is the Capacity of Physical Action, Intelligence is the Faculty of Understanding, and Adaptation is the Re-Formation or Reconfiguration of something based on a new context or continent.
I can see in the Marketing Universe that Adaptation combines some Strength and Intelligence at the same time, but with an essential condiment that is Wisdom, Organizational Thought that allows integrating each Variable to synergistically obtain an Empowered and condensed All in Organizational Strategy.
As in a Statement of Income, at the end of the year the real value obtained is achieved, not in upper or middle lines, only in the last line (Bottom line).
Know How (knowledge or knowing how) is important, but before that, Want Know is required, to obtain in the combination of both concepts the Action with an imprint of Excellence, that is… Want to Know, Know How to Do, Act with Excellence.
Example of Multidimensional Competences in a Greengrocery…
- Horizontal Competition: The Price of our Oranges will compete Horizontally vs. the Price of Oranges from the rival Greengrocer. Cross Competition: the quality of our lettuces and tomatoes will compete against the quality of the canned salad (the classic gardener) sold by the traditional pantry in front of our greengrocer. (Product type and business classification were crossed). Vertical Competition: the sum of our "+" and "-" will give a final result that will compare vs. the result of a competing greengrocer, we must deal with sales but also with cost control, the mix of each item impacts on the vertical column from the result box. Multidimensional Competition: we will ponder our value proposition, our strategy, the operational face, the level of investment, the extension of customer service hours, the preparation of personnel in terms of customer service, the presentation of the premises, their lay-out, EVERYTHING.
Let us clarify then…
- "Wallet Does not kill gallant, only rents to the lady" (reference to the level of investment), "the pint is not the least" (image and presentation of the business and its products), "God helps the early riser" (And of course !! the Supplier disciplines his life analyzing how best to serve his clients).
Everything impacts…. Strength, intelligence, wisdom, the Competencies are Multidimensional, We focus on our skills, we connect Strengths with Opportunities and forward in the conquest…., the world is ours.
