Rr Rooswanti Putri Adi Agustini

INCONSISTENCY AND AMBIGUITY IN ACHIEVING SUSTAINED COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE

Introduction

Inconsistency and ambiguity in achieving sustained competitive advantage. Explore how inconsistency and ambiguity create sustained competitive advantage against imitation in the TV industry. Discover the Z-Model for strategic advantage.

Abstract

The television industry often experiences imitation. A commercial television station in the Indonesian television industry, Trans Media, experienced imitation of its program, technologies, and human resources. In the case of Trans Media, the imitation does not affect its sustained competitive advantage. It is not clear to competitors which resources generate sustained competitive advantage. Ambiguity is at the heart of this difficulty. In this study, we examine how an organization's strategies create ambiguity and achieve sustained competitive advantage in the middle of imitation efforts by competitors. We propose a Z-Model of inconsistency in creating ambiguity and achieving sustained competitive advantage. The academic and managerial implications are further discussed in this study.

Review

The paper addresses a highly pertinent and enduring challenge in strategic management: achieving sustained competitive advantage amidst intense imitation. By focusing on the Indonesian television industry, specifically the case of Trans Media, the authors offer a unique empirical context that promises fresh insights into how organizations navigate competitive pressures. The abstract effectively highlights a puzzling phenomenon where extensive imitation of programs, technology, and human resources does not diminish the incumbent's advantage, attributing this resilience to ambiguity regarding the sources of competitive strength. This exploration of how organizational strategies proactively *create* ambiguity and "inconsistency," rather than simply benefiting from naturally occurring causal ambiguity, is a compelling premise. The proposal of a "Z-Model of inconsistency" to explain this dynamic suggests an ambitious and potentially significant theoretical contribution. While the premise is intriguing, the abstract leaves several critical questions unanswered that would need robust attention in the full manuscript. The core concepts of "inconsistency" and "ambiguity" require precise definition and differentiation from established literature on causal ambiguity, strategic opaqueness, or even dynamic capabilities. It is not clear how these terms are operationalized, especially in the context of creating a new "Z-Model." Furthermore, asserting that imitation "does not affect its sustained competitive advantage" is a strong claim that demands rigorous empirical justification; how is sustained competitive advantage measured, and how is the *absence* of impact from imitation definitively proven? The reliance on a single case study, Trans Media, while providing rich contextual detail, raises concerns about the generalizability of a proposed model, especially one with a distinct name like the "Z-Model." A more detailed explanation of the methodology used to discern competitors' lack of clarity regarding Trans Media's resources would also strengthen the argument. Despite these points for clarification and elaboration, this study has the potential to make a valuable contribution to both academic theory and managerial practice. If the authors can successfully delineate how specific organizational strategies intentionally foster inconsistency and ambiguity to protect competitive advantage, it would offer a novel perspective beyond traditional resource-based view explanations. The discussion of academic and managerial implications is crucial for translating these findings into actionable insights for practitioners grappling with intense imitation. To maximize its impact, the full paper should clearly articulate the theoretical foundations of the Z-Model, provide robust empirical evidence to support its claims from the Trans Media case, and carefully discuss the limitations and scope of its generalizability. Overall, this is a promising work that tackles a central strategic dilemma with a potentially innovative conceptual framework.

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