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)

Progressive Insurance: Flo is an Operational Genius
vkern
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 8:17 pm
Progressive Insurance is a great example of a company that has truly aligned its business model and operating model to achieve true “operational innovation”. Operational innovation, goes beyond reducing defects or making processes more efficient within a company by completely [...]
Uber: A Winning Strategy
Ruby Tamberino
Posted on December 9, 2015 at 8:04 pm
Uber effectively aligns its business model with innovative operating practices to maximize profits and optimize the experience of both the driver and the passenger.
Patagonia: Don’t Buy this Jacket
KylaW
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 9:52 pm
How tight alignment between its business and operating models has allowed this outdoor clothing company to reap profits while bettering the world.
FedEx: Delivering on Speed and Reliability
Jeff Witt
Posted on December 9, 2015 at 5:45 pm
FedEx was founded to meet a need that many companies and individuals believed was not being adequately met by the slow and often unreliable U.S. Postal Service. FedEx responded by creating a very complex network and infrastructure that met the [...]
Netflix – Behind the Scenes
opheliac
Last modified on December 1, 2015 at 12:24 am
Netflix is transforming your living room -- what goes on behind the scenes to deliver the experience
Airbnb: your home away from home
Betty Jiang
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 11:56 pm
Airbnb is a multi-sided online platform that enables people (hosts) to list their available space and earn rent while enabling travelers to book unique home stays and save money.  Upon each reservation booked, Airbnb charges hosts a 3% host service [...]
Growing “Organically” in the Vitamins Industry
Mr. Organic (Brenhouse)
Last modified on December 8, 2015 at 4:50 pm
How a West Palm Beach start up disrupted the $35 billion vitamins industry
Drizly: the disruptor of the 3-tier system?
Ni Xu
Posted on December 9, 2015 at 10:36 pm
Since the proliferation of on-demand transportation apps– Uber and Lyft, more and more startups have entered the on-demand service arena. For example, there is “Uber for food,” e.g. DoorDash, Eat24, and GrubHub. “Uber for drycleaning” e.g. Washio and NimNim, and [...]
Patagonia – Turning Social Responsibility into Company Business.
Kelley
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 12:26 pm
Patagonia's Sustainability: How their efforts attract their core consumer, and make for a socially responsible business.
Allegiant Air Soars Above the Competition
#BENRIZZO
Posted on December 4, 2015 at 2:45 pm
Fewer flights + targeted customer base = Industry leading profitability
The LEGO Success Story: Getting Everything to Awesome!
Samantha Greenblatt
Last modified on November 28, 2015 at 2:03 pm
How has LEGO transformed itself from a business on the brink of bankruptcy to the largest toy company in the world?
Figure Skating in Russia: the Operations Behind Athletic Prowess
SashaPang
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 7:35 pm
Effective operations management - key to success in Russian figure skating
Reprogramming cells to fight disease: Rewriting the rules of biopharma R&D
MLefferts
Last modified on December 7, 2015 at 7:13 pm
Moderna is a pioneer in the revolutionary new field of RNA therapetutics - a technology which allows the human body to help heal itself. No only are they delivering a new technology, but they're doing it in a novel way. [...]
Advance Auto Parts: A Golden Opportunity Tarnished by Operational Missteps
Pandamonium Lyness
Last modified on December 6, 2015 at 10:39 pm
Advance Auto Parts' strength in lean and efficient operations proves to be its undoing amidst a large-scale acquisition.
Rent the Runway: Data and fashion combine to deliver your dream wardrobe
Elena Del Real
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 8:56 pm
"Love. Wear. Return." Rent The Runway is your designer closet on demand. Can their operations scale to keep up with demand?
BlackBerry: Down But Not Out?
SRW
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 11:25 pm
The smartphone innovator is down, but is it poised for a comeback?
Amtrak: Losing Money for the Long Haul
Will Kenney
Last modified on December 9, 2015 at 9:30 pm
Why can’t Amtrak make any money? America’s national passenger rail service is a for-profit corporation, yet since its trains started rolling in 1971, Amtrak has yet to come out in the black.
Doorman – the future of E-Commerce delivery?
Max
Posted on December 9, 2015 at 8:48 pm
You love to buy online - but you are getting sick of missing your delivery or have your parcel stolen in front of your door? You can imagine better things to do on your Saturday afternoon than driving miles away [...]
Indochino: Transforming the Custom Suit Industry
Akash Patel
Posted on December 8, 2015 at 6:10 pm
Indochino is an online men’s custom suiting company whose business and operating models have aligned strongly to help it disrupt the traditional custom suit industry. What began as an online-only company has evolved to offer in-person shopping experiences for suits [...]
Bain & Company: What we can learn about operating models through a services firm
Matt McKenna
Last modified on December 6, 2015 at 1:50 pm
We tend to think about operating models as they relate to fixed asset or repeatable process businesses. But operating models are as important if not more with services firms, where your competitive advantage may walk out the door every day. [...]
Zara: disrupting the traditional cycle of fashion
Daly
Posted on December 6, 2015 at 5:06 pm
How running a fashion company made Zara’s founder richer than Warren Buffet
It Looked Good On Paper…FedEx Kinkos
SFuertes
Last modified on December 10, 2015 at 12:35 am
In what was intended to be a merger to bolster the alignment between operating and business models, FedEx Kinkos was a mistake from Page 1.
Warby Parker: Disrupting the Eyewear Industry
Lisa
Last modified on December 12, 2015 at 3:30 pm
Warby Parker offers a winning value proposition – fashionable, quality glasses at an affordable price – and its commitment to doing good in the world makes it a star in the eyes of customers.
The MBTA: A Case Study in the (Mis)Alignment of Operating Models for Public Services
aoconnor
Posted on December 9, 2015 at 9:52 pm
Overview of the MBTA's current fiscal and operational challenges, to serve as a case study that illustrates the challenges in aligning operational and business models for public services
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